The past twelve months have had a little bit of everything: a Grand Slam career, Ryder Cup chaos and much more. With 2026 on the horizon, our writers look back at the most memorable moments from 2025 and explain why they mattered.
No. 15 – The zero torque putter motion
No. 14 — ‘Happy Gilmore 2’ is taking the golf world by storm
No. 13 — Joaquin Niemann’s big 2025 (and crucial 2026)
Stories from 2025 No. 12: JJ Spaun’s biggest moment
It was raining and as I sat on the green side, my struggle to keep my notebook dry while simultaneously scribbling thoughts on it was just beginning. Twenty yards away from me, JJ Spaun had bigger things on his mind. Spaun got a 64-footer for birdie on Oakmont’s par-4 18th with a U.S. Open trophy on the line.
Make it and he wins, but no one expected that – not in this weather and not from the parking lot. But a good lag putt here was a likely par and one-shot victory over Robert MacIntyre, who was waiting to score.
It had been a long, difficult day at Oakmont. Weather delayed the final round of the year’s third major by 96 minutes, and Spaun, who started the day just a shot behind leader Sam Burns, staggered into the locker room. He bogeyed five of his first six holes and the tournament slipped away. It was easy to think of the Players Championship three months earlier, when Spaun was a huge underdog in a play-off with Rory McIlroy and dunked one in the water on the iconic par-3 17th. McIlroy easily won the three-hole aggregate play-off.
Despite the loss at TPC Sawgrass, Spaun only saw the positives of his close call. He used the same mentality during the weather delay at Oakmont. He changed his outfit (“I’m done wearing those clothes,” he said) and reset everything. He came out focused and recharged.
“All I thought, and even my whole team, my coach, my caddie, said, ‘Oh dude, this is exactly what we need,’” Spaun said. “And it was. We went back out and capitalized.”
Spaun made pars at 9, 10 and 11 before making birdies at 12 and 14. He made a bogey at 15, but got it back with a birdie at 17. All around him, competitors were falling off the rankings on a tough US Open Sunday. Then came the 18th and Spaun needed just two putts to win.
You know what happened next. He deflated it. But do you remember what happened elsewhere? While I was jostling for position among the drenched media members and as fans around the green focused on Spaun’s celebration, some of the best moments in the aftermath of the victory took place elsewhere.
There were Spaun’s wife and children, celebrating on the platform above the green. There was MacIntyre, watching as the score was scored. He needed Spaun to bogey to get into the playoffs with him, but he didn’t seem concerned about that at the time. As he scored, he looked at the TV and let out a few hearty, jovial claps. “Wow,” he said.
Outside of the scoring, there was Tyrrell Hatton speaking to the media. He was done bogey-bogey and was particularly annoyed by some of the questions he received about his finish. But his mood changed mid-answer when he saw Spaun finish on a nearby TV.
“Oh, he put a hole in it,” Hatton said. “Unbelievable.” He paused for a moment and then smiled. “What a putt to win. That’s unbelievable.”
Between Scottie Scheffler’s two big losses, McIlroy’s green jacket and Spaun’s walk-off winner, golf fans were spoiled by the 2025 majors.
And sometimes even the players realize how good the entertainment is.
#Spauns #big #title #memorable #reasons