SPAUN'S OAKMONT ODYSSEY: How a Rejected Shot & Rain-Soaked Grit Delivered Golf’s Wildest U.S. Open

The 125th U.S. Open at Oakmont wasn’t just a golf tournament—it was a bare-knuckled brawl against a century-old course, sideways rain, and the ghosts of majors past. When J.J. Spaun hoisted the trophy at even par, it wasn’t a victory lap. It was a survival manifesto. For global golf fans craving chaos, FLASH FACTZ serves the spicy, rain-drenched drama that made this major unforgettable.

Spaun brutal flagstick rejection U.S. Open Hole 2 Oakmont.

The Traffic Jam Heard ’Round the World

By Sunday’s back nine, Oakmont’s leaderboard looked like a Pennsylvania Turnpike pileup. At one surreal moment, five players—Sam Burns, Adam Scott, Tyrrell Hatton, Carlos Ortiz, and Spaun—were tied for the lead at 1-over par. Lurking one stroke back? Viktor Hovland and Robert MacIntyre. In major championship golf, ties are common. Five-way deadlocks with six holes left? Unprecedented chaos.

• Sam Burns (54-hole leader) clung to hope despite a triple bogey, double bogey, and three bogeys in his final round.
• Adam Scott chased a fairytale: becoming the second-oldest U.S. Open winner at 44.
• J.J. Spaun had already *triple-bogeyed his way to +5* through six holes—then clawed back into contention.
• Robert MacIntyre quietly posted a clubhouse-leading +1, praying for a collapse ahead.
  

Oakmont Country Club green flooding U.S. Open rain delay.

Oakmont’s Cruelty: Flagsticks, Fescue, and Floods

This major turned on three acts of brutality that broke contenders and birthed Spaun’s legend:

1. The Shot That Hit the Stick—and Spaun’s Soul

On Hole 2, Spaun’s 94-yard wedge shot hopped once, slammed the flagstick, and rocketed 50 yards off the green. Bogey followed. Then another. And another. His U.S. Open dream appeared dead by 3:00 PM. Yet this rejection became the catalyst for one of golf’s greatest comebacks.

2. Burns’ Bogey from a Puddle

\At the par-4 15th, Burns stood in casual water after his drive. Officials denied relief. His forced approach hooked into rough so thick, it took two hacks to escape. Double bogey. In 10 minutes, his lead vanished. "It was the definition of a brutal break," said NBC’s Smylie Kaufman.

3. The Rain That Refused to Quit

A 96-minute suspension at 4:01 PM turned Oakmont into a water park. Greens became ponds. Players huddled under umbrellas. Grounds crews squeegeed like their lives depended on it. When play resumed, the softened course became a stage for late fireworks—and meltdowns.

J.J. Spaun clutch 331-yard drive 17th hole U.S. Open Oakmont.

Spaun’s Resurrection: From +5 to Champion

How does a golfer rebound from three opening bogeys and a weather-induced identity crisis? For Spaun, the answer was numb patience. While Burns and Scott bled strokes on Oakmont’s infamous "Green Mile" (Holes 16-18), Spaun played his final 12 holes at *3-under par*. The climax? A 331-yard drive on the drivable par-4 17th that settled 4 feet from the pin. The eagle putt didn’t drop, but the birdie gave him the solo lead for the first time all week. One par on 18 sealed it. His scorecard: a rollercoaster 75 (5-over)—the highest final round by a U.S. Open winner since 1985.

Contender Collapses: The Final 3 Holes

Why This Win Redefined "Major" Grit

Spaun arrived at Oakmont as a footnote—Rory McIlroy’s playoff victim at The Players Championship. He left as the embodiment of U.S. Open tenacity:

• Survival > Style: Only four players finished within 10 strokes of even par. Jon Rahm’s clubhouse lead was +4. Scottie Scheffler (+4) and Rory McIlroy (+8) were non-factors.
• The Unlikeliest Hero: Spaun was ranked 89th worldwide. His lone PGA Tour win? The 2022 Texas Open.
• History in the Rain: His victory marked the first weather-delayed U.S. Open finish since 2009.

Oakmont’s Echo: "This Course Is Too Hard For Me"

Players’ post-round quotes read like trauma testimonials:

• Si Woo Kim: “Honestly, I don’t even know what I’m doing on the course... Kind of hitting good, but feel like this course is too hard for me”.
• Bryson DeChambeau: “This golf course can come up and get you pretty quick... It got me”.
• Sam Burns (pre-Sunday): “If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times: this golf course is difficult. It takes a lot of patience”.

The Shot That Defied Logic (and Physics)

Spaun’s 17th-hole drive wasn’t just perfect—it was psychic. With a 3-wood in hand and rain still falling, he carved a draw around Oakmont’s church pew bunkers, landing it on a dime-sized firm patch of green. As it rolled toward the cup, gasps erupted. The shot setup:

• Yardage: 331 yards
• Club: 3-wood
• Proximity: 4 feet
• Result: Birdie (solo lead)

In Spaun’s words: “I was due for a good break”.

U.S. Open 5-way tie leaderboard chaos Oakmont final round.

The Takeaway: Why Spaun’s Win Matters

In an era of golf dominated by superstar oligarchs (Scheffler, Schauffele, McIlroy), Spaun’s win is a flare gun for the underdogs. It proved:

1. Majors Reward Resilience—not just radar stats.
2. Oakmont Is Golf’s Great Equalizer—hosting more U.S. Opens (10) than any course.
3. Par Is Eternal—even as technology advances, U.S. Open setups humble the elite.

As Spaun clutched the trophy, drenched but grinning, he distilled his victory to seven words: “This was a battle against everything”.

Rain can’t drown destiny—Spaun’s Sunday began with 3 bogeys & a flagstick body-slam.
Five-way ties aren’t traffic jams—they’re chaos theory in spikes.
Winning ugly > losing pretty—Oakmont crowned survival, not style.