3. Miller's Brilliance (1973)
Oakmont features in a number of the “greatest” US Opens as it’s seen as the archetypal Open course. In 1919, Grantland Rice called it “the hardest golf course in the country” and it had lived up to that reputation – until this event. It seems there was a sprinkler malfunction and the course was actually relatively soft and receptive, which led to a record nineteen players breaking par on the Friday. The last two days saw the course toughen, and in fact the fallout continued the following year when the “Massacre at Winged Foot” was blamed on a reaction to the scores that Oakmont yielded. A sub-plot in 1973 was the seeming return to form of Arnold Palmer, with the huge local crowds seeking revenge upon the upstart Jack Nicklaus. There was also the matter of perhaps the best player in the world at the time, Lee Trevino, reigning Open champion and seeking his third US Open title. In the event, this stellar threesome all tied for fourth behind eventual champion Johnny Miller. With such a field and such a tough course, Miller’s round on Sunday was perhaps the best in major championship history. This former US Amateur champion played flawless golf in scoring a record 63 to take the championship by one. He hit all eighteen greens in regulation and took just twenty-nine putts, even lipping out on the final two holes. A great player often seen as never quite living up to his abilities, Miller went on to win the Open Championship in 1976 and a total of twenty-five PGA titles. However, those who saw what he was capable of at Oakmont felt he should have achieved so much more.
