(AP) Gary Woodland has captured his first major golf championship by holding off the two-time defending U.S. Open champion.
Woodland closed with a 30-foot putt for birdie to finish three strokes ahead of Brooks Koepka (KEHP’-kah) in the Open at Pebble Beach. The Kansas native shot a 2-under 69 on Sunday for a 13 under total.
Koepka was within one shot of the lead with five holes remaining before closing with pars the rest of the way. Woodland’s bogey on the par-3 12th allowed Koepka to close the gap, but he birdied the par-5 14th to regain a two-stroke edge.
Woodland is the fifth player to break 70 in all four rounds of the U.S. Open. He also beat by one shot the score Tiger Woods posted during his 15-shot victory at Pebble in the 2000 U.S. Open.
Koepka fell short in his quest to become the first player since Willie Anderson in 1905 to win three straight U.S. Opens.
Xander Schauffele (SHOW’-flee), Jon Rahm, Chez Reavie and Justin Rose finished in a four-way tie for third and 7 under.
He attended Shawnee Heights High School in the suburb of Tecumseh. After high school, he attended Washburn University on a basketball scholarship, but left after his freshman year to attend the University of Kansas on a golf scholarship.
