Wyndham Clark Apologizes for Oakmont Locker Room Meltdown at U.S. Open

The 2023 U.S. Open champion had a second moment of anger at a major in the midst of a frustrating season.
Wyndham Clark apologized Wednesday for damaging lockers at Oakmont during the U.S. Open.
Wyndham Clark apologized Wednesday for damaging lockers at Oakmont during the U.S. Open. / Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

Wyndham Clark has endured a tough year on the golf course, one that saw his frustration come out twice in the last several weeks as he threw a club at the PGA Championship that hit a sign behind a tee and then take it out on his locker at Oakmont Country Club last week, where he missed the cut at the U.S. Open.

Social media posts and confirmation from club officials confirmed that it was Clark’s locker that was damaged at the historic club, which has lockers that date to the club’s earliest origins in 1904.

Clark has taken a good bit of social media heat for his actions but had not said anything until Thursday at the Travelers Championship, where he was among the early leaders with a 64 at TPC River Highlands.

“Yeah, I mean, I’ve had a lot of highs and lows in my career, especially this year some lows,” Clark said after his round. “I made a mistake that I deeply regret. I’m very sorry for what happened.

“But I’d also like to move on, not only for myself but for Oakmont, for the USGA, and kind of focus on the rest of this year and things that come up. I still want to try to make the Ryder Cup team. I still am on the outside looking in for the FedEx Cup. So I’m starting to move on and focus on those things.”

That is all he said on the matter.

Clark, who won the 2023 U.S. Open, has just a single top-10 finish this year and was outside the top 40 at both the Masters and the PGA Championship before missing the cut at the U.S. Open. He also withdrew from the Players Championship. In his title defense at Pebble Beach, he tied for 73rd.

After starting the year at No. 6 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Clark has dropped to 27th.  He is 80th in FedEx Cup points—only the top 70 make the FedEx Cup playoffs—and he is 23rd in the U.S. Ryder Cup team standings. Only the top six automatically qualify, with captain Keegan Bradley then getting six at-large selections.


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Bob Harig
BOB HARIG

Bob Harig is a senior writer covering golf for Sports Illustrated. He has more than 25 years experience on the beat, including 15 at ESPN. Harig is a regular guest on Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio and has written two books, "DRIVE: The Lasting Legacy of Tiger Woods" and "Tiger and Phil: Golf's Most Fascinating Rivalry." He graduated from Indiana University where he earned an Evans Scholarship, named in honor of the great amateur golfer Charles (Chick) Evans Jr. Harig, a former president of the Golf Writers Association of America, lives in Clearwater, Fla.