A fast start put Louis Oosthuizen firmly in the mix before a disastrous start to his back nine thwarted a run at a second Major at the US Open on Sunday.
The pre-round plan was coming into play. A birdie at 1 and then another at 4 had the 36-year-old primed for another final-round dart at one of golf’s biggest prizes.
And just like that, the script was torn up and the chorus of ‘what might’ve been’ could be heard. One costly shot turned into a championship-derailing moment as a double on the 10th ended any hopes of bringing Gary Woodland into sight.
‘After nine holes I definitely had a good shot. I still had to go 3-, 4-under on that back nine if I wanted to win. And then came my first errant tee shot of the week on 10,’ he said.
‘Laid up in the bunker, and I should not have taken the shot, honestly, just laid it up and see if I could find a way to make par, or at the worst a bogey. That cost me a little bit.
‘And then another errant tee shot on 14. And anywhere else in the bunker that was fine, but it was right up against the lip, and I couldn’t get it far enough down there.’
But it’s not all doom and gloom for the No 1-ranked South African.
‘I have to take a lot of positives out of this week. I played well. I put myself in – I played well enough to win this event, and that’s where you want to be in a Major. Now I’m looking forward to the next one at The Open.
Does he feel like a Major breakthrough is imminent?
‘I hope so. But I just need to do what I’ve been doing. And obviously I was close to leading after halfway at Augusta this year, and then did horrible on the weekend. But I need to just keep on putting myself in position and see if I can knock down that second Major.’
Photo: Ross Kinnaird/Getty Images
