Published June 22, 2026
Windham Clark found a way to atone for breaking his locker at last year’s U.S. Open by winning this year, but he fears he will become the bad guy on the PGA Tour after being jeered so mercilessly.
Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, braved the jeers of New York fans to shoot a 3-over-par 73 and beat fellow American Sam Burns by one stroke to win his second major title at Sinek Hills in New York.
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“The first one was great, but this one seems to be even better,” Clark said. “Especially after such a bitter experience in this championship last year, to bounce back and win again is almost unreal.”
Clark has repeatedly apologized for damaging his locker in Oakmont, Pennsylvania, after missing last year.
“We hope this solves the problem,” Clark said. “I’ll probably always get (heckles), but I hope it won’t be a PGA heel.”
Clark recalls the aftermath of the incident as his darkest time, never dreaming he would win the US Open a year later.
“What happened in Oakmont was obviously a low point,” Clark said. “It was a really tough couple of days for me, I was in the dark and didn’t go out much.
“I felt my career, my world ranking, my reputation, everything go downhill. It feels terrible.
“At that moment, I never thought I would be here this year.”
While some joked about what Clark would have done to his locker if he had wasted a six-stroke lead in the final round, Clark said he has learned to control his anger much better.
“I’m not as angry as I used to be,” Clark said. “I think I’m frustrated. My anger has gone away a little bit, so that’s a big blessing.”
“It’s a combination of great things off the course,” he said. “I feel like my game is in a good place. I’m happy with where I’m at in life.
“Last year, I was too obsessed with things that really didn’t matter.”
It couldn’t be helped that last year’s Ryder Cup team was bypassed.
“That was just another punch in the stomach that I didn’t do it,” he said. “I’m really happy to be on the other side of things.”
That allowed him to deal with jeers and a gallery that cheered his mistakes but silently greeted his great shots.
“They definitely didn’t want me to win,” Clark said. “It’s pretty rare in the majors to have fans booing your shots or cheering for your bad shots. That was tough. But sometimes it’s good to be the underdog.
“In a way, it was self-inflicted. I’m proud of how I fought through it. Things really could have gotten away from me. I stood firm.”
“Lots of gravel”
He and caddy Dave Perekoudas joked about the lack of cheers from onlookers.
“If I heard someone cheering for me, I would think, ‘There’s one person who likes me,'” Clark said.
“But it’s difficult. I’ve now played the Presidents Cup and the Ryder Cup on foreign soil, so there was a little bit of that atmosphere.”
Scottie Scheffler’s caddy, Ted Scott, praised him after the goal.
“He went out of his way to say, ‘Hey, this took a lot of guts. It was impressive to fight through and win when no one was pulling for you,'” Clark said.
Clark was booed at last week’s PGA Canadian Open when he taunted locals by wearing a USA hockey jersey.
“They were pretty hard on me,” Clark said. “It’s the worst thing to lose, but we can get through it and there’s nothing happier than winning an away game.”
