U.S. Open
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The List Issue: 10 Worst U.S. Open Collapses
- 1. Alex Smith, 1901
- Leading Willie Anderson in their 18-hole playoff by five with five holes to play, Smith makes two bogeys, two double bogeys and a par on the tough finish at Myopia Hunt Club and loses by one.
- 2. Jack Hobens, 1907
- The third-round leader at Philadelphia Cricket Club, plays his last 14 holes in 12 over and loses to Alex Ross by seven.
- 3. Harry Vardon, 1920
- Four ahead with seven holes to play at Inverness, the 50-year-old stumbles home with five bogeys and a double bogey to lose to Ted Ray.
- 4. Roland Hancock, 1928
- A 5-5 finish at Olympia Fields would have beaten Bobby Jones and Johnny Farrell, but Hancock scores 6-6, loses and fades into obscurity.
- 5. Sam Snead, 1939
- Leading by one on the last tee at Philadelphia's Spring Mill Course, Snead makes a triple-bogey 8, and launches a lifetime of Open frustration.
- 6. Jacky Cupit, 1963
- Cupit loses his two-shot lead over Julius Boros and Arnold Palmer when he double-bogeys the 71st hole at The Country Club. Boros wins the three-man playoff.
- 7. Arnold Palmer, 1966
- The grandaddy of all Open collapses: Leading by seven with nine to play at Olympic, Palmer shoots 39, allowing Billy Casper's 32 to catch him, then loses playoff.
- 8. T.C. Chen, 1985
- Chen leads for the first 58 holes at Oakland Hills, but a quadruple-bogey 8 (his infamous double-hit) and three bogeys in four holes drop him from four ahead to three behind. He loses to Andy North by one.
- 9. Gil Morgan, 1992
- The first player to reach 10 under par at an Open, Morgan eventually reaches 12 under and leads by seven shots at Pebble Beach, but he plays the last 29 holes in 17 over and ties for 13th.
- 10. Phil Mickelson, 2006
- Needing only as par to secure his first U.S. Open and his third major in a row, Mickelson makes error after error. A tee ball dead left, a hero shot gone wrong and an approach plugged in a bunker lead to a crushing double bogey that made Lefty a self-described "diot" for the ages.
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