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Associated Press Jun 19, 2023, 12:12 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Eight-time major champion Tom Watson wants answers on the PGA Tour’s new business partnership with Saudi backers of LIV Golf, asking in a letter Monday to commissioner Jay Monahan whether the deal was the only way to solve the tour’s financial hardship. That was

Wyndham Clark’s victory at the 2023 U.S. Open might’ve been a surprise to some, but it didn’t come out of nowhere. Though the 29-year-old Colorado native had only played in six previous majors championships—with no finish better than T-75—the 32nd-ranked player in the world held off the game’s best only a month earlier to win

Mark Schlabach Close Mark Schlabach ESPN Senior Writer Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia Paolo Uggetti Jun 19, 2023, 02:07 PM ET LOS ANGELES — As with any captivating Hollywood production, the 123rd U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club had no shortage of

Tom Watson, the eight-time major champion, has shared this open letter to PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and the PGA Tour Policy Board. An open letter to Jay Monahan, the PGA Tour’s Board, and to my fellow players: First, I wish Jay Monahan a complete and speedy recovery. I respect the leadership he has shown in

Paolo Uggetti, ESPNJun 19, 2023, 01:00 AM ET LOS ANGELES — Just outside of the scoring tent where he had recorded an even-par 70 in the final round of the U.S. Open, all Rory McIlroy could do was stare at the ground in silence. His face reddened by a full day of sunlight, the four-time

LOS ANGELES — He needed 60 feet. Just 60 feet between Wyndham Clark and everything he ever worked for, 60 feet that would tell the world his story, one of personal tragedy and pain and doubt, about the perseverance it takes to drudge through the darkness without the assurance that light will ever come. There’s

Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior WriterJun 18, 2023, 09:52 PM ET Close Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia LOS ANGELES — When Wyndham Clark was a child, his mother, Lise, liked to put notes of encouragement in his book bag. The notes might have been

THE SUMMER BEFORE my sophomore year in college, my mom was fighting breast cancer. I was a couple shots off the lead in the Western Amateur when my aunt called. My parents weren’t going to tell me since I was playing so well, but my mom’s health had taken a bad turn. Withdrawing to fly

Associated Press Jun 18, 2023, 05:51 PM ET BELMONT, Mich. — Leona Maguire played her final six holes in six under and shot an 8-under 64 on Sunday to win the Meijer LPGA Classic by two strokes, her second tour victory. Maguire made six birdies and an eagle in her bogey-free round at Blythefield to

LOS ANGELES — For all the hand-wringing about Los Angeles Country Club giving players too much during the week, equilibrium was at least partially restored at the start of the weekend—not the least because prototypical Southern California weather finally arrived. The lowest score among the top eight players on Saturday was just 68, and Rickie

Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior WriterJun 18, 2023, 01:18 AM ET Close Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia LOS ANGELES — World No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler closed with a flurry in the third round of the 123rd U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club

LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles has always loved a redemption story. Only three months ago, Brendan Fraser won the Oscar for best actor in “The Whale,” in which he gained considerable weight to play an obese English teacher trying to reconnect with his daughter. “The Whale” came decades after Fraser had last played a lead

Associated Press Jun 17, 2023, 11:34 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Rickie Fowler made his biggest birdie when no one expected it with a 70-foot putt. Wyndham Clark responded with a bold play for a birdie on the last hole to catch him Saturday and set the stage for a dynamic conclusion to the U.S.

