JJ Spaun

JJ Spaun is golf’s newest major champion after an amazing two-stroke victory over Robert MacIntyre at the US Open.

Although he bogeyed five of the first six holes on the final day, Spaun fought his way back into a tie for the lead, then drove the green at the par-4 17th and made a putt of nearly 65 feet on the last for another birdie.

His Open debut comes four months after he battled Rory McIlroy for the prestigious Players Championship in Florida, losing after a three-hole play-off.

Two weeks earlier Spaun had been a runner-up in the Cognizant Classic, shooting a closing 66 but losing by two to Joe Highsmith’s 64.

He was ranked 242nd when his first PGA Tour success came at the 2022 Valero Texas Open, his 147th start on the circuit. It qualified him for a Masters debut the following week and he finished joint 23rd.

Spaun turned professional in 2012 and had success on both the PGA Tour Canada and Web.com Tour – on his 26th birthday - before graduating to the main circuit.

He was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2018, but three years later the diagnosis was changed to type 1.

His full name is actually John Michael Spaun, but has long been known simply as JJ.