LOS ANGELES – The eruption came from the Sunset Suites.

It was enough to make Scottie Scheffler back off his bunker shot.

It was enough to make fans hastily throw on their radio headsets. 

And it was enough to make Rory McIlroy believe again.

Here at the Los Angeles Country Club, affluent Angelenos were luxuriating in the double-decker hospitality tent off the second fairway, about 100 yards from where the 123^rd U.S. Open was about to be decided. They were watching on TV as Wyndham Clark, in the group behind, rimmed out a 6-foot par putt on the 16^th green that cut McIlroy’s deficit to a single shot with two holes to play.

“You’re still alive, Rory!” someone yelled.

And now he could sense it, too.

Having seemingly blown his latest major bid a half-hour earlier, McIlroy now charged up the bridge to the 18^th tee. There wasn’t a single fan waiting; just 15 scribes, a half-dozen cameramen, a handful of volunteers, a few USGA officials. Needing one last nuclear blast, McIlroy hammered a 321-yard drive up the hill, into the setting sun, and then started noshing on a protein bar. His mindset was obvious: He was girding himself for more than just the next 15 minutes. There was plenty of daylight remaining for a two-hole playoff. And he planned on being part of it.

Winning a major is hard, even if McIlroy once burnished his legacy with major performances that appeared effortless and energizing, that felt dominant and demoralizing. It’s been 3,295 days since his last major title, an eternity ago in professional golf. That was before Brooks Koepka had even completed his first season on Tour. Before Scheffler and Jon Rahm had graduated from college. Before McIlroy had a wife and a daughter. Before men were measured by their millions. Before board meetings and conference calls and crash courses in geopolitics – back when simply being a world-class golfer was enough.

Until last month, at least, Clark hadn’t needed to trouble himself with such weighty matters. He was a rank-and-file Tour member, talented but apparently so tortured in crunch time that he contemplated giving up the game. The 29-year-old was winless until six weeks ago, and now all of a sudden he was three shots clear with four holes to play in the U.S. Open.

Clark doesn’t have a swing coach, but the most important part of his team might be his mental guru, Julie Elion. On a day when Rickie Fowler, McIlroy and Scheffler were all in the mix, Elion reminded her pupil to “get cocky” every time Clark heard a fan cheer his opponent’s name.

“Go show them who you are,” she said.

But to the fans, at least, Clark was simply the last man standing between McIlroy and that long-awaited fifth major. And so they turned up the volume when he made a bogey on the 139-yard 15^th. They cheered when he drove into the bunker on 16. They roared when he lipped out the 6-footer for par – the miss that backed off Scheffler, that tightened the leaderboard, that made McIlroy believe.

After a tidy par save on 17 to preserve his one-shot lead, Clark found the last fairway and then the final green. Needing to two-putt from 60 feet, the volunteers dropped the ropes, allowing fans to envelop the green, phones out, eager to capture The Winning Moment.

Up ahead, McIlroy sat in the scoring tent, having signed for his even-par round of 70. The doors were closed. No cameras. Police standing sentry. There was nothing else to do but wait.

“You don’t want to wish bad on anyone,” McIlroy said, “but you’re really hoping for a three-putt. You’re rooting for one guy, and that guy is yourself at that point.”

Needing to steady his breathing and calm his hands, Clark rapped his putt up the hill and deftly lagged to 17 inches.

That was all McIlroy needed to see. The doors popped out.

Clark marked his tap-in, prolonging the inevitable, and so McIlroy stood outside the scoring tent, a water bottle in his right hand, his left hand on his hip, and stared at … nothing. He didn’t say a word. He just stood there, waiting, waiting for the cheer to let him know that he’d officially been denied. Again.

What was he thinking in that moment?

“Get through this,” he said, “then go home and regroup.”

Once the final cheer rang out, McIlroy charged up the 12 steps to the TV interview podium and waited a few moments to go live. On the monitor in front of him flashed that once-familiar celebration.

