J.J. Spaun makes 64-foot birdie putt at final hole to win U.S. Open
Sam Burns, the final player under par at the 2025 U.S. Open, cards a costly double-bogey on the 11th hole to return to even par at Oakmont.
J.J. Spaun added supreme clarity to one of the most uncertain U.S. Opens by making a 64-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to win the 125th edition.
It was his first PGA Tour title, a major championship.
It was also a surprise finish to a surreal day, in which Spaun began the final round with five bogeys over his first six holes at Oakmont Country Club.
Following a 96-minute weather suspension, Spaun returned and proved to be the steadiest in the field. His mundane march back up the leaderboard turned pyrotechnic when he drove the green at the 314-yard, par-4 17th and two-putted from 18 feet for birdie and the lead.
He then split the fairway on the par-4 18th but hit his approach shot 64 feet, 5 inches from the hole. After playing competitor Viktor Hovland putted on a similar line, Spaun rolled his perfectly into the hole for victory — the longest putt made by anyone in the field all week.
Spaun, who lost to Rory McIlroy in a playoff at this year's Players Championship, finished two shots clear of Robert MacIntyre, who posted 68 and watched to see if there would be a Monday playoff.
Unlike at The Players, there would not.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
'Unreal' feeling for friends and family of NI's world champs
Northern Ireland won their first World Cup of Darts with victory over Wales [Getty Images] Family and friends of Northern Ireland's newest world champions have said the sensation of watching them triumph felt "unreal". Daryl Gurney and Josh Rock clinched glory for NI in the World Cup of Darts on Sunday night. Advertisement The team lifted the trophy for the first time with victory over Wales in a final-leg decider. Gurney and Rock picked up a team first prize of £80,000 after beating two-time champions Gerwyn Price and Jonny Clayton 10-9 in Frankfurt. They were playing together for the first time but Darryl's dad Tommy Gurney said "they just clicked and pulled off something unreal." 'I am just as proud as anyone can be' Tommy said he was "one very proud father". "I can't actually put it into words, I am just as proud as anyone can be," he told BBC News NI. "Some of the family was over there with him for the final and let me just say there were just so many tears. Advertisement "I phoned him after his first game, and I told him he's trying too hard and I said; 'Just let them go', play your game, and after that he was throwing better then." Tommy bought Daryl, who grew up in Londonderry, a set of darts as a 12-year-old and after he "messed about" for a while he took the game up seriously at 14. "He just kept getting better and we knew there was something special there - I think he did a 10-darter when he was 15," Tommy said. Tommy Gurney described the victory as "unreal" [BBC] Tommy said representing Northern Ireland was special to Daryl. "He said it himself, this one is even better than any of the individuals he won," he said. Advertisement "He's won the World Grand Prix and the Players Championship, but I think this means a bit more than any of the individuals." Brian Doran is friends with Josh Rock and plays darts with him [Brian Doran] Brian Doran, who is friends with Rock and has played alongside him, said it was brilliant to see his friend win the World Cup. "I've been watching it the whole weekend and basically watch all of Josh's matches, he's unreal," Mr Doran said. "He's just been getting better and better and better in every tournament. "It just took this one major, wait to you see what he wins now." When watching his friend from Broughshane in County Antrim compete on Sunday, Mr Doran said he "goosepimples, sweating, hoping he did it. Advertisement "Because it is Northern Ireland, we are basically an underdog at times, and they actually put our name on a trophy to say we are World Cup champions. "Being friends with Josh, it's unreal. I say my friend's a World Cup champion." Julie-Ann Coll grew up on the same street as Daryl [BBC] 'Screaming at the TV' Julie-Ann Coll told BBC News NI the whole of Tullyally in Derry was incredibly proud of "hometown hero" Gurney. Ms Coll grew up on the same street as the star and is best friends with his sister. "I wouldn't have missed that final for the world. I was actually a bit sick in bed, unfortunately, but I had to watch them," she said. Advertisement "It was very tense. I always say to Stacey, Daryl doesn't like to do things the easy way. "Many times, I was crying, shaking, and screaming at the TV. "The family and just everyone here is so very proud of everything he has done. "It shows all the young people here, if you put your mind to something, practice a lot, you can achieve anything. "A World Cup coming back home, it's just unreal."
