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It’s time for the U.S. Open — and it is also the 25th anniversary of Payne Stewart’s legendary win at Pinehurst.
Two U.S. Opens have been played on No. 2 since Stewart won there in 1999, but the statue of Stewart’s right leg in the air and his extended right arm behind the 18th green will again be the most popular photograph snapped this weekend.
Stewart’s life story of finding inner peace and winning the Open before dying tragically in a plane crash four months later will hang heavy and could be extra motivation for the top two golfers in the world, Scottie Scheffler and Xander Shauffele, to be the first Americans to win there since Stewart holed the famous 15-foot putt in the mist on the 72nd hole Sunday.
Payne Stewart celebrates after winning the U.S. Open golf championship at Pinehurst No. 2 in Pinehurst, N.C., June 20, 1999. The U.S. Open returns to Pinehurst for the fourth time, June 13-16, 2024. (Photo via AP Photo/Chuck Burton.)
There is no better story, with the commemorative title ‘One Moment In Time,’ than Lee Pace’s recounting in his 2004 book The Spirit of Pinehurst. Pace, the brilliant golf and football writer, covers Stewart’s personality and golf transformation on display that weekend, when wearing his traditional plus-four knickers and English flat cap he beat Phil Mickelson by one shot and Tiger Woods by two, dropping the putt into the hole that will be in a similar position this Sunday.
Pace covers everything, from the panoramic photograph taken by Rob Brown on the roof of the Pinehurst clubhouse to Stewart remembering to congratulate playing partner and expectant father Mickelson on the birth of his first child as madness erupted around them.
Pace also gives tribute to the late Dick Coop, the UNC education professor and sports psychologist who helped Stewart find the balance in his life that maximized his game by not taking it quite so seriously. When he died at 42, Stewart still had his best golf ahead.
Far warmer and dryer weather is forecast for the 124th U.S. Open, where thousands of patrons will find parking spaces miles away and ride shuttle buses to the charming village and perhaps the most famous course Donald Ross ever created. There are story lines galore – from McIlroy’s off-and-on marriage to Tiger’s balky ankle to who will best navigate the inverted salad bowl greens to keep their balls on the putting surface.
The thought of Payne’s private plane crash in October of 1999 will underscore the event, which has returned there in 2005 and 2014, with New Zealander Michael Campbell and German Martin Kaymer winning the American national golf championship. It is time for the red-white-and-blue flag to again be next to the winner on Sunday’s leaderboard.
Pace’s tome is rich with the public and private figures who have made, and still make, Pinehurst No. 2 one of the great experiences – a definite bucket list item for most serious golfers.
The U.S. Open will return in there in 2029 and 2035, but as several officials and residents said after Stewart’s winning putt of 1999 made history in photos and clay, “There will never be another one like this one.”
Featured photo via Pinehurst Resort.
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
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