McIlroy looked pained as he took in all of the images: Clark hugging his caddie, his brother, his girlfriend.

The red light flipped on.

“I’m right there,” McIlroy said. “It’s such fine margins.”

That was a phrase he’d soon repeat in the press tent, as he processed his pain in real time.

“I fought to the very end,” he said. “I obviously never give up. And I’m getting closer. The more I keep putting myself in these positions, sooner or later, it’s going to happen for me.”

McIlroy offered little explanation other than to rue two mistakes. The first was when he didn’t hit the hole from 4 feet on the eighth green, a three-putt par (from the fringe) that kept him two shots behind Clark. The second was a misjudged third shot into the par-5 14^th. Walking to his ball in the fairway, McIlroy felt the wind freshen. Instead of trying to hammer a sand wedge from 124 yards, he opted for a three-quarter gap wedge, the shot drifting right, ballooning into the wind and plunging into the grassy lip outside the edge of the bunker, leading to a bogey. “I might have just had to wait an extra 15 or 20 seconds to let that little gust settle,” he said.

McIlroy didn’t make a putt longer than 7 feet in a round that felt eerily similar to his final-day effort last summer at St. Andrews. Tied for the lead at the 150^th Open, McIlroy hit all 18 greens in regulation that day but carded just a pair of two-putt birdies. He got lapped by not one but two players, the loss leaving him so devastated that he slumped into a cart next to his wife and wept.

This one stung, too, of course. His lone birdie came courtesy of a two-putt on the first hole, his speed control just a touch off on increasingly crispy greens. He had what he thought was the perfect game plan – fewer drivers, accurate approach shots, a reliance on his other gifts – and it still wasn’t enough. His 271 total was the lowest 72-hole score by a non-winner in U.S. Open history.

“When I do finally win this next major,” he said, “it’s going to be really, really sweet. I would go through 100 Sundays like this to get my hands on another major championship.”

As the trophy presentation unfolded on the 18^th green, McIlroy ducked into the locker room to gather his belongings. About 10 minutes later, he emerged in a T-shirt, sans hat, and with three bags slung over his shoulder. Outside the USGA player hospitality he smooched his wife, Erica, and then headed toward the champions’ parking lot, those familiar feelings of sadness and frustration and disappointment gnawing at him again.

The Netflix cameras were waiting for him. So, too, were his caddie and his manager and his longtime friend. McIlroy summoned a smile while posing for a selfie with his uniformed cop for the week, and then said goodbye to his crew.

He and his wife climbed into their Lexus SUV, just the two of them, alone. Another Tour event was set to begin in four days, another major in 32. It was exactly what he needed: Another reason to believe again.

LOS ANGELES – In his mind, Rory McIlroy didn’t concede the 123rd U.S. Open to Wyndham Clark until the eventual winner executed a perfect lag putt in the fading sunlight of the tournament’s final stage, but the turning point of this weekend’s novel came four holes prior.

Standing on the 14th tee box, McIlroy trailed Clark by just one shot. When their respective groups finished the 612-yard par 5 that actually played slightly over par Sunday, the eventual winner led by three.

It was a two-stroke swing that proved just enough to get Clark over the finish line for the first major victory of his career.

McIlroy got the first crack at Los Angeles Country Club’s longest hole during the final round, but he immediately put himself in a precarious situation with a missed fairway into the left rough. He had to lay up, giving himself 125 yards to the hole.

“Full sand wedge wasn't getting there, so I said to Harry, three-quarter gap wedge would be perfect,” McIlroy said. “I feel like I didn't time the shot perfectly. I hit it when the wind was at its strongest and the ball just got hit a lot by the wind, and obviously it came up short.”

A brief search ensued, and Scottie Scheffler eventually found McIlroy’s ball plugged in the face of the front greenside bunker. A rules official deemed it embedded, awarding the Northern Irishman a free drop outside the bunker.

It was a massive break, but McIlroy couldn’t capitalize.

