US Open – 20 Top Triumphs and Upsets to Remember

#8: Jack Nicklaus picked up his first win as a professional at Oakmont in 1962.

Now and then, an event comes along that we end up looking back on as the start of something truly important. That definitely applies to the 1962 US Open at Oakmont Country Club. The week culminated with an epic playoff between Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer, setting up a rivalry that would define the sport of golf for years to come.

The 22-year-old Nicklaus, who’d forfeited his amateur status less than a year before, entered the week on the hunt for his first professional win, while Palmer, 32, was already a five-time major champ and had won the Masters earlier that year.

The King, holding a share of the lead through 54 holes, birdied two of his first four holes in his final round but ran out of gas and ended up signing for an even-par round. Nicklaus, meanwhile, bogeyed the first but went bogey-free the rest of the way, circling three birdies near the turn to tie Palmer at the top.

Palmer, the local son and the top player in the world, was the crowd favorite during the Sunday playoff. Nicklaus was initially taunted, but he silenced his detractors by seizing a four-shot lead through six holes.

Palmer made a characteristic charge starting at the ninth, cutting the deficit to a single stroke, but a costly three-putt at 13 stymied his momentum. From there, Nicklaus held off his competition and took the title, the first of its kind in the Golden Bear’s storied career.

Next: 1930: Bobby Jones