Richard Bland wins US Senior Open after rain delay

NEWPORT, R.I. — Richard Bland shot a 4-under-par 66 in the final round of the U.S. Senior Open, catching leader Hiroyuki Fujita after rain delayed the finish until Monday morning, then chipping from the hole to beat him on the fourth playoff hole and win his second straight senior major.

The Senior PGA champion took a five-shot lead over Fujita in the final round, which was delayed by thunderstorms Sunday afternoon with eight holes remaining. When golfers returned to the 7,024-yard, par-70 Newport Country Club on Monday, Fujita's consistency (he hit 38 straight fairways in regulation before the rain delay) had deserted him.

After both shot 13 under par and tied the scores in a two-hole aggregate playoff and the first sudden-death hole, the golfers returned to the 466-yard, par-4 18th hole for the fourth time that day. Bland's shot from a greenside bunker hit the flagstick and came up two inches short of the cup; Fujita missed a 25-foot putt to extend the tournament, and Bland chipped in to win his second senior major in as many tries.

“To win this title, to make it two out of two, is beyond my wildest dreams,” said Bland, who won the Senior PGA at Harbor Shores last month. “I was just hoping to be good enough to fight at the PGA; I’d never played against these guys. But to be here with two majors … I’m at a loss for words right now.”

Richard Green shot a 71 to finish third, one shot ahead of Steve Stricker. The 2019 champion and runner-up each of the last two years, Stricker shot 66s in each of the first three rounds but shot a 73 in the fourth, bogeying the 72nd hole to leave him in sole possession of fourth place.

Fujita had shared at least part of the lead since shooting a 63 in the first round and he maintained it with unprecedented consistency: He hit 54 of 56 fairways in regulation, the most ever in a U.S. Senior Open. He returned to the course wearing the same style of shirt he wore Thursday, but everything else was different.

The 5-foot-10 two-time Japanese Tour MVP hit his first shot Monday morning into the rough, making bogeys on three of the first four holes after play resumed. Bland, who started the final round five shots behind and was still three shots behind when he returned after the delay, took the lead with birdies on holes 14 and 15 and went to the 72nd hole with a chance to win in regulation.

But he hit his tee shot into a fairway bunker that wouldn't have been playable without the strong wind coming off sailing hotspot Narragansett Bay. He made bogey, and when Fujita finished with a 71, they were both at 13 under par after 72 holes.

“We chased him all week. He led pretty much from start to finish,” Bland said. “I birdied the 15th hole to get a lead, but I tripped up a little bit on the last hole.”

Bland would have a better chance on the 18th hole, a 466-yard par 4.

Three more, to be precise.

After both par-bogeyed holes 10 and 18 in the two-hole playoff, they returned to the 18th and played there until the match was settled. On their fourth hole, Bland put his approach into a greenside bunker but then saved par. Fujita put his last chance just inside the piece that Bland had placed as a marker.

“I started the day with a three-shot lead. I didn’t play at my best and ended up in a playoff,” Fujita said. “I still played well and had a good performance. It would have been better if I had won. It’s a little disappointing to have lost. However, I’m proud of myself.”

A member of the Saudi-backed LIV Tour, Bland didn’t win a European Tour title until his 478th start, at age 48. He only earned his spot in the U.S. Senior Open by winning the Senior PGA Championship at Harbor Shores last month. He only earned his spot in this tournament by winning the 2021 British Masters.

He is now the third golfer to win his first two senior majors, joining Arnold Palmer and Alex Cejka. He also joins 1995 U.S. Amateur champion Tiger Woods and 2006 U.S. Women's Open winner Annika Sorenstam with victories at Newport, one of the five founding members of the USGA.

“To be honest, I’m probably not doing you a good service,” Bland said. “To be in this kind of category is something very, very special and something you can only dream of.”

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