Spieth’s US Open title defence ends with whimper

Oakmont (United States) (AFP) – Defending US Open champion Jordan Spieth knew he would need something spectacular to get in the hunt in the final round at Oakmont on Sunday, and a triple-bogey sure wasn’t what he had in mind.

Spieth, hoping to bounce back at the second major of the year after an astonishing back-nine collapse cost him the title at the Masters in April, never fully fired at Oakmont.

He went into the round eight strokes off the pace, saying he would need to “pull a Johnny Miller” to have a chance.

But Spieth never looked like matching the stunning 63 Miller produced to win the 1973 US Open at Oakmont.

A triple-bogey six at the par-three sixth, where he was in a greenside bunker, ended any thought of a rally.

His shot out left him 16 feet from the hole and he took four putts from there.

“I was just trying to do a little too much,” Spieth said. “Instead of just firing a straight ball at the hole, trying to bleed some big cutter in, and I just double crossed it.

“I just got into some putting trouble today and couldn’t quite get it going on the front nine,” added Spieth, who closed with a five-over 75.

“At that point, the tournament is over,” Spieth said. “You just try and fight back to even par, which is tough to do.

“I started to do it, and then the story of my week is just playing the easy holes poorly. That’s what’s tough to swallow leaving this week — you do all this work on this course, and it was the easy little iron/wedge holes that tore me apart.”