Jordan Spieth Wins Thriller at US Open

21 Jun, 2015

Another major for Jordan Spieth. Another stunning loss for Dustin Johnson.

Chambers Bay delivered heart-stopping drama Sunday in the U.S. Open when Spieth birdied his final hole to become only the sixth player to win the Masters and the U.S. Open in the same year. The real surprise was not that he won, but how he won.

Johnson had a 12-foot eagle putt for the victory. Two putts would force an 18-hole playoff Monday. Less than a minute later, Spieth was shocked to be the youngest U.S. Open champion since 1923.

Johnson’s eagle putt ran by the cup and stopped just over 3 feet away. With his future father-in-law Wayne Gretzky watching, Johnson’s short birdie putt rolled by the left edge.

“I’m still amazed that I won, let alone that we weren’t playing tomorrow,” Spieth said. “So for that turnaround right there, to watch that happen, I feel for Dustin, but I haven’t been able to put anything in perspective yet.”

Lost in Johnson’s blunder was the clutch play of the Masters champion. Having lost control of the tournament with a double bogey on the 17th hole, Spieth drilled his tee shot and hit a 3-wood that caught the back bank and rolled below the cup. His eagle putt was wide left, giving him a 1-under 69.

Spieth becomes the first player since Bobby Jones to make birdie on the 72nd hole to win the U.S. Open by one shot, all because of Johnson’s three-putt. The 21-year-old Texan heads to St. Andrews next month in pursuit of golf’s holy grail – the Grand Slam.

Tiger Woods in 2002 was the last player to get the first two legs of the slam. In 1960, Arnold Palmer went to St. Andrews for a chance at three in a row.

For all the criticism of the unique course at Chambers Bay, this was the theater at its finest.

The final hour was so wild that four players could have won over the last two holes.

Spieth is the youngest player to win two majors since Gene Sarazen in 1922.

AP

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