10 Memorable US Open Moments

With the US Open taking place this week, Nick takes a look back at some of the memorable moments from US Open history.

Tom Watson – 1982

In the 1982 US Open at Pebble Beach, Tom Watson found himself in a horrible position in the left rough by the side of the 17^th green, short-siding himself in the process. With his ball lying in nasty rough and a lightning fast chip shot ahead, Watson calmly said to his caddy: “I’m going to make it.” No word of a lie. His ball landed just on the green, hit the pin and dropped into the cup for a remarkable birdie. What’s more, he birdied the last hole to beat playing partner Jack Nicklaus by two shots to win his first and only US Open.

Jack Nicklaus – 1972

Jack Nicklaus’ 1-iron to the 17^th hole at the 1972 US Open is arguably the greatest shot of all time. When he reached the 217 yard par-3, he had a three shot lead, but he still had no negotiate the treacherous penultimate hole with the wind howling off the Pacific Ocean. He asked his caddy for his 1-iron and landed the ball on the green, one foot short of the hole. It took one hop, crashed into the flag and came to rest some five inches from the hole. He tapped in the subsequent birdie putt en route to a third US Open title.

Rory McIlroy – 2011

Rory McIlroy’s performance at the 2011 US Open was spectacular in its own right, but even more astonishing when considering what happened two months previously at the Masters. He bounced back from a humiliating final round at Augusta to blow the field out of the water at the very next major. He became only the sixth golfer in the history of the tournament to shoot under par in all four rounds; he set a record for lowest 72-hole score with a total of 278 and also set a tournament record for the lowest total under par score at 16-under-par.

Tiger Woods – 2008

If one shot could sum up Tiger Woods, it would be the fifteen foot putt he holed on the 72^nd hole at Torrey Pines in 2008 to force a play-off with Rocco Mediate. Immense skill under pressure and sheer refusal to be beaten are the hallmark of great champions, something displayed in abundance by Woods throughout the tournament. Not only did he hole that putt and go on to capture the title after a gruelling 19-hole Monday play-off, he did so with a torn anterior cruciate ligament and stress fracture in his leg. After the tournament, he spent eight months recovering from knee surgery.

Jack Fleck – 1955

In 1955, Ben Hogan was the overwhelming favourite to win the US Open at San Francisco’s Olympic Club Lake Course, host of this year’s championship. Hogan finished well before little-known American Jack Fleck and with two holes to play, Fleck was two behind. He bravely birdied 16, parred 17 and birdied 18 to force a play-off no one gave him any chance of winning. Fleck had never won on the PGA Tour, and everyone assumed Hogan would stroll to victory in the 18-hole play-off. How wrong they were. Fleck shot 69 to beat Hogan – who double bogeyed the last – by three shots, in what remains to this day one of the biggest upsets in the history of golf.

Arnold Palmer – 1960

At the 1960 US Open, contested at Cherry Hills Country Club, Arnold Palmer was seven strokes off the lead heading into the final round, a seemingly insurmountable deficit. Not in Palmer’s eyes. He drove the green of the par-4 first hole and two-putted for birdie, one of his six birdies in the first seven holes. Palmer would go on to card a 65 and win the tournament by two shots from 20-year-old amateur Jack Nicklaus, marking the start of a great rivalry between two legends of the game.

Ben Hogan – 1950

In February 1949 Hogan’s car collided with Greyhound bus in Texas. He was hospitalised for two months with a double fracture of the pelvis, a fractured collarbone, a fractured ankle, a chipped rib and blood clots. Despite struggling to walk after leaving hospital, he contested and won the US Open just over a year later, gritting his way through excruciating leg cramps on Sunday’s back nine. According to Golf Monthly magazine in 1950: “There has been nothing more remarkable in the golfing world in recent years or perhaps ever than Ben Hogan’s astounding victory in the American Open Championship.”

Payne Stewart – 1999

In 1998, Payne Steward missed out on his second US Open victory, finishing one shot behind eventual champion Lee Janzen. One year later at Pinehurst, he was embroiled in a battle with Phil Mickelson for the title.  After the left-hander missed a lengthy birdie putt on the 72^nd hole, Stewart holed for par from 15-feet to record his second US Open title. Stewart never got the chance to defend his title, however; he was tragically killed in a plane crash just months after his triumph.

Hale Irwin – 1990

At 45 years of age, Hale Irwin wasn’t given much of a chance of winning the 1990 US Open at Medinah Country Club. Trailing by four heading into the final day he came home in 31, including a 45-foot birdie putt at the 72^nd hole  which he celebrated by running around the green and high-fiving spectators. It was enough to earn him a place in a play-off with Mike Donald the following day, which he won on the 19^th hole after sinking an eight foot birdie putt.

Bobby Jones – 1930

Bobby Jones was a nine-time major champion before he headed to Interlanchen Golf Club to compete in the 1930 US Open. He played well all week but saved his best shot until last, holing a 40-foot chip to clinch the title. More significantly, his win at the US Open was the first piece in an historic puzzle. Jones won all four majors in 1930’s, a feat that hasn’t ever been repeated.