Support making Spaun 'hungrier' as Masters nears
Ahead of the Texas Children's Houston Open, J.J. Spaun tells Kira K. Dixon he's focusing on the positives from The Players and using the outpouring of support as fuel as he tunes up for The Masters at Augusta.
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NBC Sports
16 hours ago
- NBC Sports
Docherty, Johnson prepare to play first major
Kira K. Dixon highlights two golfers playing in their first major: Alistair Docherty and Chase Johnson. Docherty suffered many setbacks en route to the U.S. Open and Johnson was one of the last players in the field.
New York Post
20 hours ago
- New York Post
2025 U.S. Open picks: Three long-shot bets to win at Oakmont
Gambling content 21+. The New York Post may receive an affiliate commission if you sign up through our links. Read our editorial standards for more information. Scottie Scheffler may be a decisive favorite (+280) to win the 2025 U.S. Open, but this tournament has all the right ingredients for chaos. As well as Scheffler has played lately, the U.S. Open has a habit of humbling even the most in-form golfers. And this version of the tournament, which is being played at the notoriously difficult Oakmont Country Club in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, should do just that. This is the 10th time that Oakmont will play host to the U.S. Open, and in the last two iterations, this track chewed up the field. Dustin Johnson won the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont with a final score of 4-under par and was one of five players in the red after 72 holes that year. Nine years prior, Angel Cabrera won at Oakmont with a final score of 5-over par. In other words, you should be preparing for maximum chaos in Western PA this week. That should be music to your ears if you're someone who likes to have a flutter on a long shot or two at major championships. Even better news is the fact that so much value will be sucked up by Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau (+700), and Rory McIlroy (11/1), that you're going to get some whopper prices on players with actual winning upside. Can Patrick Reed tame Oakmont with his fantastic short game? Getty Images 2025 U.S. Open long-shot picks Aaron Rai (125/1, Caesars) It makes sense to target two specific types of players when looking for a long shot this week. The first group is players who do a solid job of avoiding trouble with a strong game off the tee. That's Aaron Rai's music. Ranked No. 1 on the PGA Tour this season in driving accuracy, Rai has had a year with plenty of ups and downs. He's got four top-15 finishes this season, but he's also missed four cuts, including in each of his last two outings. More encouraging, however, is the fact that Rai has had some strong performances in the toughest events on the calendar. He finished T19 at the PGA Championship, T14 at THE PLAYERS, and T11 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. If you think the key to success in this tournament is to grind out something around even par, Rai should be on your card. Patrick Reed (125/1, BetRivers) The second type of skillset I'll be looking for this week is the ability to get out of trouble with some short-game magic. Patrick Reed has that in spades. The greens at Oakmont are going to be quick and challenging, but Reed's touch on and around the dance floor should give him a leg up over most of the field. Sungjae Im (125/1, Caesars) There does seem to be a bit of a correlation between Oakmont and Augusta National, which is why this could be a good week to have some exposure to Sungjae Im. The South Korean has three top-10 finishes at Augusta, including a T2 in 2020 and a T5 this April. Like Rai, Im's accuracy off the tee should keep him out of trouble, so long as the rest of his game is working. Why Trust New York Post Betting Michael Leboff is a long-suffering Islanders fan, but a long-profiting sports bettor with 10 years of experience in the gambling industry. He loves using game theory to help punters win bracket pools, find long shots, and learn how to beat the market in mainstream and niche sports.
Newsweek
a day ago
- Newsweek
US Open Champion From Oakmont Reveals Keys to Victory, Similarities
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. It has been a tough couple of years for Dustin Johnson since moving over the LIV Golf, but this week he gets to head back to a place that will bring back plenty of good memories. The U.S. Open gets underway on Thursday at Oakmont Country Club, and nobody knows how to win at the Pennsylvania course better than Johnson. The last time Oakmont hosted the USGA's major back in 2016, the American came out on top with a score of 4-under par. Johnson played his first practice round on the front nine on Monday, and he saw plenty of similarities between the conditions from his triumph to this week. "They're really similar. It's soft, which makes the fairways a little bit easier to hit and the greens a little bit easier to hold, but it plays longer, so you have longer clubs in," Johnson said. "The conditions right now are similar. Hopefully it will be dry -- we won't get any more rain, and it will dry out a little bit by Thursday." It rained earlier in the week at Oakmont, so there is a chance that a few dry days will allow the course to get a little bit firmer by the time the tournament starts. OAKMONT, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 09: Dustin Johnson of the United States plays a shot on the first hole during a practice round prior to the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 09,... OAKMONT, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 09: Dustin Johnson of the United States plays a shot on the first hole during a practice round prior to the 125th U.S. OPEN at Oakmont Country Club on June 09, 2025 in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. More Photo byMuch has been made of the difficulty of the course heading into this U.S. Open, specifically the rough. Staying in the fairway is going to be one of the keys to success this week, and that is something that Johnson did very well in 2016. While that remains a requirement for a low score at Oakmont, the two-time major champion thinks the course may be even harder in 2025. "I drove it really straight. I hit a lot of fairways. That was the only reason I shot that well (in 2016)," Johnson said. "I don't know, it seems like it's tougher this time around, but that's just maybe with the little bit of added length. It's going to make it a little more difficult. But yeah, somehow I figured out a way to get it under par. "It was mostly the driving. Obviously even driving it in the fairway here, it's still really difficult, but I hit a lot of good drives and a lot of good iron shots." Johnson has underachieved at the majors this season, missing the cut at both The Masters and the PGA Championship. However, he is starting to find some form on the LIV Tour. Johnson has just three top 10 finishes this season, but two of those have come in his last three LIV starts. He shot 9-under par at LIV Virginia just before heading to Oakmont to finish T-10. Maybe that will be enough momentum for Johnson to find his groove again at a place where he once stood atop the golf world. More Golf: US Open Makes Major Last-Minute Oakmont Change to Help Golfers