His next shot rolled 10 feet past the hole, and he couldn’t save par. A tap-in bogey put him two strokes behind.

Meanwhile, Clark was preparing for what he called the shot of the tournament. That might be underselling it.

It might’ve been the shot of his life.

After finding the fairway with a 327-yard drive down the left, Clark pulled 3-wood from his bag and hit the purest of fades straight at a gap at the front of the green. Off the club, Clark’s shot looked like it might not stop till it reached Century City in the background, but it took three bounces before trundling onto the green and settling 21 feet from the pin.

Two putts later there was a birdie on the scorecard, and a shift in mindset for Clark as he headed down the stretch.

“All I've got to do is coast in,” Clark said.

Of course, ‘coast’ might not be the right adjective for Clark’s finish. He recorded back-to-back bogeys after his sensational birdie, but he gave himself enough room to manage some squirrely shots down the stretch. At one of the most electric places on the course, where No. 14 green and No. 15 tee meet, Clark produced a moment of brilliance that will define the final round of his signature win.

Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee not only compared Clark's second shot into No. 14 to Ben Hogan's 1-iron approach into the green at Merion's 18th in the final round of 1950 U.S. Open; he said Clark's surpassed it.

"The most famous photograph in the history of golf is Hogan hitting a 1-iron just onto the green, 40 feet away. This shot was harder and better," Chamblee said on "Live From the U.S. Open" Sunday night.

On the flip side of the coin, the sting will surely last for McIlroy, who said his putt on No. 8 and the shot into the green at No. 14 were his two biggest mistakes of the final round. The 14th represented his only bogey on a par 5 all weekend, and his only bogey of the final round.

When a major championship is on the line, all it takes is one slip, or one masterpiece in the case of Clark, to provide all the difference.

Here's a look at the equipment Wyndham Clark used to win the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club for his first major title. 

DRIVER: Titleist TSi3 (9 degrees) 

FAIRWAY WOOD: TaylorMade Stealth 2 HD (17 degrees)

IRONS: Titleist T200 (3), Titleist 620 CB (4-9) 

WEDGES: Titleist Vokey Design SM9 (46, 52, 56 degrees), Vokey Design WedgeWorks (60)

PUTTER: Odyssey Jailbird Versa Grip

BALL: Titleist Pro V1x 

LOS ANGELES – It was a Hollywood ending, just not the one he’d imagined – more “The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent” than “Great Expectations.”

Rickie Fowler has been a star ever since he landed on the biggest stage with a SoCal style that sold everything from flat-brimmed hats to home mortgages. There was a time when that “Rickie” would have felt right at home on the $8 billion piece of property off Wilshire Boulevard, so much so his swing coach Butch Harmon once famously told him, “You gotta decide are you going to be a Kardashian or are you going to be a golf pro.”

The style eventually gave way to substance. He won his first title in 2012, collected his biggest prize at the ’15 Players Championship and famously completed the Top-5 Slam in 2014, finishing T-5 at the Masters, T-2 at the U.S. Open, T-2 at The Open and T-3 at the PGA Championship.

During another time, Fowler would have been an easy favorite at the Glitz and Glamor Open, but those days had faded like his bright orange Sunday appeal and his game. When he failed to qualify for last year’s U.S. Open, he was 152nd in the world ranking and searching for answers.

When Fowler called Harmon last November, he’d bottomed out. “I’m kinda lost,” he told the legendary swing coach. Harmon gladly rekindled what had been a productive relationship. Why wouldn’t he?

“I mean, he’s so nice. Have you ever met anyone who doesn’t like Rickie?” Harmon asked.

For anyone who watched Sunday’s final round at Los Angeles Country Club, the answer to Harmon’s rhetorical question could easily be fate. The kid from Murrieta, Calif., set a U.S. Open scoring record with an opening 62, kept the lead with a 68 on Day 2 and began the final round tied at 10 under with Wyndham Clark atop the leaderboard.