Fox Sports
34 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
2025 U.S. Open purse, prize money: Payouts and winnings
J.J. Spaun outlasted the rest of his competition to win his first major at the U.S. Open. A wet and nasty Oakmont ended Sunday with two stunning shots from Spaun. From the winner's share to the full breakdown of payouts, here's everything you need to know about the prize money at the 2025 U.S. Open. Let's take a look at the complete 2025 U.S. Open prize money breakdown, including the total purse and payouts for each position in the field. 2025 U.S. Open prize money, purse, payouts 1 - J.J. Spaun ($4,300,000) 2 - Robert MacIntyre ($2,322,000) 3 - Viktor Hovland ($1,459,284) T4 - Cameron Young ($876,869) T4 - Tyrrell Hatton ($876,869) T4 - Carlos Ortiz ($876,869) T7 - Sam Burns ($614,423) T7 - Jon Rahm ($614,423) T7 - Scottie Scheffler ($614,423) T10 - Russell Henley ($465,937) T10 - Ben Griffin ($465,937) T12 - Adam Scott ($348,967) T12 - Thriston Lawrence ($348,967) T12 - Rasmus Neergaard-Peterson ($348,967) T12 - Xander Schauffele ($348,967) T12 - Chris Kirk ($348,967) T12 - Brooks Koepka ($348,967) T12 - Christiaan Bezuidenhout ($348,967) T19 - Rory McIlroy ($242,532) T19 - Ryan Fox ($242,532) T19 - Emiliano Grillo ($242,532) T19 - Victor Perez ($242,532) T23 - Patrick Reed ($161,132) T23 - Collin Morikawa ($161,132) T23 - Jordan Spieth ($161,132) T23 - Matt Wallace ($161,132) T23 - Jason Day ($161,132) T23 - Sam Stevens ($161,132) T23 - Thomas Detry ($161,132) T23 - Nick Taylor ($161,132) T23 - Max Greyserman ($161,132) T23 - Chris Gotterup ($161,132) T33 - Tom Kim ($113,503) T33 - J.T. Poston ($113,503) T33 - Aaron Rai ($113,503) T33 - Keegan Bradley ($113,503) 37 - Maverick McNealy ($101,379) T38 - Taylor Pendrith ($90,408) T38 - Tony Finau ($90,408) T38 - Matt Fitzpatrick ($90,408) T38 - Marc Leishman ($90,408) T42 - Hideki Matsuyama ($72,943) T42 - Andrew Novak ($72,943) T42 - Trevor Cone ($72,943) T42 - Si Woo Kim ($72,943) T46 - Niklas Norgaard ($56,944) T46 - Daniel Berger ($56,944) T46 - Rasmus Højgaard ($56,944) T46 - Jhonattan Vegas ($56,944) T50 - Ryan McCormick ($48,101) T50 - Michael Kim ($48,101) T50 - Mackenzie Hughes ($48,101) T50 - Adam Schenk ($48,101) T50 - Ryan Gerard ($48,101) T55 - Laurie Canter ($46,081) T57 - Sungjae Im ($45,423) T57 - Denny McCarthy ($45,423) T59 - Harris English ($44,984) T59 - Brian Harman ($44,984) T61 - Jordan Smith ($43,445) T61 - James Nicholas ($43,445) T61 - Johnny Keefer ($43,445) T64 - Cam Davis ($42,351) T64 - Matthieu Pavon ($42,351) 66 - Philip Barbaree, Jr. ($41,692) recommended Get more from PGA Tour Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more in this topic
Washington Post
36 minutes ago
- Washington Post
US Open champion JJ Spaun turned a free fall into a title at rain-soaked Oakmont
OAKMONT, Pa. — Nobody backs their way into a U.S. Open title. J.J. Spaun wasn't about to be the first to say he did. On a day built for umbrellas, ponchos and industrial-sized squeegees, Spaun reversed his own free fall, took advantage of several others' and hit two shots that turned him into a major champion while finally, mercifully, creating a moment to remember at the rain-soaked brute called Oakmont. 'I just tried to dig deep,' said the 34-year-old Californian who can now call himself a major champion. 