LOS ANGELES ― Wyndham Clark crashed the party at the U.S. Open on Sunday, holding off Rory McIlroy and outclassing Rickie Fowler while winning his first major championship.
Instead of one of golf’s big names celebrating on the 18th green among roaring fans, it was the relative no-name Clark enjoying the moment at Los Angeles Country Club.
Clark, 29, finished the tournament at 10-under, one stroke ahead of McIlroy and five strokes ahead of Fowler. He held on despite making bogey at holes No. 15 and No. 16 and watching a a three-stroke lead over McIlroy get whittled to one shot.
He held on for victory thanks to pars at No. 17 and No. 18 for an even-par 70 in the final round.
Before this week, Clark had competed in six major championships and finished no better than tied for 75th.
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Fowler, seeking his first major championship, started the day tied for the lead with Clark at 10-under. But he made three bogeys over the first seven holes and never got on track.
McIlroy, trying to end his almost nine-year drought since winning his last major championship, stalked Clark for much of the day couldn’t catch him with steady golf. He made one birdie and one bogey during his round of even-70.
With the victory, Clark earned $3.6 million and some much-deserved name recognition.
Clark, who grew up in Colorado, is the son of former professional tennis player. His mother died of breast cancer in 2013 when he was attending Oklahoma State, and over the years he has talked about how she and her death impacted him.
“She told me before she passed that she just wanted me to play big, to play for a bigger purpose and something greater than myself,” Clark told Golfweek in a 2014 interview. “I’ve kind of just taken that into this season and hopefully into the rest of my life.”
He turned pro in 2017.
Clark’s unexpected victory was less shocking to those who follow the PGA Tour. During the 2022-23 season, he has six Top 10 finishes and in May won his Tour event at the Wells Fargo Championship.