For those inclined to demand an answer in the simplest terms, golf happened to Fowler on Sunday.

“I just didn't have it today,” he shrugged. “Iron play was very below average and didn't make anything. That's a big thing in majors, especially on a Sunday. Making putts and kind of keeping it fairly stress-free.”

Although effortlessly succinct, Fowler’s efficiency misses so much from the final round but his lack of introspection is understandable.

He posted his third bogey of the day at No. 7 to fall five shots off the pace and a 3-over closing nine dropped him to fifth place. This was not the storybook finish so many had envisioned for Fowler whose reclamation from a career-threatening slump has been the understated highlight of 2023.

Even as the title rocketed away from him, Fowler remained hopeful, explaining that it wasn’t until Clark two-putted for birdie at the par-5 14th hole that reality set in.

“I thought if I could make that putt on the next, which I nearly did, I thought that might kind of give me a shot to get a two-shot swing and maybe make a run in the last three,” Fowler shrugged. “I knew I was on the outside looking in, but at the same time, you never know what's going to happen.”

If the last few years have taught Fowler anything, it’s the value of the unintended and unexpected.

The cold numerical indifference will note that Fowler is now 2-for-10 closing out 54-hole leads on the PGA Tour, and 0-for-48 in a major career that began just down the coast at the historic 2008 U.S. Open. But, as is normally the case, that misses so much of Fowler’s story. There have been countless near-misses, heartbreaks and close calls in his career but his finish at L.A.C.C. won’t be the one that haunts him.

After more than two years adrift in a competitive abyss, a poor ball-striking Sunday and a cold putter is the last thing that’ll send him spiraling.

“After the last few years being in this position, kind of how I talked about how comfortable I felt this week, this is great,” Fowler said. “As much as it sucks to not be in the position I wanted to be after today, we're just continuing to build and continuing to move forward. Not the finish I wanted, but there's a lot of really good things to take from this week.”

Sports likes to cling to the finality of wins and loses, and some will consider Fowler’s perspective a losers lament. But when you’ve been dragged for so long by the game you love, perspective is the only option.

That’s not to say Fowler wasn’t wrestling with his share of emotions, having let a precious chance to win a coveted major slip away. His voice cracked when he was asked what he told Clark on the 72nd hole and he swallowed deep when he saw his daughter waiting for him after a brutal day on the crispy North Course.

“Obviously very bummed, but being able to see my daughter before scoring, it kind of takes a lot of that away because in the kind of big picture, big scheme of things, yes, we want to win tournaments and be the one holding the trophy, but she could care less if I shoot 65 or 85,” he said. “It kind of just makes you realize and understand golf is special and it's what I love to do, but it's definitely not everything.”

Los Angeles’ North Course was never going to be the end of Rickie’s story. His career, both the highs and lows, has been far too eventful for such a clean conclusion.

For three days, it felt as if the stars had finally aligned for the game’s most forlorn star. But as he collected his daughter, Maya, and was joined by his wife, Allison, it was clear that in this defeat, Fowler found something much more important than a trophy.

LOS ANGELES – Before Wyndham Clark was a champion, he was a winner.

That’s what his mother, Lise, would call her middle child whom she started taking to the driving range when Wyndham was 3 years old, hoping it’d be an outlet for her rambunctious, older son’s endless energy. It ended up being so much more.

Lise Clark, at age 55, died after a second battle with breast cancer nearly a decade ago, which meant she couldn’t be there Sunday at Los Angeles Country Club to watch that little boy she’d drive to countless junior tournaments achieve his lifelong dream of becoming a major champion.

The shine of the U.S. Open trophy sitting in front of Wyndham Clark illuminated the tears building in his eyes as he was asked what his mother would say to him after he’d just beaten Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and the rest of the world’s best players. Clark imagined there would’ve been plenty of hugs and tears, and that his mother would simply say, “I love you, Wynner.”

