DeChambeau wins U.S. Open and captures hearts in Pinehurst

The big picture: Golf may not strike everybody's fancy, but the people who do care about it really, really care. And Pinehurst cares more than any other place in the country.

• DeChambeau, a 30-year-old known for his eccentric tics, will have his name forever tied to the small village. Photos of his championship moments will live for generations in the clubhouse hallways and surrounding hotels.

How it happened: Like the 1999 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, this tournament will be remembered as one of the best ever played.

• DeChambeau battled with one of the greats of the game in Rory McIlroy, with the lead flip-flopping between the two during the last nine holes. McIlroy even took a two-stroke lead.
• But McIlroy missed two short putts over the last three holes, bogeying holes 15, 16 and 18, giving DeChambeau a chance to win with just a par on his last hole.
• And after a horrible drive off the 18 tee, DeChambeau hit his signature shot of the championship, a long bunker blast to within four fee of the hole. He sank that putt, then bent his knees and looked skyward while fans showered him with cheers.

Fun fact: DeChambeau spent years wearing a flat driver cap as a nod to his idol, the late Payne Stewart, winner of the 1999 U.S. Open.

• DeChambeau switched over to a baseball-style cap a couple of years ago.
• But he brought the driver cap back last week, hooked to his bag "as a remembrance of [Stewart]," DeChambeau said after Friday's round. "It's with me and makes me think of him every time I'm walking on these grounds."
• Stewart, who died in an aviation accident in October 1999, is memorialized at Pinehurst with a statue that fans still take photos with, a quarter-century later.