Golf

2023 was the year Wyndham Clark broke out

Wyndham Clark picked up his first two PGA Tour wins of his profession in 2023, which included a U.S. Open title at Los Angeles Country Club.

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Ah, 2023. The year every thing modified … once more. For the second straight year, we left 2023 with a drastically totally different perspective {of professional} golf than we entered. Now, as we glance again at the year that was — with LIV main championships, Ryder Cup controversies and oh so many different tales — we’re remembering the 15 largest moments that outlined the year in golf. Let’s get digging.

ICYMI: Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 No. 15: Viktor Hovland’s arrival
ICYMI: Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 No. 14: Fowler, Day again in the winner’s circle
ICYMI: Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 No. 13: Brian Harman’s Open rout
ICYMI: Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 No. 12: The Michael Block Party

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ICYMI: Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 No. 11: The year Wyndham Clark broke out

We ought to have seen the warning indicators: Wyndham Clark was able to win at Los Angeles Country Club when the U.S. Open visited in June.

He received for the first time in his PGA Tour profession a month earlier, capturing 63-68 on the weekend at the Wells Fargo Championship. Sure, he missed the minimize in his subsequent begin, however we’ll give the man a break, coming off a $3.6 million payday and all. He was T12 at the Memorial earlier than he arrived in L.A. Clark got here per week early and liked the course, too.

“I felt like there was a lot of holes that fit my eye, and I liked the greens, and I loved the design of the golf course, which usually I play good on courses where I feel comfortable and I like the design of it,” he stated after his first-round 64 when the match lastly began. “There’s a lot of creativity out there, so if you get in trouble, there’s some holes where you’ve really got to be creative and have some fun, and I typically like doing that.”

He talked about he had the monkey off his again, too, with the Wells Fargo win nonetheless recent. “It just breeds confidence,” he stated.

He wasn’t kidding.

Clark was T3 after that first spherical, and he claimed a share of the 54-hole lead alongside Rickie Fowler heading into Sunday. The fan favourite for that last spherical? You guessed it.

“My mental coach, Julie, she told me, ‘Every time you hear someone chant Rickie, think of your goals and get cocky and go show them who you are,’” Clark stated. “I did that. It was like 100-plus instances right now I reminded myself of the targets.

“Now maybe they’ll be chanting my name in the future.”

You know what occurs from right here. Fowler light. Clark shot 70 and held off Rory McIlroy regardless of making bogeys on 15 and 16.

But what the week in L.A. did for Clark was open doorways. He certified for his first Tour Championship (T3), made his first Ryder Cup crew (1-1-1 report) and acquired invited to his first Tiger Woods-hosted Hero World Challenge (Nineteenth-place end however…). Now he’s World No. 10.

So, if 2023 was Clark’s breakout year, what’s coming in 2024? We’re about to search out out.

Josh Berhow

Golf.com Editor

Josh Berhow is the managing editor at GOLF.com. The Minnesota native graduated with a journalism diploma from Minnesota State University in Mankato. You can attain him at joshua_berhow@golf.com.


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