J.J. Spaun’s life changed last Sunday when he lifted the US Open trophy at Oakmont Country Club.
The final round was incredible, with so many players in contention, from Viktor Hovland to Tyrrell Hatton, but the 34-year-old outlasted them all.
Spaun overcame the challenging golf course and weather conditions better than anyone else and wrote his name into history.
He’s already back in action at the Travelers Championship this week, but it seems he has not quite gotten over what happened at the US Open.
J.J. Spaun reveals what happened straight after winning the US Open
Spaun’s day was not close to finished when he walked off the golf course with the US Open trophy in his hands.
Before the Travelers Championship, he recalled all that happened on Sunday night between him winning the tournament and going to sleep at 1:30 a.m.
“It was crazy,” Spaun said. “I got whisked off the green and then back onto the green probably around 8:45 p.m., and then did the whole formalities of the ceremony, signing a bunch of memorabilia, obviously getting the trophy, seeing it get engraved.
“The USGA did a great job of kind of giving us our own little room to kind of hang out and chill all night till whenever we wanted to leave. We didn’t leave until about 1:00 a.m., we didn’t leave Oakmont until 1:00 a.m., back down to Pittsburgh where I was staying.
“Then it was a quick three hours of sleep. I got back at 1:30, and I just kind of sat in bed, trying to maybe go through my phone. Took a quick shower, started going through my phone to respond to some people, and just tried to see what was going on to help me like soak it in and realize that it actually happened because it’s just been such a blur since then.
“Then we were off to New York City. Had a nice dinner with my family on Monday night. We went to do all the media at 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday morning. Didn’t finish… it was literally nonstop. Didn’t finish until 3:30, 4:00, hopped in a car, got driven up here. That was about 3 1/2 hours. Didn’t walk through the front door of the hotel until 8:00 p.m.
“Finally got some good sleep, though. I slept about eight hours, which was nice. The last two nights, I got the same amount as I did last night combined.”
J.J. Spaun says what doors have opened since US Open victory
Rory McIlroy spoke about all the new opportunities that came from winning The Masters back in April, and Spaun is now living a similar experience.
Of course, he is not as high profile, but Spaun’s remarkable US Open victory has certainly opened doors that were previously closed.
“I’m not like fully in the clouds still, but we’re getting a little below the ceiling, the cloud ceiling,” he explained. “Yeah, it’s been a whirlwind.
“Everything in the aftermath of this whole championship has been so crazy but so much fun, and all these doors opening, it’s stuff that you don’t expect ever really to happen in your career. The Dodgers reached out and Ryder Cup potential, and the Today Show. It’s just insane.
“I’m super grateful to have won the championship and to be given this experience. It’s something I’ll never forget, obviously, for the rest of my life. I guess I’m a part of history now.”
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