Planet Golf — 17 June 2012 by GW staff and news services
Final-round U.S. Open notes

Notes from the final round the the U.S. Open at The Olympic Club in San Francisco:

The Winner: Webb Simpson 72-73-68-68—281; Runnersup: Michael Thompson 66-75-74-67—282; Graeme McDowell 69-72-68-73—282.

Webb Simpson:

    • Simpson entered the final round trailing Jim Furyk and Graeme McDowell by four strokes but carded a 2-under 68 to finish 1-over 281 to win the 112th U.S. Open. At one point he trailed by six strokes.
    • Simpson wins the Open at the age of 26 years, 10 months and nine days. The youngest winner of the U.S. Open is John J. McDermott, who won in 1911 at the age of 19 years, 10 months, 14 days.
    • Simpson is the first of five U.S. Open winners at The Olympic Club not in his 30s: Jack Fleck (33), Billy Casper (34), Scott Simpson (31) and Lee Janzen (33).
    • He is the eighth player (nine wins) in his 20s to win on TOUR in 2012.
    • He joins Fleck, Casper, Simpson and Janzen as final-round come-from-behind winners at the five U.S. Opens held at Olympic Club.
    • Simpson becomes just the third American winner of the U.S. Open since 2004, joining 2008 champion Tiger Woods and 2009 winner Lucas Glover.
    • He wins in his second U.S. Open start (T14 in 2011). He is the first player to win in his sophomore start since Jerry Pate in 1976.
    • His week at a glance: He hit 42 of 72 greens in regulation (T16), 31 of 56 fairways in regulation (T13) and 5-for-12 in sand saves (T37).

What Webb Wins:

    • Prize money: $1,440,000
    • 10-year U.S. Open exemption
    • Five-year exemption to the Masters, British Open, PGA Championship and Players Championship
    • Five-year exemption on the PGA Tour
    • 600 FedExCup points (moving from 32nd to 9th)

Michael Thompson:

    • The former University of Alabama standout recorded a 3-under 67 to finish T2 in his second U.S. Open appearance (T29/2008).
    • This is his third-career start in a Major Championship (missed cut at 2008 Masters).
    • Thompson lost 2&1 to Colt Knost in the final match of the 2007 U.S. Amateur Championship at Olympic Club.
    • Thompson’s T2 is his second top-10 finish of the season (T6-Sony Open in Hawaii). He entered the week No. 90 in the FedExCup standings.

Graeme McDowell:

    • McDowell finished T2 in his attempt to give Northern Ireland three consecutive U.S. Open titles.
    • McDowell is now 0 for 2 when carrying at least a share of the lead into the final round on the PGA Tour. He led the 2011 Players Championship before a final-round 7-over 79 led to a T33 finish.
    • McDowell has never missed a cut in seven starts at the U.S. Open, with top-20 finishes in his last four starts (2009-T18, 2010-1, 2011-T14, 2012-T2).

Jim Furyk:

    • The 2010 FedExCup champion entered the final round tied for the lead with McDowell but a 3-over 73 left him two strokes behind Simpson at T4.
    • Furyk’s T4 comes in his 67th Major Championship start (19 top 10s).Furyk has finished inside the top 5 at the U.S. Open six times (1st/2003, T2/2006, T2/2007, T4/2012, T5/1996, T5/1997).
    • He was seeking to become the 22nd player to win multiple U.S. Opens.
    • Sunday’s T4 finish marks the first time in his last 18 events entering the final round with at least a share of the lead that he has finished worse than second (10 wins, 7 runner-up finishes, one T4).

Tiger Woods:

    • Woods finished T21 for his second-worst finish in 15 professional starts at the U.S. Open (missed cut in 2006).
    • This week marked just the ninth time in 43 tries that Woods has failed to carry the 36-hole lead on to victory.
    • Twenty-one of Woods’ 69 stroke-play wins have been in come-from-behind fashion, but never in a Major.
    • His week at a glance: He was 45 of 72 in greens in regulation, 33 of 56 in fairways in regulation and just two of 11 in sand saves.

Ernie Els:

    • Els finished solo-ninth in his 20th U.S. Open start, with wins in 1994 and 1997 among his nine top-10 finishes.
    • Els was seeking to become the seventh player with at least three U.S. Open Championship victories:

Phil Mickelson:

    • Mickelson carded a final-round 8-over 78, the second-worst final-round in his 22 U.S. Open starts (79, 1994).
    • Mickelson finished T10 at the 1998 U.S. Open at Olympic Club, one of nine top-10 finishes at the event. He finished T65 this week.

Matt Kuchar:

    • Kuchar finished T27 in his bid to become the first player to win The Players Championship and the U.S. Open in the same season. Seven players have won The Players and the U.S. Open during their careers: Lee Trevino, Jerry Pate, Jack Nicklaus, Raymond Floyd, Tom Kite, Lee Janzen and Tiger Woods.
    • Kuchar made his 27th start in a major this week. He missed 12 of 13 cuts in majors starting at the 1999 U.S. Open through the 2009 PGA. Since then he has made nine of 10 cuts with a best finish of T3 at the 2012 Masters.

Final-round notes:

    • A player in his 20s has won six of the last eight major championships (Webb Simpson, Keegan Bradley, Rory McIlroy, Charl Schwartzel, Martin Kaymer and Louis Oosthuizen). Bubba Watson (age 33) and Darren Clarke (age 42 at 2011 British Open) are the exemptions.
    • Top-10 finishers (and ties) are exempt into the 2013 U.S. Open. Top-8 finishers (and ties) are exempt into the 2013 Masters.
    • Simpson is the 15th different major winner in last 15 events.
    • David Toms battled back from a third-round 6-over 76 with a 2-under 68 to finish T4 – his third top-10 finish and career-best effort in 16 U.S. Open starts (T5/2003, T5/2007, T4/2012).
    • On Father’s Day, Keegan Bradley’s dad, Michael, carried his bag up the 72nd hole. Bradley closed with a 7-over 77 to finish T68.
    • Jason Dufner finished T4 in his sixth U.S. Open start. He has finished inside the top 4 in four of his last five starts on TOUR (1st-Zurich Classic of New Orleans, T68-The Players , 1st-HP Byron Nelson Championship, 2nd-Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial, T4-U.S. Open).
    • Sergio Garcia finished T38 in his 55th start in a Major Championship.
    • Two players posted top-10 finishes in each of the first two Majors in 2012: Lee Westwood (T3-Masters, T10-U.S. Open) and Padraig Harrington (T8-Masters, T4-U.S. Open).
    • Amateur Leaderboard: Jordan Spieth 74-74-69-70—287, T21; Beau Hossler 70-73-70-76—289, T29; Patrick Cantlay 76-72-71-72—291, T41.
    • Number of times the third-round leader/co-leader has gone on to win the U.S. Open: 48.
    • In four rounds, only one player managed a bogey-free rounds, Kevin Chappell, who had a 68 in the third round Saturday.

 

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