06/21/26 03:37:00
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06/21 15:35 CDT For Niemann, it's 71 solid holes, one thrown club and maybe a
return trip for next year's US Open
For Niemann, it's 71 solid holes, one thrown club and maybe a return trip for
next year's US Open
By EDDIE PELLS
AP National Writer
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. (AP) --- The U.S. Open summary for Joaquin Niemann looks like
this: 71 holes of solid golf, one really bad one, a thrown club, a two-shot
penalty and the willpower to not spend too much time wondering about what might
have been.
"If my grandmother had tires, she'd be a car," Niemann said Sunday, after
wrapping up a tournament sullied by an opening-round 11 on the par-4 sixth hole
that featured two tee shots out of bounds and two penalty strokes for hurling
his club in frustration.
Niemann shot 4-under 66 in the final round to finish at 1-over 281. It doesn't
take heavy math to imagine the possibilities had he not shot 7-over par on one
hole. More urgently, when he left the course, his 281 put him in a tie for
seventh, which would earn him the invitation for next year that goes to the the
top-10 finishers and ties.
His 66 paired with a 65 he shot in the second round, shortly after learning his
9 on No. 6 had been bumped up two shots for violating the code of conduct. It
meant Niemann was a good bet to tie for the two best rounds of the tournament
along with recording the single worst one-hole score of the four rounds.
"A good experience, a good test for myself," he said. "What happened on
Thursday and coming back, I was pretty proud of" myself.
Niemann didn't try to deflect blame or suggest he didn't deserve the two-shot
penalty for chucking the club after the two errant tee shots, then being
rejected when he asked for relief from what he thought might be fire ants.
Play was called for the day shortly after that. Niemann completed his first
round Friday morning, then learned about the penalty.
"I was not trying to offend anyone," he said. "I was frustrated. I had my
expectations, which are always super high. I was playing good golf. I knew it
was going to be a tough week, a long week, a challenging week. ... I'm not
happy doing that. I'm not proud about throwing a golf club."
He did not want to delve into the debate about whether the USGA was too
aggressive in docking him the two shots. Even though the course was virtually
empty at the time, he did, in fact, throw the club.
He called his comeback story "something to learn from."
Asked if there were lessons to be learned from his odyssey around Shinnecock
Hills, he said: "Everyone just stop throwing clubs. Just behave."
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
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