US Open – 20 Top Triumphs and Upsets to Remember
By Sam Belden
#1: Tiger Woods’ unbelievable win at Torrey Pines in 2008 stands as the greatest triumph in the annals of the US Open.
What could possibly be more impressive than winning a major championship by 15 strokes? How about doing it on one leg? That’s exactly what Tiger Woods did at the 2008 US Open at Torrey Pines.
Heading into the week, Woods already had four wins on the season and hadn’t missed out on the top five in any of his six starts. However, he was still recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his left knee and hadn’t played in over two months.
His opening round of 72 put him four strokes off the pace, but by Saturday evening he had built a one-shot lead over Lee Westwood. On Sunday, Woods birdied the last to shoot a closing 73, while countryman Rocco Mediate signed for a 71 to match the world No. 1. The stage was set for an 18-hole playoff on Monday.
During the playoff, the two men wrestled over the lead on the front nine, but Woods managed to build a lead of three strokes after 10 holes. Mediate’s fortunes soon changed, however; while his opponent squared back-to-back bogeys on 11 and 12, the Pennsylvania native made three birdies in a row to seize a one-stroke advantage.
Both made par on 16 and 17, but just like the day before, Woods birdied 18 to prolong the tournament. Sudden death began on the seventh hole, where he made a par to finally edge Mediate, who bogeyed.
Two days later, Woods announced that he had sustained a double stress fracture in his left tibia prior to the event. He had demonstrated signs of discomfort throughout the tournament, but no one could have imagined the extent of his injuries.
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He underwent surgery to repair his ACL shortly thereafter and missed the rest of the season, putting an exclamation point on the greatest performance of his career. Thanks to his damaged left leg and the tenacity of Mediate, Woods’ 2008 win goes down as the greatest US Open triumph of all time.