The professional golf season continues this week at one of the hardest tests in golf: The U.S. Open.
The 126th U.S. Open is set to take place from Thursday to Sunday at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, New York. The winner will cement their place in golf history with a victory at one of the four major championships.
Here is what winning this week’s U.S. Open would mean for five players’ careers:
Scottie Scheffler
Winning the 126th U.S. Open would put Scottie Scheffler among the greatest golfers of all time. The 29-year-old American would become the seventh golfer to complete the career grand slam, which consists of winning all four of golf’s major championships, and he would do so on his 30th birthday. Scheffler already has the 2022 and 2024 Masters, along with the 2025 PGA Championship and Open Championship titles, so the only missing major is the U.S. Open.
The six other career grand slam winners are Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, and Rory McIlroy, all of whom are considered some of the best golfers in history.
According to Data Golf, Scheffler’s game fits Shinnecock Hills better than a majority of the field, as he’s tied for the fifth-best strokes gained adjustment of any player in the field. Data Golf also gives the No. 1 player in the world a 12% chance of winning the tournament as of Tuesday.
Rory McIlroy
Earlier this season, Rory McIlroy won his sixth major championship of his career at the 2026 Masters Tournament. The Northern Irishman had four majors from 2014 to 2025 as he continued to search for his elusive Masters title to complete the career grand slam, which he did at the 2025 Masters.
Another major championship would put McIlroy at seven total majors and continue to place him among the greatest golfers in history. He would be tied for the seventh most major championships of all time with Harry Vardon, Bobby Jones, Gene Sarazen, Sam Snead, and Arnold Palmer.
McIlroy currently sits at No. 2 in the Official World Golf Ranking behind only Scottie Scheffler. Data Golf gives the 37-year-old a 5.8% chance of winning the 126th U.S. Open this week, which is the second-best of any player in the field.
Cameron Young
Since his first win on the PGA Tour last summer, Cameron Young has been on a tear. The 29-year-old American won both the PLAYERS Championship and the Cadillac Championship this season and has made noise in major championships, as he placed tied-for-third at the 2026 Master Tournament. His two wins this season lifted Young to No. 3 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
However, Young is without a major championship on his resume. A win at Shinnecock Hills in New York would continue the great season that the New York native has had to this point and give him one of the most coveted titles in professional golf.
Bryson DeChambeau
Since joining LIV Golf, and even before, Bryson DeChambeau has been one of the most polarizing figures in golf. The two-time U.S. Open champion has been in the center of controversies, like suing the PGA Tour (and removing his name from the lawsuit the following year), and has one of the greatest social media presences in golf. Most fans either love him or hate him; there is rarely any in between.
At the 2024 U.S. Open, DeChambeau defeated Rory McIlroy at Pinehurst No. 2 in North Carolina. Many were cheering for McIlroy to break his losing streak in major championships, but after three bogeys in the final four holes for McIlroy, DeChambeau was victorious.
DeChambeau has struggled in majors this season. Last year, DeChambeau finished in the top 10 in three of the four major championships and missed the cut once. The 32-year-old American missed the cut in both the Masters Tournament and the PGA Championship this season, but a win would put him back on track as one of the best golfers of his generation.
Matthew Fitzpatrick
While Matthew Fitzpatrick claimed his first and only major championship at the 2022 U.S. Open, 2026 has been one of his best seasons on the PGA Tour. The 31-year-old Englishman already has three wins this season and recorded top-20 finishes in both the Masters Tournament and the PGA Championship. Winning the 126th U.S. Open would make his 2026 season even more memorable.
However, other than his win in 2022, Fitzpatrick has struggled at U.S. Opens. He hasn’t recorded a top-10 finish in his 11 total starts and has missed the cut three times, including in 2018 when the U.S. Open was at Shinnecock Hills.
