Play was delayed on the first day due to heavy rainfall, forcing most of the field to play half a round behind schedule. Andrew Landry was a surprise leader after the first round before Johnson led the field in the second. Shane Lowry carded a 65 in the third round to take the overall lead into the final round. Despite a controversial penalty on the 5th green, Johnson took the title three strokes ahead of runners-up Lowry, Jim Furyk and Scott Piercy.
About half the field consisted of players who were exempt from qualifying for the U.S. Open. Each player is classified according to the first category in which he qualified, and other categories are shown in parentheses.[4]
1. Winners of the U.S. Open Championship during the last ten years
Mike Van Sickle (L, Rockville) – claimed spot held for category 14
(a) denotes amateur
(L) denotes player advanced through local qualifying
Round summaries
First round
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Play was suspended three times during the morning wave of players, all for dangerous weather conditions. At 4:40 pm EDT, play was called for the day with the second wave of players yet to tee off.[11] Only three groups, nine players, finished their first rounds.[12]Andrew Landry, who was ranked 624th in the world and had to go through local and sectional qualifiers, was the leader at 3 under par, with a birdie putt on his last hole, hole 9. Amateur Scottie Scheffler was the leader in the clubhouse at 1 under par.[13]
After more rain overnight, nearly three inches (7.5 cm) total since Wednesday, play resumed at 7:30 am under mostly sunny skies and the round was completed shortly after 3 pm. Landry, the overnight leader, had a cushy end to his round: he only brought his putter to the course, to which he sank his birdie putt to lead at 4-under par. He would not play another hole for the rest of the day (see round 2).
Play was suspended due to darkness at 8:43 pm with 27 players of the first wave still on the course and the second wave of players yet to tee off. Dustin Johnson completed his round and was tied for the lead with Andrew Landry, who had not started his second round yet, at 4 under par.
*Completed their second round on Saturday (had not yet started second round)
Saturday, June 18, 2016
The 27 members of the first wave resumed their rounds and the second wave began theirs at 7 am. The second round was completed after 2 pm; 67 players made the cut at 146 (+6) or better.
The round began at 3 pm, on split tees in groupings of three; the final grouping of Dustin Johnson, Andrew Landry, and Scott Piercy teed off at 5:01 pm and completed 13 holes. Play was suspended due to darkness at 8:49 pm with Shane Lowry as the overnight leader at 5 under par, through 14 holes.
Play resumed at 7 am and Shane Lowry birdied 15 and 17 for a round of 65 (−5) to extend his lead to four strokes. Andrew Landry bogeyed 14 and 15, but birdied 17 and 18 to move into the final pairing. Daniel Summerhays birdied 15 and eagled 17 to climb into a tie for fourth. After 54 holes, the top eight players on the leaderboard were all seeking their first major title.
Play in the final round began at 10 am, in pairs from the first hole, with the final pair of Shane Lowry and Andrew Landry starting at 3:30 pm. Dustin Johnson shot a 69 and won his first major, three shots ahead of three runners-up.[14] After finishing at five under par, Johnson was penalized a shot as he was judged to have made his ball move as he addressed it on the fifth green, despite being initially absolved of wrongdoing. His score was amended to four under par, but he still finished three strokes ahead. The top four of the leaderboard were the only ones left under par.[15][16]
During the final round of the tournament, there was a controversial incident on the fifth green that involved eventual winner Dustin Johnson. As he prepared to address the ball for a par putt, his ball moved slightly. Johnson stepped away, saying that he had not addressed the ball. After he spoke to an on-site rules official, he was told to carry on with his shot and sank the putt. Later, on the 12th tee, an official informed him that he might be penalized a stroke, but that no decision would be made until the round was complete.[18] The penalty was ultimately assessed against Johnson which still left him three strokes ahead of three second-place finishers. Several of the world's top golfers, such as Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy, and Rickie Fowler, as well as many viewers on their local Fox stations and spectators at the course, took to social media to criticize the USGA for its decision.[19]
Media
For the second year, Fox Sports televised the championship in the United States. The first two rounds were on FS1 cable and over-the-air on Fox, with the last two rounds shown only on Fox. In the United Kingdom and Ireland, it was carried by Sky Sports.