J.J. Spaun caps U.S. Open title with 64-foot putt

Before taking on the harsh conditions at Oakmont Country Club for the final round of the 125th U.S. Open, J.J Spaun was at CVS getting medicine for his daughter early Sunday morning. 

His youngest daughter, Violet, faced a stomach virus that kept Spaun and his wife up through the night. Sleep deprived in one of the hardest courses on the PGA Tour could have been a recipe for disaster in Pittsburgh on Sunday.

The long night only made J.J. Spaun’s first victory at a major even more special when he capped the U.S. Open victory with an astonishing 64-foot putt to win $4.3 million.

Robert MacIntyre finished second to win $2,322,000, and Viktor Hovland won $1,459,284 for finishing third.

Oakmont’s thin fairways, small wave-like greens, and thick rough frustrated many of the world’s best golfers. The rain sabotaged conditions even further. Spaun found a way to win, though.

The Los Angeles native who has Mexican and Filipino roots from his mother Dollie entered the final round tied for second at -3 after shooting a 69 Saturday. Spaun had been in this situation before.

Too often this year, victories appeared on the horizon for Spaun before he let them slowly slip away.

This time Spaun, 34, couldn’t think about his previous blunders because he had put golf aside to attend to his sick daughter. 

“Like THE PLAYERS was tough,” Spaun said. “I was alone that week, and I’m just kind of sitting there at night in my hotel room, like trying not to go on social media, trying not to go on Twitter or whatever, X.

“It’s nice to be able to have the kids to be around and be a dad. That kind of keeps your mind off golf and kind of gets me in a calm, cool, collective mindset going into today.”

Spaun struggled on the front nine in the final round of the major tournament again. He started his round by bogeying five of the first six holes. Just as it had at THE PLAYERS tournament, weather suspended tournament play. Spaun had 90 minutes to collect his thoughts. 

An unlikely comeback

He is adamant the weather delay was a blessing in disguise. Everyone close to Spaun knew this break in play was all he needed to turn things around. During the halt, at the range, his coach Josh Gregory reminded the young golfer to be calm and stop trying so hard. 

“That’s what I was doing,” Spaun said. “I felt like I had a chance, a really good chance to win the U.S. Open at the start of the day. It just unravelled very fast. But that break was actually the key for me to winning this tournament.”

After a break and advice, J.J. Spaun finished the back nine with birdies on the 12th, 14th, and 17th. On the 18th, he made his seemingly miraculous 64-foot, birdie putt to secure his first major championship. 

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“Yeah, that was unbelievable,” Viktor Hovland said. “After his start, it just looked like he was out of it immediately. Everyone came back to the pack. I wasn’t expecting that really.

“Yeah, to watch him hole the putt on 12 down the hill there was unreal. And then he makes another one on 14 that was straight down the hill. And then the one on 18, it’s just absolutely filthy there.”

This was the longest putt made by any player THE ENTIRE WEEK!

Unbelievable finish from J.J. Spaun. pic.twitter.com/cJVOPnsA2g

— U.S. Open (@usopengolf) June 16, 2025

Persevering Spaun

The road to winning a major was filled with adversity for J.J. Spaun. He learned to play golf from his parents, who were both avid golfers. With no formal training, Spaun was good enough to walk-on at San Diego State University before joining the PGA Tour.

Spaun, who has type 1 diabetes, lost his tour card early in 2021 after a misdiagnosis of type 2 diabetes. Once he earned his tour card back in August 2021, Spaun slowly worked his back into form. 

Early this year, J.J. Spaun was tied for second at the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches. He was also tied for third at the Sony Open in Hawaii. 

His biggest letdown was at THE PLAYERS tournament, where he lost in the three-hole playoff to Rory McIlroy. Spaun conceded all these shortcomings prepared him for his moment at the U.S. Open.

However, he has atoned. J.J Spaun is now a U.S. Open Champion. 

“I just felt like you keep putting yourself in these positions, like eventually you’re going to tick one off,” he said. “I don’t put myself in this position often, or at all, for a major, that’s for sure.

“This is only my second U.S. Open. But all the close calls that I’ve had on the PGA TOUR this year has just been a really good experience to just never, never give up.”