U.S. Open: 5 best moments in history
3. Arnold Palmer completes a huge comeback
At the 1960 U.S. Open, Arnold Palmer was in the beginning stages of a dominant run, the 20-year-old Nicklaus was an amateur searching for a tournament win, and Hogan was winding down his storied career. All three legends came together in the final round of what was one of the greatest golf tournaments ever.
After the third round, Hogan and Nicklaus were tied for fifth, three strokes behind leader Mike Souchak. Meanwhile, nobody believed Palmer had any chance to win, as he was eight strokes off the lead with 14 players ahead of him.
However, Palmer birdied six of the first seven holes to get right back into contention. As Souchak struggled, Nicklaus took over the lead at the turn, with Hogan also in contention.
Nicklaus three-putted twice on the back nine, while Hogan’s triple bogey on 18 sent him tumbling down the leaderboard. Palmer cooled off from his perfect start to the round, but managed par on the final two holes to win the tournament.
The previous record comeback in the final round of a Major had been five strokes, and Palmer’s 65 was the lowest score ever in a U.S. Open final round. Palmer went on to finish his career with seven wins in major tournaments, with 1960 being his only U.S. Open win.
Next: 2. Payne Stewart beats Phil Mickelson in 1999