Brand-new location. Brand-new winner.
Wyndham Clark, little more than a month removed from his first PGA Tour win, held off the seasoned Rory McIlroy on Sunday to clinch the first U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club.
Both Clark and McIlroy shot even-par 70s, maintaining their positions at the start of the day.
McIlroy, a four-time major winner, has been in the hunt for No. 5 for nine years but was once again denied. His winning drought has reached 33 majors, yet McIlroy was close in many, 19 times finishing in the top 10 of those.
Clark, 29, wobbled a bit on the back nine of the North Course with three consecutive bogeys, but it wasn’t enough for McIlroy to catch him. Weirdly, Clark won despite being the only player all day to bogey the par-three 15th hole.
Nobody played a bogey-free round Sunday, but McIlroy came close. He birdied the first hole, then parred everything until the 14th, on which he missed a 10-foot comebacker.
This was Clark’s seventh appearance in a major, with his best finish before this a tie for 75th at the 2021 PGA Championship.
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Fans cheer after Xander Schauffele sinks a 35-foot put on the second hole during the third round of the U.S. Open on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler hits from the 10th hole tee during the third round of the U.S. Open on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Wyndham Clark reacts while putting on the 10th hole during the third round of the U.S. Open on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Rory McIlroy hits from the third tee during the third round of the U.S. Open on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Wyndham Clark hits from the eighth tee during the third round of the U.S. Open on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Harris English watches his shot from the 15th tee during the third round of the U.S. Open on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Jason Day chips out of a greenside bunker on the 14th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler hits from the eighth tee during the third round of the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club on June 17. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler hits from the 11th tee during the second round of the U.S. Open on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Wyndham Clark hits from the seventh tee during the second round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Austin Eckroat, left, and Wyndham Clark walk though the rough on the fourth hole during the second round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Jon Rahm hits out of the rough on the 15th hole during the second round of the U.S. Open on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Wyndham Clark chips onto the second green during the second round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Joaquin Niemann hits out of the rough near the sixth green during the second round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler walks to the 18th green during the second round of the U.S. Open on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Alex Noren hits out of a greenside bunker on sixth hole during the second round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 16. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Tony Finau hits out of a greenside bunker on the 16th hole during the first round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler consults with his caddie before hitting out of the sandy rough on the ninth hole during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rory McIlroy hits from the 16th tee during the first round of the U.S. Open on Thursday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Despite the gloomy weather, spectators walk along the North Course at the Los Angeles Country Club during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Jason Day hits out of a greenside bunker on the eighth hole during the first round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler walks on a bridge to the ninth green during the first round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 15. Fowler shared the lead with Xander Schauffele after the first round following a stellar eight-under-par 62. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler hits out of the rough on the ninth hole during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Golfers Gary Woodland, Corey Connors and Adam Scott check the slope of the green and their putting lines on the 14th hole during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rickie Fowler, third from left, walks with Jason Day to the seventh green during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Brooks Koepka, left, and Rory McIlroy walk up to the ninth green during the first round of the U.S. Open. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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An excited golf fan tries to get an autograph from Xander Schauffele as he walks to the 17th tee box during a practice round at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 14. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Golfers line up their putts on the 11th hole during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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June gloom shrouds the downtown L.A. skyline as the first round of the U.S. Open gets underway at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Rory McIlroy hits from the 16th tee during the first round of the U.S. Open on Thursday. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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With the downtown L.A. skyline in the background, Rory McIlroy walks along the 14th fairway during the first round of the U.S. Open on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Spectators walk the course near a grandstand during the first round of the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 15. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Golf fans watch Rory McIlroy putt on the second hole during a practice round for the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 14. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
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Golf fans cross a bridge over Wilshire Boulevard to exit the course after attending a practice round for the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club on June 14. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
Clark’s first tour victory came May 7 at the Wells Fargo Championship. Coincidentally, McIlroy’s first tour win was also at the Wells Fargo, in 2010.
Scottie Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked player, finished third at seven under.
Rickie Fowler, who began Sunday tied for the lead with Clark at 10 under, slid back with a 75, even though he set a major-championship record with 23 birdies over the four days.
