Will Zalatoris on second-place finish at US Open: ‘It stings’

Will Zalatoris finished at the doorstep of winning his first major golf title again on Sunday, finishing runner-up to Matt Fitzpatrick at the U.S. Open.

Zalatoris had a chance to send the tournament to a playoff between him and Fitzpatrick, but Zalatoris’ putt was just inches off.

“I’d pay a lot of money for about an inch-and-a-half, and I’d probably be a three-time major champion at this point,” he said, via PGATour.com. “I think this one is probably going to take a bit more processing than (the PGA Championship). I’ve got no regrets. I thought I played great all week, especially getting off to the start that I did today (2 over through three).”

This is the second time Zalatoris has finished runner-up in a major tournament this year and third time over the last two years. He finished second at the PGA Championship in May, losing in a playoff to Justin Thomas. Last year, he finished behind Hideki Matsuyama at the Masters.

“It stings, obviously… to have three runners-up so far in my career in majors. But keep knocking on that door. Obviously we’re doing the right things,” Zalatoris said.

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He shot a 1-under 60 to lose by one shot. It marked his sixth top 10 finish in the majors since he made his debut at the U.S. Open at Winged Foot two years ago.

“I’m three shots away from having a chance of being a three-time major champion,” Zalatoris said. “A bounce here or there.”

The 15th hole appeared to make all the difference. Zalatoris hit his ball into the lush grass and finished the hole with a bogey. It was a two-shot swing that ultimately sunk him.

“We’re walking down and he goes, ‘I barely miss the fairway and I’ve got a horrible lie and he misses it by 30 yards and he’s OK,’” Zalatoris’ caddie Ryan Goble said. “But Matt played great. And yeah, it was a great experience. So you just say, ‘Yeah, we’ll get him next time.’”

Zalatoris took some solace in his putting.

He did not three-putt all week and made it through all 72 holes in one of the sport’s most challenging courses without a double-bogey.

“Typically, that leads to playing well in a U.S. Open. So the recipe’s there. The game’s there,” Zalatoris said. “But like I said, I’ve just got to wait my turn.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.