{"id":4690,"date":"2026-06-22T06:34:10","date_gmt":"2026-06-22T06:34:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=4690"},"modified":"2026-06-22T06:34:10","modified_gmt":"2026-06-22T06:34:10","slug":"the-u-s-open-crowd-rooted-openly-against-wyndham-clark-he-won-anyway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=4690","title":{"rendered":"The U.S. Open crowd rooted openly against Wyndham Clark. He won anyway."},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Wyndham Clark hoists the U.S. Open trophy for the second time in four years after holding off Sam Burns by a stroke. (Bill Streicher\/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. \u2014 A new \u201cCode of Conduct\u201d policy was quietly put in place this year at each of golf\u2019s major championships, a response to concern over bad behavior on the course by players. It resulted in a two-shot penalty this week for Chilean Joaquin Niemann, who threw his club in disgust during the first round of the U.S. Open.<\/p>

Read more Egypt\u2019s Mo Salah adds to list of accolades in World Cup against New Zealand<\/a><\/p>\n

No such penalty was issued to Wyndham Clark, but it\u2019s been suggested, half-jokingly, that he should be docked for what occurred during last year\u2019s<\/i> U.S. Open, at venerable Oakmont Country Club, where a substantial footprint and hole was left in one of the lockers, courtesy of Clark\u2019s cleats.<\/p>\n

Photos were leaked, and soon Clark was dealing with his second self-inflicted public relations nightmare in a month. At the PGA Championship a few weeks earlier, he\u2019d tossed his club in anger, bouncing it off a promotional banner \u2014 for a company he represents, ironically \u2014 and drawing a public reprimand. The Oakmont incident caused further embarrassment, with the club going so far as to announce it was banning him from the premises.<\/p>\n

A year later, Clark, 32, held on to his emotions, and his game, on Sunday to win his second U.S. Open, finishing with a 73 \u2014 and two-putting on the final green from 52 feet \u2014 to hold off Sam Burns by a stroke. He did it through a mix of heckles, jeers and seemingly perfunctory cheers, the golf world still nursing mixed feelings for a talented golfer with a history of lashing out.<\/p>\n

Throughout the final round Sunday, an \u201canyone but Clark\u201d vibe emerged in the gallery. Some clearly just hoped for a close tournament, but others were not subtle about not wanting Clark to win. \u201cDon\u2019t choke Wyndham!\u201d fans chanted when his approach to the par-3 seventh green found a bunker. When he walked off the green with a bogey, his lead was down to one shot over Burns, who became a crowd favorite as he tried to chase down Clark.<\/p>\n

\u201cMan, they definitely didn\u2019t want me to win,\u201d he said after a tournament in which he led after each of the first three rounds, including a whopping six-stroke advantage heading into the final round over four players, including Burns and Scottie Scheffler.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s pretty rare in an Open Championship or a major to have fans kind of boo against your shots or cheer for bad shots. I mean, that was tough, but … sometimes being the underdog is nice. I was in \u201923, and I kind of did the same thing. Anytime someone said something negative to me, I replaced it with something positive. Some of it is self-deserved. I kind of brought it on myself, but I also get it, too. Scottie [Scheffler] was going for the career Grand Slam, and it hasn\u2019t happened very often.<\/p>\n

\u201cYeah, it was tough, but I\u2019m proud of myself that I battled through. I mean, things really could have gotten away from me. I stood tough. I would have liked to have won by more, but as long as you win, it doesn\u2019t matter.\u201d<\/p>\n

To Clark\u2019s credit, he has not batted away the tough questions. He handled them awkwardly, but he\u2019s mostly tried to heal. The topic of Oakmont and the locker room incident has come up often in the past year, especially as his game suffered through a slump that didn\u2019t end until a month ago when he won the CJ Cup Byron Nelson tournament. He followed with a third-place finish at the Memorial tournament and a tie for 11th at last week\u2019s Canadian Open.<\/p>\n

\n
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The crowds at Shinnecock were not kind to Clark. (Bill Streicher\/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

And, of course, here at Shinnecock, starting Monday when he did a pre-tournament interview.<\/p>

Read more Surman gets World Cup goal but New Zealand falls to Egypt 3-1<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a really challenging time and something I\u2019ve deeply regretted and feel awful that I did that,\u201d said Clark, who was required to complete online anger management classes as part of his restitution for the Oakmont incident. \u201cBut there were so many good lessons in that that really taught me a bunch. I\u2019ve really come a long way, and I\u2019m excited for this year\u2019s Open for some redemption and to move forward and enjoy the challenges of Shinnecock and how great this place is and how amazing this championship is.\u201d<\/p>\n

Along the way, Clark, who won the 2023 U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club, rankled golf fans with rules controversies and commentary. At the Arnold Palmer Invitational, he was seen patting grass down behind his ball, leading to a review before officials cleared him. During the Masters Par 3 contest in April, he quipped that the plethora of kids running around with their golfer parents in caddie jumpsuits was a good reason for birth control.<\/p>\n

When he won in Dallas last month, he noted that he\u2019d likely celebrate by \u201copening some grape,\u201d a phrase that went viral and led to more ridicule.<\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Clark held on through jeers and cheers (for misplayed shots) at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club. (Pamela Smith\/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

At last week\u2019s Canadian Open, he showed his nerve with a playful troll at The Rink, the hockey-themed 14th hole that is a knockoff of the revelry at the par-16th found each year at the Phoenix Open.<\/p>\n

During the third round, Clark unveiled a hockey jersey and pulled it over his golf shirt. But not just any jersey: a Team USA jersey, No. 86, that of Jack Hughes, the hero of the Americans\u2019 Olympic gold medal win over Canada. The Canadians showered him with boos as a sly, evil smile crept across his face.<\/p>\n

And yet, all along he was working on rehabilitation. He made numerous changes since Oakmont, hiring a new swing coach, a new caddie and a new putter, along with taking a new approach to his mental health with his sports psychologist, Julie Elion, who\u2019s been promoting a book and got airtime during the broadcast.<\/p>\n

Still, it was difficult to envision this display, a golfer seemingly playing a different course than all of the rest, dominating.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was on top of the world in my game at least when I won the U.S. Open and then had some good years,\u201d Clark said. \u201cThen next thing you know, I\u2019m apologizing for breaking a locker the year later.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just think with the mental game there\u2019s ebbs and flows. If you think of it as climbing Everest, sometimes you go up, sometimes you have to go down to go back up. I think that\u2019s kind of what happens both on the golf course and off the golf course. Right now I\u2019m trending back up, which is nice.\u201d<\/p>

Read more Salah scores and Egypt downs New Zealand 3-1 for a first World Cup victory<\/a><\/p>\n

Bob Harig writes the Daily Drive newsletter on Substack.<\/i><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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