Another low round by Joaquin Niemann puts US Open penalty into sharp focus

Joaquin Niemann posted two of the best rounds Shinnecock Hills Golf Club has seen this week at the U.S. Open. It'll be enough for a top-10 finish and an exemption for next year, but the Chilean could be left wondering what might have been.

After shooting a final-round 66 Sunday in Southampton, N.Y., Niemann went further in depth about his club throw Thursday and the two-stroke penalty that ensued the following day, which positioned him too far behind the 8-ball for a run at the trophy.

While Niemann said he understands he deserved a penalty for his conduct, even making a light joke about the throw at one point, he doubled down on his belief that the two strokes were excessive.

Asked if he felt he was being made an example of by the USGA, Niemann replied, "To be honest, yes.

"I was not trying to offend anyone," the LIV Golf star said. "I think it was something more -- it was more something kind of like against me."

Niemann did not elaborate on who would be acting "against" him, but he went on to explain that he was remorseful for taking out his emotions with volunteers nearby when he threw his club at the sixth hole Thursday.

After hitting two straight drives out of bounds, Niemann's fifth shot on the hole landed in a native area. He sought relief because fire ants were near the ball, and when a USGA rules official denied the request, Niemann kicked the flag that was marking his ball and tossed his club a good distance, according to a volunteer who spoke to The Athletic.

"I never try to offend anybody, not even the volunteers that were there," he said. "I know they do their job and they put the flag and they do the best they can. They don't pay them to be there; they do that because they like it.

"After everything (I) went through, went back to those tee shots, and after remembering those two tee shots, I just threw the club. It was just frustration, but it's more because of the passion that I have to get better and better."

Niemann went on to finish the par-4 hole in nine shots. When the USGA decided to assess a penalty, that made his score for the hole an 11 and his first-round total an 8-over 78.

"I was frustrated. I had my expectations, which are always super high," Niemann said. "I was playing good golf. I knew it was going to be a tough week, a long week, a challenging week. After seeing that and knowing that the best score I could do was an 8, it kind of frustrated me a lot.

"I'm not happy doing that. I'm not proud about throwing a golf club. I get I deserve it in a way; I don't know. But there's nothing I can do. I feel like I learned from it.

"To be honest, it was a good throw," he added, drawing laughter.

The USGA announced Niemann's penalty early Friday morning, when players were still completing their first round following delays Thursday. Niemann was asked if he ever got an explanation why.

"What they told me was they actually saw it and then they probably went back in the afternoon or in the morning and talked with the committee and the different rules officials, or I don't know," Niemann said. "They took a decision from there. But yeah, it was their decision. It probably took a while. I don't know."

What Niemann did know was that the penalty motivated him to score far better in his second round. He shot 65, tied with Collin Morikawa for the best of that round.

Niemann's Sunday 66, featuring five birdies and one bogey, pulled him all the way up to 1-over 281 for the championship into a tie for seventh.

Niemann said he wasn't aware a top-10 finish would secure his invite for next year, avoiding the need to qualify. "I mean, obviously good golf takes care of it," he said. "But no, what I was trying to do was put a low round."

Had he not received the penalty, he would be 1 under and in the mix near the top of the leaderboard. Only three players in champion Wyndham Clark (4 under), runner-up Sam Burns (3 under) and South Korea's Tom Kim (1 under) finished under par.

For that matter, if Niemann had parred that one disastrous hole instead of carding an 11, he'd have finished 6 under and likely won his first major title. The 27-year-old with high expectations could be coming closer to his first breakthrough and taking lessons with him along the way.

"Yeah, I played great," Niemann said. "To be honest, I didn't feel -- after that tee shot on No. 6, I've got to be honest, I wasn't feeling that comfortable off the tee after seeing those two balls going that way and then having to play three more times that hole.

"But yeah, I think it's part of the challenge. It's a good challenge for -- it tests you to have the right mindset into that hole."

--Field Level Media