In the end, the Old Course got him, although it’s unlikely that an extra day or two of zealous study would have made any difference. It was still astonishing that Jordan Spieth got so close to winning his third successive major in the same year.
The ancient combination of the Road Hole and the Valley of Sin denied him, with his bogey-par finish not quite good enough to get into the play-off.
Was he deflated afterwards? He put a brave and convincing face on it.
“Although we came in wanting to be two shots better than what we finished, with everything that went on this week and the momentum we came in with , yeah, I’m very pleased with the way we battled,” he said.
“I just didn’t give myself a chance on 18. I just wish I’d given myself a little better opportunity.”
We could list again all that was mounted up against Spieth through the week, but we’ve done that. Yesterday you had to add in the mounting, suffocating pressure, any amount of distraction, and even a major miscalculation on the eighth, when he putted off the green and took a double bogey six.
Did the Grand Slam end there? Did it hell. Spieth birdied 9 and 10 in a visible fury, and hauled himself back into the mix.
After negotiating the toughest part of the course, he rattled in a 25 footer at the 15th the first man to birdie that hole since Phil Mickelson had done it hours earlier and suddenly he had a share of the lead again.
But he missed an eight foot par putt at 17, and then pushed his drive wide at the last, his lob wedge falling back into the Valley of Sin where he was unable to do a “Rocca”.
“My speed control (putting) was really what cost me this week, the five three-putts the second round, and then just my speed control in general wasn’t great,” he said.
“On eight I had left so many of them short throughout the week, I said, I’m not leaving this one short, I’m going to get this one up there, and instead hit it off the other side of the green where it was really dead, so that was a mental mistake on my part.”
The thought of what he was aiming for other than winning the championship didn’t enter his head.
“I knew I needed a birdie to get to 15 at least, my number for the day was to shoot 4-under,” he said. “I did not expect three guys to get to 15-under today in those conditions.
“That was some phenomenal golf by everyone that was played, there was some fantastic golf in major championship final round and that doesn’t always happen.”
He wouldn’t be hurting about it too long, he reckoned.
“I played a great round of golf today, other than No. 8, I thought it was perfect.
“Obviously 17 and 18 could have been a little different, but I struck the ball phenomenally well, I drove the ball as good as I’ve driven it this entire year.
“I think the way that I played this week and especially today would have won the U.S. Open by more than just a shot. The kind of golf that was played by the field this week, that’s been a hell of a major championship.”