Joaquin Niemann did not have his best Thursday at the US Open. Then he made it worse by launching a club roughly 50 yards down the fairway.
The Chilean star was hit with a two-stroke penalty Friday morning for the outburst, which happened on the 15th hole at Shinnecock Hills after Niemann hit two consecutive balls out of bounds. Play was suspended for darkness shortly after, and the USGA reviewed video before making the ruling on Friday.
The penalty effectively ended Niemann’s tournament. He was already on the wrong side of the cut line, and the two strokes pushed him further out. He withdrew before the second round started.
Let us be honest. The throw was impressive. Most weekend golfers cannot hit a 7-iron 50 yards on purpose. Niemann managed to launch one in pure frustration, and the video has been making the rounds on social media ever since.
The bigger picture for Niemann is concerning. He has been one of the best LIV Golf players over the last two years, winning multiple events on the rival tour and finishing in the top 10 at several majors. The expectation entering Shinnecock was that he would contend for the title.
Instead, he is going home with a two-stroke penalty and a viral clip nobody wanted. The USGA was right to issue the penalty. Throwing a club that far is a safety issue regardless of intent, and the modern game cannot tolerate that kind of outburst on the biggest stage.
Niemann is not the first golfer to lose his temper at a major. Sergio Garcia famously melted down at multiple Open Championships. Tiger Woods has launched plenty of clubs in his career. The difference is that the cameras catch everything now, and the rules officials have to respond.
The optics also matter for LIV Golf. The Saudi-backed league has spent millions trying to legitimize itself as a serious alternative to the PGA Tour. Watching one of its star players act like an angry junior tennis player at the US Open does not help that narrative.
For Niemann personally, the next few weeks matter. He has a Genesis Scottish Open coming up in early July, then The Open Championship at Royal Portrush. If he can recover his composure and play well, this becomes a story that fades by August.
If he keeps throwing clubs, it becomes a label that follows him for the rest of his career. Phil Mickelson took years to outrun the reputation as a player who could not close at majors. Bryson DeChambeau battled his image for half a decade before the 2024 US Open win changed everything.
Niemann is only 27 years old. He has plenty of time to fix this. But the talent has always been there, and the major championships have not. Until he proves he can manage his emotions on the biggest stages, the doubters will keep doubting.
The US Open continues this weekend with a tightly bunched leaderboard at Shinnecock. The story Niemann hoped to write is already on its way to the next tournament, and the only highlight from his trip to Long Island is one nobody on his team will want to see again.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
