Wyndham Clark captured the first major championship of his career Sunday when he held off Rory McIlroy to win the U.S. Open at the Los Angeles Country Club.
Clark shot a 10-under for the tournament, and McIlroy finished one stroke behind him. Clark kept McIlroy in the game with some questionable shots down the stretch but finished strong on the 18th.
He will also be taking home a pretty nice paycheck for his efforts.
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Clark will receive $3.6 million for his win. Matthew Fitzpatrick received $3.15 million in 2022, and Jon Rahm received $2.25 million in 2021. The total purse for the 2023 tournament was $20 million.
Clark had only made about $11.5 million for his career when he entered the tournament. He also only had one win on his resume on the PGA Tour. It came in May when he won the Wells Fargo Championship.
"I just felt like my mom was watching over me today," he said afterward. "I worked so hard and dreamed about this moment for so long. I just felt like it was my time."
Clark previously missed the cut in the other two U.S. Open tournaments he played. He finished tied for 75th at the 2021 PGA Championship and tied for 76th at The Open Championship last year.
Only up one stroke on the 18th, Clark had a decent approach on his tee shot. He made the green on his second, and on his third, he got within a few feet of the cup. He would save par and start the celebrations.
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Clark was 10-under for the tournament.
McIlroy was on Clark’s tail the entire fourth round, but a crucial shot on 14th gave Clark some distance. McIlroy hit a shot into the rough part of the bunker and was given a free drop. He had an opportunity to salvage par but missed a putt and dropped two strokes behind Clark. It was McIlroy’s first bogey.
Clark’s tee shot on 14 landed on the green. He would birdie the hole and move three strokes ahead of McIlroy as the two leaders came down the stretch.
Clark got caught up on the ninth hole earlier in the round but managed to save par and keep a one-stroke lead over McIlroy as he went to the back nine. He would bogey 15, which kept the door open for McIlroy – just in case.
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He bogeyed the 16th hole, and McIlroy made par on 17 to stay within one stroke of the leader. McIlroy nearly birdied on 18 but would eventually make par. He had one birdie and one bogey for a final-round 70. He finished 9-under par for the tournament.
