SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. — Shinnecock Hills may not hold the record for the most U.S. Opens hosted, but it does claim the designation as a golf course that has seen the championship contested on its grounds in the 1800s, 1900s and 2000s. Spanning three decades, the history of the William Flynn design is boundless.
Turn a corner and a nuance will hit you in the face, and a blast from the past comes rushing to the front of your mind.
The 2026 U.S. Open represents the sixth time the United States Golf Association heads to the American-links gem. While the golf course on which the championship has been contested is ripe with stories, those who have reigned supreme are the ones who have helped pen them.
Brooks Koepka became the third golfer — alongside Ben Hogan and Curtis Strange since World War II — to successfully defend his U.S. Open title. Fourteen years prior, Retief Goosen claimed his second U.S. Open trophy as well amid a week that was marred with golf course setup controversy — a theme in recent U.S. Opens contested at Shinnecock Hills.
Corey Pavin may have one of the most memorable shots under his belt, thanks to his 4 wood into the 72nd hole in 1995, while Raymond Floyd was the oldest to win the U.S. Open at the time in 1986.
Each U.S. Open is different, even when held at the same golf course. Weather varies, conditions do, too, and the characters who star in the show evolve as the championship ebbs and flows. Although those in the city would say, “Past performance is not indicative of future results,” it does inform the future and may be this week at the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills.
2018
Winner: Brooks Koepka (+1)
Koepka came into the second major championship of the season lightly run as a nagging wrist injury forced him to miss the Masters. Returning to action at the end of April, Koepka slowly but surely pieced together form and nabbed two top-five finishes ahead of his defense.
One year after blitzing par at Erin Hills, Koepka and the rest of the field were met with a brutally difficult Shinnecock. Rory McIlroy opened with an 80, while Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth signed for first-round 78s. All three were early exits as Dustin Johnson took a commanding four-stroke lead into the weekend.
The 2016 champion could not hold onto it, however, as Johnson moved in the wrong direction with a 77 on a miserable Moving Day. Going off late in the afternoon, the later groups were given no wriggle room for error, unlike those off in the morning. Tony Finau and Daniel Berger carded dueling 66s to jump from the cutline to the final group on Sunday at 3 over.
Zach Johnson suggested the USGA had lost the golf course, while Phil Mickelson made a 10 on a hole after hitting his moving golf ball.
Koepka may not have flexed with his third-round 72, but it was the performance of a major champion. He bounced back on Sunday with a final-round 68 that was highlighted by a phenomenal bogey on the par-3 11th. Ahead of him on the golf course, Tommy Fleetwood was firing on all cylinders as the Englishman faced a 10-foot birdie look on the 72nd hole to shoot 62 and post 1 over. Fleetwood missed, posted 2 over and waited as Koepka kept his composure and his slim one-stroke lead, maintaining possession of the U.S. Open trophy in the process.
2004
Winner: Retief Goosen (-4)
In three prior U.S. Opens at Shinnecock Hills, only one player had finished under par. That number grew to three in 2004 as Goosen put forth a masterclass on the greens, needing just 24 putts in his final round to fend off Mickelson, who finished two strokes back and Ernie Els, who entered the final round two off the pace before shooting 80 and still finishing inside the top 10.
Goosen grabbed his second U.S. Open title in the span of four years, thanks to his putting, adding to the main storyline of the week: the greens themselves. After two calm days to start the championship, the wind started to whip around the property Saturday afternoon.
Goosen grabbed the lead from Mickelson, but the USGA did not grab hold of the golf course. The lack of water overnight meant the early groups on Sunday faced near-impossible hole locations and greens, such as the one on the par-3 7th. The USGA decided to water greens during play and even syringe water into those complexes on the back nine. In total, 28 players failed to break 80, and Robert Allenby was the lone golfer who shot even par.
Goosen shot an incredible 71, which gained him nearly eight strokes on the field and another U.S. Open trophy. Mickelson matched Goosen’s final-round tally, but it was almost so much more. Lefty put three birdies on the card in a four-hole stretch on his back nine to tie Goosen at 4 under before disaster struck on the par-3 17th, where he 3-putted for double bogey from inside 5 feet, ultimately upending his U.S. Open hopes.
1995
Winner: Corey Pavin (E)
The 100th anniversary of the U.S. Open saw Greg Norman take the solo lead into the weekend. That Friday, an amateur by the name of Tiger Woods (playing in his first U.S. Open) withdrew due to a wrist injury, although as we know, that would not be his last laugh with this championship.
Tom Lehman’s 67 on Saturday was the best round of the day by two strokes and allowed him to make up all seven strokes on the 36-hole leader to earn a spot in the final tee time. Mickelson and Bob Tway shared third place, while Pavin stood tall at 2 over and three off the 54-hole pace.
Pavin dropped as many as five strokes behind after an early bogey and an early birdie courtesy of Lehman, but the accurate assassin kept at it. He added a birdie on No. 9 and another on No. 12, the latter of which put him in a three-way tie for the lead with Norman and Lehman at 1 over. On the 15th hole, however, Pavin pushed ahead with another birdie as Norman and Lehman continued to slip. He put the tournament on ice on the par-4 finisher with a 4 wood to remember from 228 yards, which NBC broadcaster Johnny Miller called, “The shot of his life.”
1986
Winner: Raymond Floyd (-1)
There’s that other guy to finish in red figures! Raymond Floyd grabbed his fourth and final major in the U.S. Open’s return to Shinnecock Hills and became the championship’s oldest winner (for four years). Marred by wind and rain, Shinnecock Hills held up the first day as no player broke par.
Norman took the lead after the second round and maintained his position through 54 holes. The Australian was the 54-hole leader in all four major championships in 1986 but only claimed The Open. A total of 10 different players held the lead on Sunday, with names like Jack Nicklaus, Hal Sutton, Lee Trevino, Payne Stewart, Tom Watson, Bernhard Langer and Ben Crenshaw all finishing inside the top 10 by week’s end. The result was Nicklaus’ last top 10 in a U.S. Open.
It was Floyd who flew to the top, however, with a bogey-free 66 that saw him take the lead on No. 12 and never surrender it. In his 22nd attempt at the U.S. Open, the 43-year-old finally had his first U.S. Open title.
1896
Winner: James Foulis (+12)
Oh, how things have changed. The second U.S. Open ever (!) took place at Shinnecock Hills and featured the shortest golf course in championship history at 4,423 yards. Not only has the yardage almost doubled in the years since, but the number of holes played has as well. (The tournament was just 36 holes.)
This championship was defined by the play of John Shippen, a Black caddie at Shinnecock Hills who other competitors in the field did not want to play. Shippen participated and contended for some of the tournament, only to be upended by an 11 on No. 13, ultimately finishing in fifth place. Foulis won with rounds of 78-74 and received $150 for his triumph.