No matter what happened this week, Ben Carr was going to have a special experience at LACC playing in his first U.S. Open. But a great week got even better when last year’s U.S. Amateur runner-up made it to the weekend. And he seemed destined for arguably the shot of the day on Saturday with

Paolo Uggetti, ESPNJun 16, 2023, 11:10 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Rickie Fowler followed up a historic 8-under 62 in the first round of the 2023 U.S. Open with a 2-under 68 in Friday’s second round to grab a one-stroke lead over Wyndham Clark heading into the weekend at the Los Angeles Country Club. Rory

It’s easy to forget before the long slump that saw him plummet as low as 185th in the world in just eight months ago, Rickie Fowler was in the mix at the majors often enough to be considered one of the best active players never to actually win one. Now, the 34-year-old has re-teamed with

Paolo Uggetti, ESPNJun 16, 2023, 09:56 PM ET LOS ANGELES — A few weeks ago, Rory McIlroy found himself doing something unexpected. He had logged into YouTube and pulled up old major championship highlights — his highlights — from the last time he could call himself a major champion: the 2014 Open at Royal Liverpool

LOS ANGELES — U.S. Opens are supposed to be about pars, or at least they were for most of the 75 years since Los Angeles last hosted the event. And the press conferences competitors hold during the championship are meant to contain answers about keeping it in the fairway, taking medicine when drives find the

Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior WriterJun 17, 2023, 12:14 AM ET Close Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia LOS ANGELES — As Rickie Fowler walked up the 18th fairway at Los Angeles Country Club on Friday, fans chanted his name. It was a sound the

LOS ANGELES — In head-to-head meetings with reigning major champions, Sam Bennett is one step from a fairly impressive slam of sorts. He also is showing that he seems disinclined to take baby steps in his very young professional career. A second-round 68 Friday at Los Angeles Country Club has the 2022 U.S. Amateur champion

Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior WriterJun 16, 2023, 03:05 PM ET Close Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia LOS ANGELES — After a record-setting scoring day in the first round of the 123rd U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club, the world’s best golfers are

All anyone could talk about Thursday at Los Angeles Country Club was the record scores being shot in the opening round of the U.S. Open, where the 71.38 average broke the previous mark for lowest opening-round total. That chatter will no doubt continue Friday as the tournament within a tournament comes into full focus: making

Paolo Uggetti, ESPNJun 15, 2023, 11:45 PM ET LOS ANGELES — Rory McIlroy‘s first shot of the 2023 U.S. Open traveled 380 yards off the first tee — the longest drive of the day on that hole. One of McIlroy’s last three shots, however, traveled only two inches after he more or less missed the

Hours after Rickie Fowler and Xander Schauffele shot the first two 62s in U.S. Open history to lead Wyndham Clark and Dustin Johnson by two shots, McIlroy was five under through nine holes. His 30 was the best nine-hole score of his major career, one which includes four victories. The most ardent of McIlroy fans

Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior WriterJun 15, 2023, 11:27 PM ET Close Senior college football writer Author of seven books on college football Graduate of the University of Georgia LOS ANGELES — The United States Golf Association prides itself on having the most difficult test in men’s professional golf. Thursday’s opening round of the 123rd U.S.

LOS ANGELES — Move over mate. Six years after Branden Grace’s record-breaking 62 in the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, the South African has company in one of golf’s most elite clubs. Welcome Rickie Fowler, and only a few minutes later, Xander Schauffele, whose eight-under-par opening rounds in the 123rd U.S. Open are the

Paolo Uggetti, ESPNJun 15, 2023, 08:42 AM ET LOS ANGELES, CA. — Tiger Woods‘ agent stood at the back of the U.S. Open news conference on Monday afternoon and began shaking his head from side to side, his expression part grimace, part smile. One of Mark Steinberg’s other clients was at the podium, and a

(Scroll down for live updates) How the world’s best players navigate this classic George C. Thomas Jr. venue will be most intriguing. Firm-and-fast conditions should challenge players to control and shape shots into these rolling fairways and greens. There should be more of an emphasis this week on the ground game—which is often lost in

ESPN News Services Jun 14, 2023, 08:31 PM ET LOS ANGELES — The U.S. Open has raised its prize money to $20 million, now tops among the major championships and on the same level as the PGA Tour’s elevated events. That’s up by $2.5 million from a year ago, and double what it was in

LOS ANGELES — It is, not even arguably, one of the most anticipated major championships in recent memory. Put the U.S. Open on the untested track that is Los Angeles Country Club’s North Course, in the middle of a metropolis, at a most critical time in the history of the game, and we can expect