J.J. Spaun turned a sloppy mess of a U.S. Open at wet and nasty Oakmont into a thing of beauty at the end Sunday with two stunning shots that carried him to his first major championship.
First came his driver on the 314-yard 17th hole onto the green for a birdie that gave him the lead. Needing two putts from 65 feet on the 18th to win, he finished this storybook week by holing the longest putt all week for birdie and a 2-over 72.
That made him the only player to finish under par at 1-under 279. It gave him a two-shot victory over Robert MacIntyre of Scotland.
And it made Spaun, the 36-year-old Californian who resembles the late Pittsburgh Steelers great Franco Harris, a major champion in only his second U.S. Open.
The rain that put Oakmont on the edge of being unplayable might have saved Spaun. One shot behind at the start of the day, he opened with five bogeys in six holes. And then came a rain delay of 1 hour, 37 minutes.
Spaun recovered as so many others fell apart.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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