Sunday at Shinnecock Hills out on “Strong Island” was a lot of things at once. A major championship. A career Grand Slam opportunity. Scottie Scheffler’s 30th birthday (cue the theme for “Jaws”). Father’s Day. And for about 5 hours, it was the most hostile patron gallery an American golfer has faced on American soil, maybe, maybe ever.
Wyndham Clark was not supposed to win yesterday. Heck, even I was rooting against him. And he’s from Denver. Where I am. And, the New York crowd was none too pleased Mr. Clark was perched so high on the leaderboard.
Let’s start with the setup because it was almost unfairly cinematic. Clark walked to the first tee with a six-shot lead, paired with the world number one chasing the rarest prize in the sport, on his 30th birthday, on Father’s Day, at Shinnecock Hills, in front of a Long Island crowd that had already decided who the villain was. Before he hit a single shot, someone shouted “Crash and burn.” Brutal. When his approach on four finished near a trash can, a fan yelled “Just like your game, trash.” When his chip on five rolled back to his feet, they cheered. When he missed a putt, they roared. When Scheffler made anything, the grandstands nearly lifted off the ground. Police removed hecklers from the course before the back nine. That actually happened.
Golf Digest reporters covering the final group said they developed an unconscious heuristic within three holes: Clark fails, crowd cheers. Clark succeeds, silence. Brandel Chamblee called it the worst he’d ever seen a player treated.
Here’s what Clark did about it.
Before stepping on the first tee, Clark and his caddie Dave Pelekoudas talked about the cauldron they were walking into and came up with a plan: every time the crowd cheered for Scheffler, they were going to pretend those cheers were for Clark. Every jeer was a reason to get more confident, not less.
Meanwhile the golf itself was a white-knuckler. Clark posted a 3-over 38 on the front nine and watched Sam Burns, seven shots back at the start of the day, climb to within one stroke with four front-nine birdies. Burns, who’d lost a US Open before and was absolutely hunting.
But here’s what the crowd was watching in real time and didn’t want to acknowledge: Clark was 16 of 24 in scrambling for the week. He ranked second in strokes gained putting. He made five putts from 20-plus feet. Time after time he found trouble and got out. Par saves from 10 feet, 15 feet, places you have no business making par from on a US Open Sunday at Shinnecock Hills.
The defining moment came at 16. Lead down to one. Clark drove it into the fescue, chopped out, hit a wedge to 25 feet, and rolled in the birdie. His fifth make from 20-plus feet on the week. First real fist pump of the day. The jeers were there but the cheers leveled it out for the first time all afternoon.
Burns had two putts to tie or win on 17 and 18. He missed both. NBC cameras caught him in the scoring trailer, fully leaned back in his chair, both hands on his head. He then walked out to the range on Father’s Day with his two-year-old son Bear, hoping for a playoff that never came.
Even Scheffler acknowledged what he’d witnessed. “Being in the arena is not for everybody. I think it shows a lot about Wyndham, how he handled not only this golf course but the crowd today as well. Well-deserving champion.”
Then there’s the rest of the story.
Clark’s dad, Randall, flew in on a red-eye from Denver as a Father’s Day surprise. Clark’s mom, Lise, a former Miss New Mexico, passed away from breast cancer 13 years ago. After tapping in the final putt, Clark saved the biggest hug for his biggest fan.
After hoisting the trophy he told NBC: “Let’s go. We’re drinking tonight.”
One more character in this story worth mentioning, because I saw her: Emily Tanner, Clark’s girlfriend. The Michigan State alum and LA-based entrepreneur co-founded Over Social Agency, a beauty and wellness influencer marketing company, and has been Clark’s self-described good luck charm since they went public at the Masters in April. She posted a video of Clark on Instagram this week and wrote “This is my bf Wyndham. He’s a pro golfer and spends most of his rounds finding me in the crowd. That’s my why.” She’s at @emilytanner on Instagram if you want to follow along. 
New York, you put on quite a show. He put on a better one.
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