Golf champion sacrificed tournament prep to care for sick daughter and still won

J.J. Spaun was calved and raised successful the Los Angeles suburb of San Dimas. He was the improbable victor of the U.S. Open play tourney yesterday. He is 34 years aged and had lone 1 PGA tournament triumph earlier winning the most hard tournament successful each of golf. 

He started the tourney conscionable 1 changeable down the person but promptly bogeyed 5 of the archetypal six holes of the last circular Sunday, putting him seemingly retired of the competition. Then dense rainfall came, pausing the tourney for implicit an hour. When helium returned to the course, helium did truthful with a renewed focus, roaring backmost with 4 birdies connected the backmost 9 portion different golfers faltered successful the harsh conditions. On the last hole, helium miraculously sank a 64-foot putt to win. 

Surprisingly, helium became lone the 2nd golfer successful past from LA County to triumph a large play tournament. (Colin Morikawa is the other; Tiger Woods is from Orange County.) But that is not what makes him a hero. He is simply a leader due to the fact that of what helium did the nighttime before. 

JJ SPAUN WINS 2025 US OPEN WITH INCREDIBLE BACK-NINE CAPPED BY 64-FOOT BIRDIE PUTT

Spaun is the begetter of 2 young daughters. The nighttime earlier the last round, erstwhile astir golfers successful contention were connected lockdown, focused exclusively connected the task astatine hand, Spaun was with his wife, dealing with a precise sick child. His 2-year-old girl had caught a tummy bug and had been vomiting each night. 

J. J. Spaun of the United States celebrates with the trophy aft winning during the last circular of the 125th U.S. OPEN astatine Oakmont Country Club connected June 15, 2025, successful Oakmont, Pennsylvania. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

CLICK HERE FOR MORE FOX NEWS OPINION

At 3 a.m., portion his competitors were heavy asleep, helium went disconnected to find immoderate medicine for his daughter. He got successful his rental car and drove from the suburbs to downtown Pittsburgh to find an unfastened CVS pharmacy. On the greeting of Father’s Day, helium enactment his ain request for slumber and mentation connected the eve of the astir important time of his nonrecreational beingness to fetch an over-the-counter remedy helium hoped would assistance his sick small girl.  

FRENCH GOLFER VICTOR PEREZ MAKES HISTORY AT US OPEN WITH RARE ACE

After his win, he admitted the unsmooth night whitethorn person contributed to his precise shaky start. "I’m not blaming that connected my start, but it benignant of acceptable the mold of what was going on, the chaos," helium said. He intelligibly enactment his chances of winning successful jeopardy with his sleepless night. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

 LA is successful hopeless request of heroes. It has been mired successful crises, from COVID-19 lockdowns to the George Floyd riots to the detonation successful homelessness and crime, to disastrous wildfires, to fund deficits, and present convulsive protests. We person tons of celebrities but often neglect to admit our existent heroes. We oftentimes suffer show of what truly matters. Too often the speech is astir who is calved "privileged."  

The lone privilege that exists is the privilege of being raised by a loving parent and loving father, which, sadly present seems to beryllium the exception, not the rule. But connected this Father’s Day, a time successful which we are expected to grant fathers, Spaun enactment his work arsenic a begetter up of his self-interest successful winning a play tournament. In the end, helium was rewarded with 1 of the astir coveted trophies successful golf, and a loving hug from his daughter, who was present feeling conscionable fine. 

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM JIM BRESLO