'I've been doing it my whole life.' The shots that will go down in history are the drive he hit on the reachable par-4 17th and the 65-foot putt he sank with the sun going down and the rain falling on 18. The first set up a birdie that put him in the lead by himself for good. The second was for emphasis — he needed only a two-putt, after all — that ensured this U.S. Open would finish with one — and only one — player under par. The 65 footer, the longest of any putt made all tournament, closed out a back nine 32 and left Spaun at 1-under 279 for the tournament. His 72 was the highest closing-round score for a U.S. Open winner in 15 years. But that wasn't Sunday's takeaway. Rather, it was the 401.5 feet worth of putts the champion made over four days. And the fact that Spaun joined none other than Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson and Jon Rahm as the fifth U.S. Open winner to finish birdie-birdie. 'I just felt like you keep putting yourself in these positions, like eventually you're going to tick one off,' said Spaun, whose loss in a playoff to Rory McIlroy three months ago at The Players Championship was his third top-three finish of 2025. But at the U.S. Open? In that kind of weather? None of it seemed possible when the rain started coming down during the tail end of a front-nine 40 that took Spaun from one shot back at the start of the day to four behind and fading fast. A 1-hour, 37-minute rain delay ensued. It was a break that changed everything. 'They were just like, 'Dude, just chill,'' Spaun said of the pep talk he got from his coaches. They suggested that, if earlier in the week, he'd been told he could be four shots back with nine holes to play, he would have jumped at the chance. 'They just said: 'Just let it come to you, be calm. Stop trying so hard,'' Spaun said. Staying calm resulted in making a downhill 40 footer on the par-5 12th for birdie, then a 22-foot birdie on 14 to take the lead by himself for the first time, at even par. Everywhere else, there were meltdowns in the rain. Third-round leader Sam Burns thinned a shot out of a divot and over the 11th green en route to the first of two back-nine double bogeys. He shot 40 on the back and finished tied for seventh. Adam Scott, the only major champion in the top 10 after Saturday's play, shot 41 in the rain on the back nine and dropped to 12th . 'I didn't adapt to those conditions well enough,' Scott said. Tyrrell Hatton, who shot 72, briefly threatened and was part of a brief five-way deadlock for the lead before making bogey on the last two holes to finish tied for fourth. Robert MacIntyre turned out to be Spaun's most persistent challenger. The left-hander from Scotland faded his drive just short of the green on the way to birdie on 17 to get to 1 over and set the target for Spaun, who was playing three groups behind. MacIntyre was waiting in the locker room when Spaun hit his approach on 18 to 65 feet. Everyone knew it was no sure two-putt. Hardly anyone expected Spaun to get down in one. 'To watch him hole the putt on 12 down the hill there was unreal,' said Viktor Hovland, who played in the twosome with Spaun. 'And then he makes another one on 14 that was straight down the hill. And then the one on 18, it's just absolutely filthy there.' When they close the book on Spaun's victory at this rainy U.S. Open, maybe the most telling story will be about the way his Father's Day began. As much as the front-nine 40, it had to do with the 3 a.m. trip to the drug store for his daughter Violet, who Spaun said was 'vomiting all over.' 'It was kind of a rough start to the morning,' he said. 'I'm not blaming that on my start, but it kind of fit the mold of what was going on, the chaos .' Then, through all the rain, and through all those bad lies and bad breaks, Spaun brought some order to it all with a drive and a putt that landed him the silver trophy and gold medal that go to U.S. Open winners. 'We all sacrifice so much to be here, and to see it come to fruition, that's why we do it,' said Spaun's coach, Adam Schriber. 'It's for these moments.' ___ AP golf:
