McDowell holds nerve for first major

Graeme McDowell ended a 40-year European drought at the US Open and landed his first major on a dramatic final day at Pebble Beach.

The 30-year-old Northern Irishman was a one-shot winner over Gregory Havret of France after shooting a three-over-par 74 to finish at level par for the tournament and join Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Tom Kite and Tiger Woods as US Open champions at the famous California links.

The drama had come early in his round as playing partner and overnight leader Dustin Johnson squandered a three-shot lead at the second hole to blow the final round wide open, with McDowell rising to the challenge as others, including Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els, faltered.

Havret was second, having shot a 72 to finish one over par, with Els third on two over after a 73 and the world's first and second-ranked golfers Woods (75) and Mickelson (73) tied for fourth a further shot back.

McDowell, the world number 37, follows another Portrush native Fred Daly, winner of the 1947 Open Championship, as a major winner but he had almost not made the field after his tie for 28th at the BMW PGA Championships gave US Tour players Scott Verplank, Michael Sim and Brian Gay the chance to oust him from the world’s top 50 rankings with their finishes at the Byron Nelson Championship.

They failed to do so and McDowell got in, going on to win the Celtic Manor Wales Open two weeks ago and bringing that winning form to Pebble Beach to lead this tournament at halfway.

American Johnson, with a seemingly unflappable demeanour, outscored him in the third round to take a three-shot cushion at six under par into the final round but did not last long with the pressure of a Sunday lead at the majors.

He walked off the par-four second hole in a tie with McDowell for the lead at three under after a terrible triple-bogey seven and then lost his ball off the third tee en route to a double bogey, a nightmare series of events for the world number 29.

Having been made to wait, McDowell did well to sink a far from easy par putt and the Portrush golfer went to the fourth having regained the lead at three under as Johnson slipped to one under.

Johnson was all at sea, figuratively and literally at the fourth as his tee shot rolled over the edge of the cliff and after taking a drop, he missed his par putt from five feet to fall out of contention, eventually carding an 82 to tie for eighth at five over.

But while the American faltered, McDowell did not drop a shot until the par-four ninth, the last player in the field to bogey on the final day.

Another followed at the 10th but South Africa’s Els, a two-time US Open winner who had shared the lead with McDowell at three under after his first six holes, was also finding trouble.

Els double-bogeyed the ninth then bogeyed the 10th to return to his starting point at level par and dropped two more strokes to finish with a 73 and take third place at two over.

Havret, who had qualified for the tournament at Walton Heath, birdied the first and sixth holes but bogeyed eight and 10 to fall back to level par but did not drop another shot until the 17th, keeping the pressure on McDowell down the final stretch.

The Ryder Cup man bogeyed the 14th, finding a fairway bunker off the tee then laying up and sending his approach through the green and down the slope at the back on the way to a bogey that sent him to one under and cut his lead to one stroke with four to play.

Havret’s bogey on 17 gave him a two-shot cushion but then he too bogeyed the infamous par-three and McDowell went to the par-five 18th one ahead with the Frenchman still playing ahead.

As McDowell waited to play his second shot, Havret missed his birdie putt, instead making par for a one-over 72 to finish one over and leave the leader needing a par or better.

He and caddie Ken Comboy immediately made the decision to lay up and McDowell did the sensible thing before sending in a solid short iron to the middle of the green and leave himself with two putts for victory.

First he had to wait for Johnson to putt out, then rolled his first putt to within a foot to tap in, looking to the skies then producing a double fist pump before a tearful embrace with Comboy.