“I know she'd be very proud of me,” Clark said. “I miss her, and it's obviously great to think about her, and being here in L.A. and winning something like this makes me think of her even more.”

And just how far he’s come.

Clark has always possessed the physical tools needed to win a U.S. Open. Athletic and powerful. Slick short game. Smooth putting stroke. But the can’t-miss prospect from Denver was also highly emotional on the golf course, prone to outbursts where he’d either verbally explode, break clubs, or walk off the course – or sometimes all three.

“The outward shell was so out of control,” said Mike McGraw, who recruited Clark to come to Oklahoma State. “But it was coming from inside because he was so emotionally upset all the time about golf, and about life, and about his mom's sickness, and everything was just coming down on him. … The golf course would be a safe haven normally, but it's where he blew up.”

Clark played just two tournaments for the Cowboys his first semester before McGraw benched him for behavior issues. When his mother’s cancer returned in January 2013 after 14 years in remission, it pushed Clark over the edge mentally. Clark quit the team three times that spring, cleaning out his locker and storming out of the team’s facility at Karsten Creek. But each time, McGraw would grab Clark’s things and put them back.

“I just wouldn’t let him quit,” McGraw said.

McGraw recommended that Clark apply for a medical-hardship waiver and redshirt for the remainder of the season, and though Clark and his father, Randall, initially disagreed, it didn’t take long for McGraw to get the two of them onboard.

“At first, I really was mad,” Clark said. “I'm competitive. I didn't want to not play, and I thought it was bad if you redshirted, that you weren't good enough. But it was also the best thing for me.”

With his golf career on hold, Clark sought help for his emotional instability. He attended a weekly bible study with teammates, and he dove into his schoolwork. Lise died on Aug. 2 of that summer, right before Clark reached match play at the U.S. Amateur at The Country Club. She’d always tell Wyndham to play big, and that next season, Clark did, earning Big 12 Player of the Year honors and leading the Cowboys, under new coach Alan Bratton, to an NCAA runner-up finish to Alabama, where McGraw had just been hired as the assistant.

“I get emotional just talking about it just because he’s such a great guy, and he’s somebody you really pull for,” said McGraw, currently the head coach at Baylor. “I look back, and God placed his path in a direct collision course with mine for a reason. And that’s why you coach, not because you think you want to win titles but because you get the opportunity to have an impact at a critical juncture of a kid's life. … I don’t regret one thing I did. I feel like every decision was made so that Wyndham, long term, would be better off.”

Added Clark: “I owe Mike a lot for that.”

Clark’s on-course outbursts didn’t go away, though. He experienced two disappointing seasons at Oklahoma State before deciding to transfer to Oregon for his senior year. And as a pro, Clark needed only a year to get on the PGA Tour, and while he has yet to lose his card, for the first four seasons he couldn’t break through into the winner’s circle.

“I've had many times where I've gone home and was yelling in my car and punching things,” Clark recalled, “and just so mad that I'm like, ‘Why can't I do what my peers are doing that I know I can play with and against and beat?!’”

But McGraw’s initial grace helped make Clark receptive to help. During Clark’s senior season, Ducks head coach Casey Martin re-instilled the confidence that Clark had lost, and Clark nearly was the national player of the year while leading the Ducks to another NCAA final. And last November, Clark’s caddie John Ellis, his assistant at Oregon, and agent Rob Mougey recommended Clark see a mental coach to unlock his full potential. Just months after first seeing sports psychologist Julie Elion, who has also worked with Phil Mickelson and Max Homa, he notched a trio of top-6 finishes this spring before capturing his first PGA Tour title, at the Wells Fargo Championship in May.

Under Elion’s guidance, Clark has added meditating to his routine, which also includes lots of prayer, and she’s gotten Clark into the habit of setting mini goals. For each round at this U.S. Open, those goals were: 1. Enjoy himself, 2. Stay cocky, and 3. Remind himself of the first two.

