The US Open is the most demanding examination in golf, a championship defined by narrow fairways, punishing rough, and courses set up to make even the world’s best players look fallible.
With US Open odds already beginning to take shape ahead of the 2026 renewal at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, New York, from June 18-21, here is a look back at the five players who have lifted the trophy most recently and what their victories tell us about what it takes to win golf’s toughest major.
J.J. Spaun: 2025
J.J. Spaun’s victory at Oakmont Country Club in 2025 was one of the great underdog stories in recent major championship history. The American, who had spent years on the periphery of the PGA Tour without ever threatening at the top level, produced the week of his life when it mattered most. Oakmont’s brutal rough and lightning-fast greens had neutralised many of the favourites, and Spaun’s precision off the tee and exceptional course management proved the difference. It was a reminder that the US Open, more than any other major, has a habit of producing champions who arrive without fanfare.
Bryson DeChambeau: 2024
Bryson DeChambeau’s second US Open title, following his 2020 Winged Foot triumph, produced one of the most gripping major finishes in recent memory. DeChambeau took a three-shot lead into the final day at Pinehurst No. 2 but found himself two behind when McIlroy made four birdies in a five-hole stretch around the turn, with the Northern Irishman seemingly on course to end a decade-long wait for a fifth major.
McIlroy then collapsed over the closing stretch, carding bogeys on three of his final four holes, including a missed putt from inside four feet at the last. DeChambeau, meanwhile, produced what he called the best shot of his life, getting up and down from 55 yards out of a bunker on the 18th to claim a one-shot victory. It was a finish that encapsulated everything the US Open is about: nerve, drama, and moments that define careers in both directions.
Wyndham Clark: 2023
Wyndham Clark announced himself to the world at Los Angeles Country Club in 2023, alsoholding off McIlroy down the stretch to claim his maiden major title. Clark had been considered a rank outsider by most before the week began, but his bold, attacking play suited the parkland layout, and he never flinched when the pressure was at its most intense. It was the kind of breakout performance the US Open has always been capable of producing.
Matt Fitzpatrick: 2022
Matt Fitzpatrick’s victory at The Country Club in Brookline was a title that had a storybook quality to it. The Englishman had won the US Amateur at the same venue in 2013, and returning to claim the professional title completed one of the sport’s great full-circle moments. Fitzpatrick’s precision iron play and tenacious scrambling were perfectly suited to a course that punished mistakes severely, and his final-round 68 under US Open conditions was a display of composure beyond his years.
Jon Rahm: 2021
Jon Rahm’s victory at Torrey Pines was among the most emotional in US Open history. The Spaniard birdied the final hole to win by a single stroke, completing a performance of sustained brilliance despite having withdrawn from the Memorial Tournament the previous month after testing positive for Covid-19.
Rahm had been the world number one coming into the week and played like it throughout. His win confirmed his status as one of the defining players of his generation, and golf betting markets had him as one of the favourites all week. It remains one of the finest US Open-winning performances of the modern era.
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