© Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Audio By Carbonatix
Professional golfer JJ Spaun took the world by storm this past weekend with an incredible performance at the US Open Championship. The PGA Tour star picked up his first major victory at Oakmont Country Club.
Golf wasn’t always his lone athletic ambition. The Southern California native was once an avid skateboarder.
Spaun grew up skating in Los Angeles, a hobby that continued into his college career at San Deigo State University. He picked up some major street cred as a result!
@golfdigestofficialA man of many talents. 🛹
Spaun won the US Open on Sunday with a walk-off 64-foot putt on the final green. After the fact, the skating world celebrated.
Pro skater Justin Eldridge posted a response to the unexpected win over the weekend. “Our guy just proved he’s a legend in golf and he’s a skateboarder,” he wrote. “Yeah, it means so much to me… I hope you guys watch, but if you aren’t watching, if you’re a skateboarder that’s looking at this right now, it is fun.”
Eldridge, like Spaun, has a passion for both golf and skating. He started a company with his wife that sells flavored toothpicks in the shape of golf tees.
On Monday, Eldridge posted a story on Instagram showing JJ Spaun’s coach, Adam Schriber, speaking on his skateboarding history. It helps out with his footwork on the course!
“We use his skater feet. He was a skateboarder as a kid. We use that to kind of build his swing,” Schriber said. “His footwork’s spectacular… We optimize the efficiency of using his skater legs. I tell him his feet are his superpower.”
Spaun no longer skates as avidly as he once did. Still, it’s something that’s been beneficial to his golf success. He detailed that past, as well as the reason he gave up skateboarding in an interview with Pat McAfee.
JJ Spaun offers relatable reason as to why he stopped skateboarding.
That decision was not impacted by the fact that he was once run over by a car while on his board. Instead, it was simply due to age and profession.
@espn A car backed over #USOpen champ J.J. Spaun as a #child 😧 #golf #accident ♬ original sound – ESPN
“I haven’t [skated] since I turned 30. Falling now, at 30, is like falling off a 10-story building on a flat ground trick,” he said. “I don’t anymore. I rely on my hands too much and my ankles, so I can’t really risk it anymore.”
He will hop on the longboard to pass the time, but his competitive skateboarding days are behind him.
That decision seems to be paying off as he banked $4.3 million with his US Open win. It was his fourth career victory on the Tour, and his first of the four majors.
JJ Spaun currently ranks sixth in the FedEx Cup Standings and eighth in the Official World Golf Rankings.