Refresher on Wyndham Clark’s stellar career in Colorado as the Denver native wins his second U.S. Open
By Gary Baines – 6/21/2026
(Note: This is an updated version of a story originally published in June 2023)
On Sunday, Colorado native Wyndham Clark won his second U.S. Open title in four years, prevailing by one stroke over Sam Burns at Shinnecock Hills in Southampton, N.Y.
With Clark back on center stage, we wanted to do a refresher on him from a Colorado perspective — touching on his background in the state and what he’s accomplished locally, while tossing in a few other tidbits.
We’ll do it quick-hit style. And away we go …:
— Clark was born in the Denver area on Dec. 9, 1993. He’ll turn 33 later this year.
— Clark played his golf out of Cherry Hills Country Club, which has hosted U.S. Opens in 1938, ’60 and ’78 — as well as two PGA Championships. The 1960 Open there was one of the most memorable in the tournament’s history as Arnold Palmer won the event for the only time in his life by rallying from a seven-stroke deficit starting the final round to take the title.
— For high school, Clark attended Valor Christian, where he won two Class 4A individual state titles — in 2009 and ’11. In the latter, as a senior at Pelican Lakes in Windsor, he famously shot rounds of 64-64 for a 16-under-par total to prevail by eight strokes. Overall at state, Clark posted two wins and was runner-up twice. In 2009, Clark led Valor, which opened in 2007, to its first state team title in any sport. Clark also played basketball at Valor, where he was a classmate of now-NFL standout Christian McCaffrey.
Clark was all smiles after his 11-shot victory in the 2009 CGA Junior Stroke Play.
— Elsewhere in junior golf, at age 15 Clark won the 2009 CGA Junior Stroke Play by 11 shots at Eaton Country Cub, finishing 8 under par for three rounds. “We were playing for second,” co-runner-up Benjamin Krueger said at the time. “I played with (Clark) the first two rounds and that 65 he shot (on day 2) was insane, crazy. I wouldn’t be surprised if he turned pro before he got out of high school.”
— Also at 15, he made it to the final 16 at the U.S. Junior Amateur and placed third in the oldest boys division at the prestigious Callaway Junior World Championships in San Diego.
— In 2010 at age 16, Clark (along with fellow current PGA Tour player Patrick Cantlay) qualified in Colorado for the U.S. Amateur for the first time. Clark would go on to qualify for the U.S. Am on four more occasions, the last in 2016, when he advanced to the round of 32.
Clark after winning the CGA Stroke Play at Boulder Country Club in 2010 as a 16-year-old.
— Also in 2010, Clark claimed the CGA Stroke Play title at age 16, becoming the youngest since 1971 to earn that victory. Clark had to beat Jim Knous in a playoff after the latter shot a course-record 10-under 60 at Boulder Country Club in the final round. (Note: The championship is now known as the CGA Amateur.)
— After winning the prestigious Byron Nelson International Junior Golf Award in 2012, Clark went to national powerhouse Oklahoma State for his college golf. He ended up being a rare winner of two conference Player of the Year awards — in two different leagues: Big 12 POY at Oklahoma State (2014) and Pac-12 POY in 2017 after transferring to the University of Oregon.
— During his years at Oklahoma State, Clark’s mother, Lise, passed away after battling breast cancer — in 2013 at age 55. Lise had been named Miss New Mexico USA in 1981. Clark’s dad, Randall, was a regular at his tournaments throughout their time in Colorado.
— In the spring portion of his senior season, Clark scored all three of his individual college victories. Most notably, he won the Pac-12 Conference individual title — and led Oregon to the team championship — in 2017 at Boulder Country Club, where he won the 2010 CGA Stroke Play as a 16-year-old.
— Clark’s Oregon team advanced to the match-play final of the 2017 NCAA nationals, but fell to Oklahoma. Clark was one of finalists for men’s college golfer of the year as a senior, but Mississippi’s Braden Thornberry won the award.
— Clark turned professional in June 2017 and made his pro debut at the PGA Tour’s Travelers Championship on a sponsor exemption, missing the cut by 12 strokes after rounds of 78-74.
— After having won three times on the PGA Tour in the course of nine months — including the 2023 U.S. Open — Clark competed in a PGA Tour event in Colorado for the first time, finishing 13that the 2024 BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club.
— Clark was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame as part of the 2024 class that also featured LPGA standout Jennifer Kupcho, along with George Solich, Pat Hamill, Joe Assell and the late Gene Torres.
— Clark lent his name to an American Junior Golf Association event in Colorado — a tournament at Walnut Creek Golf Preserve in Westminster now known as The Wyndham Clark Presented by the Colorado Golf Association.
— In 2025, Clark (along with fellow USGA champions Bill Loeffler and Jill McGill) became an honorary member at Cherry Hills Country Club south of Denver, his home club as he grew up. He soon started working on his game with Cherry Hills CC PGA director of instruction Pat Coyner.
— Though Clark now primarily lives in Scottsdale, Ariz., he purchased a place in Colorado and continues to be an avid fly fisherman in the state, as this PGA Tour video shows.
Colorado Golf Journal 