JJ Spaun turns down USGA request: "Unfortunately, I can't..."

JJ Spaun has revealed he turned down a request from the USGA to donate the putter he used to win the 2025 US Open — insisting the club is “not ready to be retired.”

Speaking at the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles on Wednesday, Spaun, 35, confirmed that the governing body did ask for a keepsake from his victory at Oakmont Country Club last June.

“Yes,” Spaun said when asked if the USGA had requested a club for its archives. 

“I said, ‘Unfortunately, I can’t. That thing is not ready to be retired, especially after that putt.’”

That putt was the unforgettable 64-footer Spaun holed to win the 125th U.S. Open in dramatic walk-off fashion, securing his maiden major championship.

Reflecting on the moment at Oakmont, Spaun described how he used Viktor Hovland’s earlier attempt to help judge the decisive stroke.

“Viktor [Hovland], we kind of got a good line, a good read on the speed,” Spaun said after winning his maiden major title. 

“I was more focused on how hard he was hitting it. I kind of knew the line already, but it looked like he gave it a pretty good whack because it started raining there for the last 10, 15 minutes. I just tried to pick my line and put a good stroke on it. I knew it was going to be a little slow. About 8 feet out, I kind of went up to the high side to see if it had a chance of going in, and it was like going right in. I was just in shock, disbelief that it went in and it was over. Yeah, here we are.”

The putter in question — his L.A.B. Golf DF 3 — clearly holds too much sentimental and competitive value for Spaun to part with.

Instead, he offered the USGA an alternative.

“The second probably most valuable club, I think, was my driver, and I actually had switched to a more new head, meaning, like, it was probably getting close to its limit,” Spaun said.

“It ended up being kind of unusable anyway, so I donated that, and I think they were pretty happy.”

Watch Spaun's magic moment here:

While Spaun is holding onto the club that delivered his career-defining moment, his week at Riviera has not started in similar fashion. 

The U.S. Open champion opened with a lacklustre 3-over-par 74, leaving him nine shots off the early lead at the Genesis Invitational.

England's Aaron Rai has set the early pace, while Rory McIlroy is also off to a fast start at Riviera.