| 1978 U.S. Open | |
Two months earlier at the 1978 Masters, 42-year-old Gary Player shot a blistering 64 in the final round to surge to the championship. At the 1978 U.S. Open, however, Player went the opposite direction. Trailing Andy North by one stroke entering the final round, Player blew up with a 77. And that opened the door for North to win the championship.
North was known as a poor driver but excellent putter, and those facets of his game were on display on the tournament's final hole, a par-4 on which he needed to make 5 to win.
North hit his drive into the rough, then his approach fell short and into the rough on the opposite side of the fairway. He flubbed the pitch to the green and found a bunker instead. But then he blasted out and - despite stepping away from the ball twice after taking his address - sank the 4-foot putt to win.
Player finished tied for sixth, four strokes behind. The runners-up were J.C. Snead (Sam Snead's nephew), one of his four Top 10 finishes in majors; and two-time major winner Dave Stockton, recording his final Top 10 finish in a major.
1978 U.S. Open Golf Tournament Scores
Results from the 1978 U.S. Open golf tournament played at the par-71 Cherry Hills Country Club in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado (a-amateur):
| Andy North | 70-70-71-74--285 | $45,000 |
| J.C. Snead | 70-72-72-72--286 | $19,750 |
| Dave Stockton | 71-73-70-72--286 | $19,750 |
| Hale Irwin | 69-74-75-70--288 | $13,000 |
| Tom Weiskopf | 77-73-70-68--288 | $13,000 |
| Andy Bean T | 72-72-71-74--289 | $7,548 |
| Billy Kratzert | 72-74-70-73--289 | $7,548 |
| Jack Nicklaus | 73-69-74-73--289 | $7,548 |
| Tom Watson | 74-75-70-70--289 | $7,548 |
| Gary Player | 71-71-70-77--289 | $7,548 |
| Johnny Miller | 78-69-68-74--289 | $7,548 |
| Joe Inman | 72-72-74-73--291 | $3,400 |
| Lee Trevino | 72-71-75-73--291 | $3,400 |
| Mike McCullough | 75-75-73-68--291 | $3,400 |
| Raymond Floyd | 75-70-76-70--291 | $3,400 |
| Jerry Pate | 73-72-74-73--292 | $2,650 |
| Artie McNickle | 74-75-70-73--292 | $2,650 |
| Seve Ballesteros | 75-69-71-77--292 | $2,650 |
| Bob Shearer | 78-72-71-71--292 | $2,650 |
| Wally Armstrong | 73-73-74-73--293 | $2,287 |
| Phil Hancock | 71-73-75-74--293 | $2,287 |
| Bruce Lietzke | 72-73-72-76--293 | $2,287 |
| Tom Kite | 73-73-70-77--293 | $2,287 |
| Dale Douglass | 74-75-74-72--295 | $2,100 |
| Victor Regalado | 74-72-73-76--295 | $2,100 |
| Tom Purtzer | 75-72-72-76--295 | $2,100 |
| Jerry McGee | 74-76-71-75--296 | $1,950 |
| Pat McGowan | 74-73-72-77--296 | $1,950 |
| Peter Oosterhuis | 72-72-78-74--296 | $1,950 |
| Charles Coody | 74-76-76-71--297 | $1,800 |
| Lee Elder | 76-73-73-75--297 | $1,800 |
| Billy Casper | 71-76-73-77--297 | $1,800 |
| Rod Curl | 78-72-74-73--297 | $1,800 |
| a-Bobby Clampett | 70-73-80-74--297 | |
| Miller Barber | 74-73-76-75--298 | $1,566 |
| Leonard Thompson | 74-76-73-75--298 | $1,566 |
| Gene Littler | 73-75-77-73--298 | $1,566 |
| Ed Fiori | 74-73-74-77--298 | $1,566 |
| Lou Graham | 78-72-74-74--298 | $1,566 |
| Mark Hayes | 73-70-76-79--298 | $1,566 |
| Steve Melnyk | 79-71-69-79--298 | $1,566 |
| Ray Cragun | 79-71-76-72--298 | $1,566 |
| Mac McLendon | 75-73-69-81--298 | $1,566 |
| Bob Gilder | 76-74-74-75--299 | $1,430 |
| Bill Rogers | 79-69-73-78--299 | $1,430 |
| Chi Chi Rodriguez | 74-73-77-76--300 | $1,350 |
| Wayne Levi | 76-73-74-77--300 | $1,350 |
| Bobby Wadkins | 71-78-77-74--300 | $1,350 |
| George Burns | 74-76-78-72--300 | $1,350 |
| Ed Sneed | 78-70-75-77--300 | $1,350 |
| Tom Ulozas | 73-73-75-79--300 | $1,350 |
| Bobby Nichols | 74-72-80-75--301 | $1,290 |
| Nate Starks | 74-75-78-75--302 | $1,275 |
| Al Geiberger | 71-74-78-79--302 | $1,275 |
| Harry Toscano | 74-75-75-79--303 | $1,255 |
| Dick McClean | 78-71-72-82--303 | $1,255 |
| Bill Brask Jr. | 71-76-78-79--304 | $1,240 |
| a-Jim Holtgrieve | 79-71-78-76--304 | |
| Dave Eichelberger | 77-71-80-77--305 | $1,230 |
| Mike Morley | 77-73-78-80--308 | $1,220 |
| Walter Zembriski | 76-73-84-76--309 | $1,210 |
| Bob E. Smith | 74-73-82-81--310 | $1,200 |
| Al Chandler | 75-75-76-86--312 | $1,200 |
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