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Spaun's game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to ...
Spaun's game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to ...
J.J. Spaun celebrates with his caddie Mark Carens after sinking a birdie putt on the 18th green to win the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club last year. (Chaz Palla | TribLive)
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — Defending U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a “perfect golfer” to validate last year’s success. It only made his game worse.
Now he’s back at the U.S. Open with the same mindset that drove him to the best season of his career, highlighted by his major championship, two wins in his Ryder Cup debut and a top-10 ranking.
He’s got nothing to lose.
“I tried to just forget about trying to be this perfect golfer that I thought I was last year, when in reality I just was doing the same things,” Spaun said Monday ahead of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March. He finished tied for 24th and, three weeks later, won the Valero Texas Open.
“I just was mentally a little bit more nice to myself, I guess, and not so worri…
I've Had My Eye on J.J. Spaun For a While And He's Got Oakmont's Number
I've Had My Eye on J.J. Spaun For a While And He's Got Oakmont's Number
11MIN READ
June 14, 2025
By
&
Jack Milko
When you first tuned in to the U.S. Open on Thursday, you immediately saw J.J. Spaun’s name on top of the leaderboard. The former San Diego State standout teed off early and birdied two of his first three holes, leapfrogging to 2-under in the blink of an eye.
But hot early starts are often flukey at majors. Heck, Tiger Woods held the solo lead for a quick second at last year’s U.S. Open early on Thursday.
Yet Spaun’s quick ascendance to the top of the leaderboard was anything but.
If you have watched golf at all in 2025, you have seen Spaun’s name appear on plenty of leaderboards. He has played very well, posting three runner-up finishes so far this season, although a win has evaded him on multiple occasions. Spaun is now 25th in the Official World Golf Rankings — this time last year, he was 162nd and watching the U.S. Open from home.
He’s a family man too, an underdog and a grinder who everyone can relate to, which is a motif that I wrote about during The Players Championship. But Spaun interested me well before he duked it out with Rory McIlroy at TPC Sawgras…
J.J. Spaun doesn't need to be a 'perfect golfer' to validate his US ...
J.J. Spaun doesn't need to be a 'perfect golfer' to validate his US ...
J.J. Spaun hits his tee shot on the 12th hole during a practice round for the U.S. Open golf tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., Monday, June 15, 2026.(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
J.J. Spaun hits from the bunker on the 11th hole during a practice round for the U.S. Open golf tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., Monday, June 15, 2026.(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
J.J. Spaun walks to green on the 12th hole during a practice round for the U.S. Open golf tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., Monday, June 15, 2026.(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
J.J. Spaun lines up a putt on the 10th hole during a practice round for the U.S.Open golf tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Shinnecock Hills, N.Y., Monday, June 15, 2026.(AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
J.J. Spaun hits from the 18th tee during the second round of the Memorial golf tournament in Dublin, Ohio, Friday, June 5, 2026. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) — Defending U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a “perfect golfer” to validate last year’s su…
Spaun's game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to ...
Spaun's game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to ...
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — Defending U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a “perfect golfer” to validate last year’s success. It only made his game worse.
Now he’s back at the U.S. Open with the same mindset that drove him to the best season of his career, highlighted by his major championship, two wins in his Ryder Cup debut and a top-10 ranking.
He’s got nothing to lose.
“I tried to just forget about trying to be this perfect golfer that I thought I was last year, when in reality I just was doing the same things,” Spaun said Monday ahead of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.
Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March. He finished tied for 24th and, three weeks later, won the Valero Texas Open.
“I just was mentally a little bit more nice to myself, I guess, and not so worried about being perfect,” Spaun said. “That’s what led to better golf.”
Spaun has had two top-10 finishes in his last four events coming into the U.S. Open, tying for fifth at t…
6 positions from J.J. Spaun's swing that every golfer should copy
6 positions from J.J. Spaun's swing that every golfer should copy
Instruction
6 positions from J.J. Spaun’s swing that every golfer should copy
By:
Brian Manzella
June 11, 2026
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J.J. Spaun will attempt to defend his U.S. Open title at Shinnecock.
Getty Images
J.J. Spaun’s ascent from mini-tour anonymity to
2025 U.S. Open
champion was a remarkable transformation. Born August 21, 1990, in Los Angeles, Spaun had a standout collegiate career at San Diego State University and turned pro in 2012, competing on West Coast mini-tours. He survived on shoestring budgets, often just scraping by while chasing his PGA Tour dream.
He earned Web.com status for the 2016 season, which he parlayed into a PGA Tour card the following year. Even with the occasional brilliant round on Tour, his inconsistency fueled long slumps and tested stretches of frustration. After a serious health scare in 2023, Spaun enlisted the help of
Adam Schriber,
a Michigan-based coach at LochenHeath Golf Club. Schriber’s holistic approach rebuilt Spaun from the ground up. They focused on core stability, efficient rotation and mental resilience, allowing him to minimize strain…
6 positions from J.J. Spaun's swing that every golfer should copy
6 positions from J.J. Spaun's swing that every golfer should copy
Instruction
6 positions from J.J. Spaun’s swing that every golfer should copy
By:
Brian Manzella
June 11, 2026
Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share by Email
J.J. Spaun will attempt to defend his U.S. Open title at Shinnecock.
Getty Images
J.J. Spaun’s ascent from mini-tour anonymity to
2025 U.S. Open
champion was a remarkable transformation. Born August 21, 1990, in Los Angeles, Spaun had a standout collegiate career at San Diego State University and turned pro in 2012, competing on West Coast mini-tours. He survived on shoestring budgets, often just scraping by while chasing his PGA Tour dream.
