The 16 Most Difficult U.S. Open Championships Of The Past 40 Years

So much has been made of the 125th U.S. Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club’s conditions before the first player has even teed off. The 5-inch-deep rough at Oakmont CC is expected to cause migraines for the best golfers in the world. So will the 289-yard par-3 8th hole where players reported nightmarish conditions in practice rounds. So with that in mind, these are the 16 most difficult U.S. Open Championships of the past 40 years.

The U.S. Open Championship is supposed to be the most challenging test of a golfer’s skills across all of the four Major Championships. The 125th U.S. Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club this week will live up to that reputation with 5-inch-deep rough that swallows up golf balls.

We could be looking at a truly historic winning score this week if players are unable to stay out of the rough. But in order to know where we’re headed this week we first look to the past and reflect on the 16 most difficult U.S. Open Championship winning scores of the past 40 years.

1. 1987: Scott Simpson (-3)

It is wild to think that going back 40 years and -3 is still among the 16 most difficult U.S. Open Championship scores but here we are. The 1987 U.S. Open at the Olympic Club in San Francisco was won by Scott Simpson who beat the 1982 champion, Tom Watson, but just 1-stroke. His payout? A whopping $150,000!

2. 1992: Tom Kite (3)

Five years after Scott Simpson’s -3 win in San Francisco, Tom Kite would win another U.S. Open held in California with a score of -3, this time at Pebble Beach Golf Links, one of the most picturesque golf courses on planet earth. Kite would take home $275,000 for his win after firing off scores of 71-72-70-72 to hold off Jeff Sluman by 2 strokes.

3. 2002: Tiger Woods (-3)

In 2002, Tiger Woods was the most popular athlete on planet earth. He came into the 2002 U.S. Open at the Bethpage Black Course as the favorite, the same course the Ryder Cup will be held at later this Summer. Tiger would finish with a 3-shot lead over the field to win his 2nd U.S. Open and 8th Major Championship. Mickelson finished in 2nd to Tiger to earn $585K while Woods brought home an even million dollars.

4. 1996: Steve Jones (-2)

The 1996 U.S. Open Championship was held at Oakland Hills Country Club in Birmingham, Michigan. This marked the 8th Major Championship hosted by Oakland Hills in the Detroit suburbs and champion Steve Jones won by just a single stroke over Tom Lehman and Davis Love III who tied for 2nd at -1. Jones earned $425,000 for his 1996 U.S. Open win.

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5. 1989: Curtis Strange (-2)

The 1989 U.S. Open Championship was held at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York. Champion Curtis Strange would take the lead after the second round where he fired off a 2nd round 64 which he followed up with scores of 73-70 on the weekend for a championship score of 278 (-2) which was just enough to beat Chip Beck, Mark McCumber, and Ian Woosnam who tied at -1. Strange would take home $200K for his win.

6. 2008: Tiger Woods (-1)

The 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines will forever be remembered as one of Tiger Woods’ greatest Major Championship victories after Woods defeated Rocco Mediate on the first hole of a sudden death playoff. Tiger’s win earned him $1,350,000, his 3rd U.S. Open, 14th Major Championship, and he joined Jack Nicklaus as the only other golfer to complete the ‘Career Grand Slam’ three times. In the 2008 U.S. Open field, only Tiger Woods (-1), Rocco Mediate (-1), and Lee Westwood (E) would finish not over par. The rest of the field had a brutal time at Torrey Pines and the cut line was +7.

7. 1999: Payne Stewart (-1)

The 99th United States Open Championship was held in 1999 at the famed Pinehurst No. 2 course at Pinehurst Resort. Payne Stewart would win it all, taking home his second Major Championship, after beating Phil Mickelson by one stroke to finish at -1. The cut line this week was a brutal -7 and only Stewart and Mickelson were able to finish without going over par for the championship.

8. 2010: Graeme McDowell (E)

Graeme McDowell won his first and only Major Championship at the 2010 U.S. Open which was held at Pebble Beach. For a course that is seen annually on the PGA Tour, it was a beast of a different nature at the 2010 U.S. Open and only McDowell could avoid going over par. This was another U.S. Open with a +7 cut and McDowell held off a stacked leader board with Ernie Els in 3rd (+2) followed by Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson tied at 4th (+3).

