US Open: Five things to take away from Pebble Beach - Iain Carter
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Gary Woodland held off the challenge from golf's biggest names to win his maiden major at the US Open
Gary Woodland resisted competition from fellow American and world number one Brooks Koepka to win the US Open, as Justin Rose fell away and Rory McIlroy failed to properly challenge.
Here's five key lessons we learned from the third major of the year at Pebble Beach.
Pressure mounts for McIlroy
Rory McIlroy's major drought continued as the Northern Irishman failed to shoot under 70 in the final two rounds
This was another major chance to slip away from McIlroy.
Yes, he would have needed the lowest round at a Pebble Beach US Open (64) to force a play-off, but the more frustrating fact is that he failed to contend.
Champion Woodland never had sight of the Northern Irishman in his wing mirrors.
This is a concern because McIlroy brought stellar form from his Canadian Open win.
Going into the weekend, the 30-year-old was only four strokes back and looking comfortable, but McIlroy failed to break 70 in the final two rounds and his chance was gone with his dismal double bogey on Sunday's second hole.
These days, he cannot summon his finest golf when he most needs it, characterised by his Masters malaise, with McIlroy failing in five attempts to land the Green Jacket that would bring a career Grand Slam.
Now he goes to The Open at Royal Portrush, a unique opportunity for the Ulsterman and arguably the biggest tournament of his life. Will he be inspired or inhibited?
It will be the greatest challenge of his career and what we saw at Pebble Beach does not inspire confidence.
Woodland is the real deal
Gary Woodland was in unchartered territory in the final pairing of the US Open but his game stood up to close scrutiny
Until recently we only considered Woodland to be a big-hitting slugger capable of landing the odd PGA Tour title and plenty of big cheques along the way.
When he hit the front on a soft and yielding Bellerive Country Club at last year's US PGA Championship it all made sense.
The set-up did not require much finesse, just nerve to see it through over the weekend.
Woodland was found wanting and ended sixth, but did at least claim his first top-10 finish at a major.
Since teaming up with Yorkshire's Pete Cowen and Southport putting guru Phil Kenyon, Woodland has been transformed.
All aspects of his game were tested at Pebble Beach and he did not three-putt on any of its famous greens.
Furthermore, there was the exquisite chip from the tight fringe on the 71st hole, a perfect example of nerve and execution.
It provided a crucial par when the pressure was at its most intense.
Koepka continues his advance on greatness
Pre-tournament favourite Brooks Koepka was unable to make it three US Open titles in a row but he claimed a fourth straight top-two finish in the majors
World number one Koepka has not finished outside the top two in his past four majors.
After winning the US PGA last August he was runner-up to Tiger Woods at the Masters, retained his PGA title in its new May date at Bethpage and was beaten only by Woodland's brilliance at Pebble Beach.
To fire rounds of 69-69-68-68 while chasing a third successive US Open, an unprecedented hat-trick in the modern era, was an extraordinary effort.
He stayed in contention over the first two rounds despite not having his best ball-striking and his weekend performance would have won many a major.
Koepka is putting together a career of golfing greatness and he will be justifiable Open favourite when he rolls into Portrush next month.
It also helps that this is the home town of his caddie Ricky Elliott.
At last the USGA gets it right
Pebble Beach's soft, wide fairways may have yielded more birdies than the norm for a US Open, but they provided the kind of test that brought the best out of the world's top golfers yet still provided an unexpected result
There are those who will say US Opens should not yield winning scores that are 13 under par.
Indeed, the USGA prides itself on presenting the toughest test in golf for their national championship.
Pebble Beach was too soft, the fairways playing too wide for that to be the case last week.
But the leaderboard had three of the world's top four - Koepka, McIlroy and Justin Rose - all in contention over the final weekend.
We came away talking about a contest between the planet's very best players and they were genuinely tested.
What more do you want from a major?
The USGA could not afford to mess up; they were under intense pressure after a string of US Open controversies.
They stayed on the side of caution and won nothing but praise from the players. Lessons seem to have been learned.
This was a hugely enjoyable championship where the players had the platform to demonstrate their skills in the knowledge that their errors would receive appropriate punishment.
Tiger Woods needs a heatwave at Portrush
Tiger Woods needed supportive tape on his neck as he struggled with the chilly conditions at Pebble Beach
This is not exactly ground-breaking stuff, but Pebble Beach provided further evidence of the fragility of Tiger Woods' fitness.
The Masters winner admitted that he feels every shot these days to some extent and when it is cold and chilly it hurts even more.
The KT tape needed to be applied to his neck last weekend as he battled away and there was never any prospect of him adding to his 15 major titles.
Woods is not expected to play again before next month's Open at Portrush.
There he has to hope the July weather is kinder than the fridge-like conditions that prevailed beneath the "marine layer" clouds that enveloped Monterey last week.