He earned Web.com status for the 2016 season, which he parlayed into a PGA Tour card the following year. Even with the occasional brilliant round on Tour, his inconsistency fueled long slumps and tested stretches of frustration. After a serious health scare in 2023, Spaun enlisted the help of
Adam Schriber,
a Michigan-based coach at LochenHeath Golf Club. Schriber’s holistic approach rebuilt Spaun from the ground up. They focused on core stability, efficient rotation and mental resilience, allowing him to minimize strain…
Spaun’s game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to defend U.S. Open title
Spaun’s game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to defend U.S. Open title
<p>SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — Defending U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a “perfect golfer” to validate last year’s success. It only made his game worse.</p>
Corroboration
No verdict, no pronouncement. The model extracts atomic factual claims with verbatim quotes; every quote is validated against the source text and corroboration is computed by counting how many editorially-opposed blocs assert each fact. 4 fabricated/unverifiable quotes were rejected by the cite-or-die gate.
The spine · 10 facts corroborated across ≥2 opposed blocs
2×broadly confirmedThinking he had to become a "perfect golfer" made J.J. Spaun’s game worse.
otherwestern
triblive“It only made his game worse.”
community.triblive.com“It only made his game worse.”
triblive.com“It only made his game worse.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a "perfect golfer" to validate last year’s success.
other
community.triblive.com“Defending U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a "perfect golfer" to validate last year’s success.”
triblive.com“Defending U.S. Open champion J.J. Spaun started thinking he had to become a "perfect golfer" to validate last year’s success.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun said: "I tried to just forget about trying to be this perfect golfer that I thought I was last year, when in reality I just was doing the same things."
other
community.triblive.com“"I tried to just forget about trying to be this perfect golfer that I thought I was last year, when in reality I just was doing the same things," Spaun said Monday ahead of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.”
triblive.com“"I tried to just forget about trying to be this perfect golfer that I thought I was last year, when in reality I just was doing the same things," Spaun said Monday ahead of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun missed three cuts in his first five events this year.
other
community.triblive.com“Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
triblive.com“Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun finished no better than 40th in the other two events after missing three cuts in his first five events this year.
other
community.triblive.com“Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
triblive.com“Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun had a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.
other
community.triblive.com“before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
triblive.com“before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun finished tied for 24th at The Players Championship in March.
other
community.triblive.com“He finished tied for 24th and, three weeks later, won the Valero Texas Open.”
triblive.com“He finished tied for 24th and, three weeks later, won the Valero Texas Open.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun won the Valero Texas Open three weeks after The Players Championship in March.
other
community.triblive.com“He finished tied for 24th and, three weeks later, won the Valero Texas Open.”
triblive.com“He finished tied for 24th and, three weeks later, won the Valero Texas Open.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun is 35 years old.
other
community.triblive.com“Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
triblive.com“Spaun, 35, missed three cuts in his first five events this year and finished no better than 40th in the other two before a mental reset at The Players Championship in March.”
1×broadly confirmedJ.J. Spaun’s best season of his career included a major championship, two wins in his Ryder Cup debut, and a top-10 ranking.
other
community.triblive.com“Now he’s back at the U.S. Open with the same mindset that drove him to the best season of his career, highlighted by his major championship, two wins in his Ryder Cup debut and a top-10 ranking.”
triblive.com“Now he’s back at the U.S. Open with the same mindset that drove him to the best season of his career, highlighted by his major championship, two wins in his Ryder Cup debut and a top-10 ranking.”
Single-source · 11 — reported by one bloc only (uncorroborated)
J.J. Spaun won the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club last year.
community.triblive.com
J.J. Spaun said: "I just was mentally a little bit more nice to myself, I guess, and not so worried about being perfect."
triblive.com
J.J. Spaun said: "That’s what led to better golf."
triblive.com
J.J. Spaun has had two top-10 finishes in his last four events coming into the U.S. Open.
triblive.com
J.J. Spaun is 25th in the Official World Golf Rankings in 2025.
skratch.golf
J.J. Spaun was 162nd in the Official World Golf Rankings last year.
skratch.golf
J.J. Spaun had three runner-up finishes in the 2025 season before the U.S. Open.
skratch.golf
J.J. Spaun lost to Rory McIlroy in a three-hole playoff at The Players Championship.
essentiallysports.com
J.J. Spaun’s shot sailed over the green and into trouble on the 17th hole during the playoff at The Players Championship.
essentiallysports.com
J.J. Spaun made a triple bogey on the 17th hole during the playoff at The Players Championship.
essentiallysports.com
Rory McIlroy executed a flawless shot onto the green on the 17th hole during the playoff at The Players Championship.
essentiallysports.com
Framing · 4 — loaded language surfaced (spin shown, not adopted)
triblive
“Spaun’s game, attitude heading in right direction as he prepares to defend U.S. Open title”
→ J.J. Spaun is preparing to defend his U.S. Open title.
community.triblive.com
“J.J. Spaun celebrates with his caddie Mark Carens after sinking a birdie putt on the 18th green to win the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club last year. (Chaz Palla | TribLive)”
→ J.J. Spaun won the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club last year.
skratch.golf
“He’s a family man too, an underdog and a grinder who everyone can relate to”
→ J.J. Spaun is described as a family man, underdog, and grinder.
essentiallysports.com
“the iconic 17th hole proved to be his undoing”
→ The 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass was decisive in J.J. Spaun’s loss in the playoff.