J.J. Spaun was crowned U.S. Open champion thanks to a superb back nine in last Sunday’s final round at Oakmont, and in the aftermath, he has been out and about with his trophy
Michael Kim poked fun at J.J. Spaun(Image: Getty Images)
Michael Kim could not help but poke fun at his PGA Tour pal J.J. Spaun, fresh off his victory at the U.S. Open at Oakmont last Sunday.
Spaun secured the maiden major title of his career in style, sinking a 65-foot putt for birdie at the 72nd hole to see off the likes of Robert MacIntyre, Tyrrell Hatton, and Viktor Hovland. Fresh off his victory, the U.S. Open champion has made a number of appearances with his trophy.
It is straight back to work this week, though, at the Travelers Championship. It is a big one for the PGA Tour, which announced the appointment of new CEO Brian Rolapp at TPC River Highlands on Tuesday.
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A player meeting took place on the back of the appointment and in the build-up to the event, but it appears the U.S. Open champion was forced to skip it to take on some media duties.
Images on social media showed Spaun had made a trip to New York with his piece of silverware to feature on The Today Show.
Keen to highlight his fellow player’s trip elsewhere, one of golf’s most popular social media users, Kim, tweeted: “I thought the player meeting was MANDATORY for all players in the field. Guy wins one major and starts breaking rules.”
There is no doubt that Spaun has good reason for not attending.
The 34-year-old has the opportunity to bask in his victory, having written his name into golf’s history books at Oakmont. His journey to become the national open champion has been a long one, but his battles to make it to the top were made all worth it last Sunday.
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“I grew up watching golf,” he said post-tournament with his trophy sitting alongside him. “I was a young kid, and I wanted to play golf. I loved golf. It was a passion for me growing up. I always played with my parents growing up.
“One thing led to another. I wasn’t really groomed to be a professional golfer. I didn’t get put through academies. I didn’t play the AJGA. I played local stuff. I did qualify for, actually, my first big USGA event, which was the U.S. Junior. I did that two times when I was like 16 and 17.
“That’s kind of when I realized my potential. I just kept going, like one foot in front of the other. Junior golf, college golf, turning pro, and now here I am with the U.S. Open trophy.”
Most importantly for Spaun, he was able to share the moment with his family on Father’s Day.
“It was a very touching moment to see my girls there. They’ve never — well, my oldest daughter, she was at the Valero when I won, and she was about the same age as my youngest daughter now. It was so cool to just have my whole family there on Father’s Day. It’s just incredible.
“I have no words to describe the moment and them being able to see me as the winner. My daughter always asks me, every time dad goes golfing, she’s like, Were you the winner today? Sometimes I’m like, Yeah, I was. She’s like, Where’s my surprise?
“So today she’s like, You’re the winner today. Like she got to see it. She didn’t have to ask me. So that was a really fun moment.”
