USGA CEO Mike Whan and I were standing in the dining room of Winged Foot Golf Club. It was exactly two months to the day before Wyndham Clark made the winning putt in the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club. Somehow, Whan predicted the winning score exactly on that April day in Mamaroneck, N.Y.
“If the wind doesn’t blow at Shinnecock, 14-under is going to win, and that’ll be just fine,” Whan said. “And if the wind blows hard, then four-under is going to win and that’ll be just fine, too.”