9. 2005 Michael Campbell (E)

Another U.S. Open Championship held at the gorgeous but brutally difficult Pinehurst Resort Course No. 2 in Pinehurst, North Carolina, the 2005 U.S. Open was won by Michael Campbell who took home $1,170,000 for his win, the only Major Championship win of the New Zealander’s career. Retief Goosen held a 3-shot lead after Round 3 (-3) but imploded and finished at +8 for the tournament. Tiger Woods came into Sunday 6 shots off the lead and would finish in solo second place at +2, with only Michael Campbell finishing at even par or better.

10. 1998: Lee Janzen (E)

The 1998 U.S. Open held at the Olympic Club in San Francisco is another example of just how torturous the Olympic Club can be. I played across the lake last year at TPC Harding Park and the views of the Olympic Club were absolutely stunning but goodness gracious is it a tough test of golf. Lee Janzen finished at even par to earn $535,000 after firing off scores of 73-66-73-68=280. The first round leader, Payne Stewart, backpedaled after starting with a First Round 66 (-4) only to finish at +1.

11. 1995: Corey Pavin (E)

The 1995 U.S. Open Championship was held at Shinnecock Hills in Southampton, New York, one of the top ranked private golf clubs on planet earth. That year’s +6 cut line bucks a trend of the previous +7 cut lines but that didn’t mean 1995 was any easier! Corey Pavin won it all by finishing at even par with scores of 72-69-71-68=280 to earn $350,000. Greg Norman was tied for the lead going into Sunday but imploded and fired off a Sunday round of 73 to finish at +2 in solo second place.

12. 2018: Brooks Koepka (+1)

The 2018 U.S. Open is often used as an example of how difficult Open conditions can be when the course fights back. Won by former FSU golfer Brooks Koepka, not a single player finished the championship under par. This was Brooks Koepka’s second straight U.S. Open Championship win with Tommy Fleetwood finishing one stroke back at +2. Shinnecock Hills was brutal that week!

13. 2013: Justin Rose (+1)

The 2013 U.S. Open Championship at Merion Golf Club in Pennsylvania was won by Justin Rose, the first and only Major Championship title so far of his career. Phil Mickelson came out strong in 2013 with a first round 67 (-3) for 1-stroke lead over the field but couldn’t hold on and Mickelson finished at +3 for the U.S. Open and tied with Jason Day in second place following Phil’s final round Sunday score of 74.

14. 2012: Webb Simpson (+1)

San Francisco’s Olympic Club is back on the list, shocker! Webb Simpson won the 2012 U.S. Open at the Olympic Club, the only Major Championship of his career, earning him $1,440,000 and the trophy. This was the fifth time the U.S. Open had been held at Olympic Club’s picturesque Lake Course. Players were struggling at Olympic this week with a cut line of +8. Tiger Woods was tied for the lead after Round 2 at -1 but the wheels came off…

15. 2007: Ángel Cabrera (+5)

2007 marked the 8th time Oakmont Country Club would host the U.S. Open Championship. This week, Oakmont will host a record 10th U.S. Open and if it is anything like 2007 it will be must-see TV. The cut at Oakmont Country Club in 2007 was a whopping +10, meaning players who were ten over par after Friday still got to play the weekend. That’s surreal. Both Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk only need to birdied the 18th/72nd hole in order to force Ángel Cabrera into an 18-hole playoff on Monday but neither could and Angel won his first of two Major Championships along with $1,260,000 in prize money.

16. 2006: Geoff Ogilvy (+5)

Somehow, the 2006 U.S. Open at Winged Foot in Mamaroneck, New York is the only time Winged Foot is featured on this list despite this being the 6th time Winged Foot had hosted a Major Championship. Eventual winner Geoff Ogivly battled past the +9 cut line to finish at +5 and take home $1,225,000. Colin Montgomerie was -1 after the first round and Steve Stricker hit -1 after Round 2 but those were the only two players all week to see red scores. Ogilvy’s Sunday round of 72 (+2) was good enough to beat Jim Furyk, Phil Mickelson, and Colin Montgomerie by 1 stroke.

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