Clark Fights for US Open Title in Honor of Deceased Mother

In a sports world increasingly dominated by teenage prodigies and Hall-of-Fame-bound twentysomethings, discovering an athlete who has faced setbacks and only entered the spotlight in his seventh professional season is a particularly satisfying tale.

Wyndham Clark’s arrival on the 2023 scene with a few exclamation points – winning the US Open last June and the Wells Fargo Championship a month later – might pique your interest. But if you find yourself knowing little about him, pay attention, because the 30-year-old three-time PGA Tour winner has a wealth of stories and personality.

As Clark prepares this week at Pine Needles Resort to defend his US Open title, your instincts will tell you he’s a star.

Following his stunning US Open victory at the legendary North Course of Los Angeles Country Club – where the likes of Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler, or Rickie Fowler were not the ones celebrating – Clark’s comments were noteworthy. “I felt like I belonged out there,” he said after closing with a 70-par round for a 270 total, 10 under, to win. “Even two or three years ago when people didn’t know who I was, I felt like I could compete with the best players in the world. I feel like I’ve proven that this year.”

It’s hard to argue with Clark’s reasoning. After all, starting from 109th in the world rankings in early March, a string of strong performances – fifth, sixth, third (in the team event Zurich Classic), his first PGA Tour victory at the Wells Fargo, a 12th-place finish at the Memorial Tournament – lifted him to 32nd.

Sure, it wasn’t a grand entrance, but by the time he teed off at the North Course, Clark had earned the admiration of peers familiar with his talents. Over the next 72 holes, he duked it out with four top-10 players and emerged victorious.

Sharing the first-round lead with defending PGA Championship runner-up Xander Schauffele at 64, Clark ultimately beat third-ranked McIlroy by one stroke. World No. 1 Scheffler finished third. If more evidence of Clark’s clutch play is needed, consider his win over Schauffele at the Wells Fargo and his runner-up finish at February’s AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, behind rising talent Ludvig Aberg.

“Winning the way Wyndham did… and in incredible competition,” said Casey Martin, who coached Oregon’s team in the 2016-17 season when Clark was on it.

The intersection between Wyndham Clark and Casey Martin underscores the captivating journey the youngster has been on. Indeed, Clark didn’t explode onto the scene like Jordan Spieth, who won the Masters at 21, nor did he secure four majors before turning 25 like McIlroy.

That doesn’t mean Clark was the type to pick up a golf instruction book as a teenager and immediately call Oklahoma State University for a scholarship. He was an accomplished junior player, a two-time Colorado high school champion, and Oklahoma State – one of the nation’s top programs – eagerly recruited him as a freshman in 2012.

His story of ups and downs began there. After being sidelined by injury in his first year, tragedy struck in August 2013, just before his sophomore year, when his mother Lisa succumbed to breast cancer, an emotional blow.

Golf was temporarily put on hold.

“After she passed away, golf wasn’t a priority for me,” he said. “It was a tough time, and it wasn’t very enjoyable.”

From the 2013-14 season through 2015-16, Clark had his fair share of successes, consistently earning All-American and All-Pac-12 honors, including a spot on the 2014 Palmer Cup team. But in the 2016-17 season, he opted for a change of scenery. At the University of Oregon, Clark encountered a coach, Martin, who understood life’s twists and turns.

A talented player himself, good enough to play alongside Tiger Woods at Stanford, Martin’s path to the PGA Tour was derailed by a significant obstacle. A congenital condition affecting his right leg – underdeveloped veins and lymph vessels – necessitated the use of a golf cart. This led to a lengthy lawsuit with the PGA Tour (which he eventually won), but Martin never got healthy enough to rise through the Korn Ferry Tour – where he did claim one victory.

In Clark, Martin saw a competitive fire that needed time to burn. Upon graduating in 2017, Clark was named a Ben Hogan Award finalist and Pac-12 Player of the Year.

Martin was never surprised that Clark needed a year on the Korn Ferry Tour (2018) or that he gradually improved in his first four seasons on the PGA Tour (2019-22). But Martin knew that Clark’s immense talent would eventually shine through, just as Lisa Clark’s sister Monique knew.

“Winndham always wanted to be No. 1. He’d say, ‘I’m going to be No. 1,'” Monique told reporters in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Randy Clark and Lisa Tvenne – Wyndham’s parents – grew up.

“Lisa encouraged him and told him he could do anything he wanted, that he could be No. 1.”

Though she passed away too soon at 55, Lisa Clark recognized her son’s inner flame, for while Wyndham Clark isn’t yet No. 1, he’s now third, trailing only Scheffler and McIlroy.

Fact is, when the pressure of last year’s US Open mounted, it was Scheffler and McIlroy playing catch-up to Clark. While it was shocking to many, it was no surprise to those who believed in Clark, especially his most ardent supporters.

“I know my mom is proud of me,” Clark told reporters after his victory at the North Course. “No matter what I do or how I perform, she’s always proud of me. I just wish she was here, and we could enjoy this moment together.”

Sadly, that wasn’t possible. But it’s highly likely that the stardom Lisa Clark always foresaw for her son will continue to shine.