On Sunday, Clark would find the task of accomplishing those objectives harder than ever. Not only did he find himself in unfamiliar territory, tied for the 54-hole lead and in the final pairing of a major, but he’d have almost no one in the L.A. crowd considering Clark as their first choice to lift the trophy at the end of the day. McIlroy and Scheffler, two superstars, teed off just in front of Clark, and completing the other half of Clark’s twosome was the ultra-popular Rickie Fowler, an Oklahoma State alum who was also chasing his first major title.

“No one was really giving us a chance,” Ellis said. “I watched all the stuff on TV, and it was all about Rory and everybody else.”

Knowing Clark would be a heavy underdog, Elion challenged her client: Every time Clark heard someone chanting Fowler’s name, she wanted him to show them who he really is.

“I did that,” Clark said. “It was like 100-plus times today. … Now, maybe they'll be chanting my name in the future.”

Surely. The calmness and confidence that has been injected into Clark, little by little, over the years – and by different people – showed itself in spades about midway through Clark’s final round. The 29-year-old Clark had taken a comfortable lead thanks to three birdies on his first six holes, the third coming after a deft chip from a tricky lie in the fescue at the short, par-4 sixth. But Clark yanked his second shot at the par-5 eighth and drew a near-impossible lie in the barranca. Trying for the hero shot, Clark whiffed on his first attempt.

“Going under that ball obviously was the worst-case scenario,” Clark said, “and then I hit the next one. I didn't even know where it went.”

The ball raced through the green and into the rough, though Clark, unbothered, told Ellis, “We’re fine,” and proceeded to cozy a chip up to the hole and get out with bogey to keep his advantage. Several holes later, with McIlroy bogeying in front of him at the par-5 14^th, Clark then hit his shot of the tournament, a towering, cutting 3-wood from 282 yards that bounced onto the green and rolled to 20 feet, setting up a two-putt birdie to push Clark three clear of McIlroy.

Talk about playing big.

“Probably one of the best shots in U.S. Open history,” Ellis said.

When Lise Clark, a former Miss New Mexico, was in her 20s, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting and dance. She also married Wyndham’s dad here, just a few miles down Sunset Boulevard at Riviera Country Club, another George C. Thomas golf course. Decades later, it was Wyndham chasing – and realizing – his dreams in La-La-Land.

A couple bogeys, at Nos. 15 and 16, didn’t matter, and after Clark lagged a 60-footer to a foot, he reached into his pocket and marked his ball with a special coin that he had been gifted earlier in the day.

Engraved on one side: Prayer hands with his mom’s famous words, “Play big,” along with the date she died.

On the other: The Bible verse, John 16:13.

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.

Once Clark tapped in his winning putt for even-par 70 to finish in double digits, at 10 under, he let his emotions, controlled all week despite the nerves, flow out in celebration, clutching both fists and pumping them several times. He hugged Ellis, and then Fowler, also a mentor of his.

“Your mom was with you,” Fowler told Clark. “She'd be very proud.”

Clark had conquered the U.S. Open.

And “Wynner” had become a champion.

LAS VEGAS -- Gio Reyna may have only played 45 minutes in the United States' 2-0 win over Canada in the final of the Concacaf Nations League (CNL) on Sunday, but it was long enough to have made a huge impact.

Reyna assisted both USMNT goals -- a corner that was headed home by Chris Richards and a deft through ball that Folarin Balogun drilled past Canada goalkeeper Milan Borjan -- and even though Reyna hobbled off at half-time with a calf injury, he put in a fine display in the center of the U.S. midfield.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

"Gio's performance tonight is a performance that you expect. It shows his quality on the field, his ball security, his ability to take on two, three players and connect passes," U.S. interim manager B.J. Callaghan said.

"What I'm really proud of him is we've challenged Gio to do more work off the ball on the defensive side, and he's absolutely risen to the occasion."

During the previous international window, Reyna had been deployed mostly out on the wing, but of late he has moved into a more central role, adding dynamism to the U.S. attack.

"When [Reyna is] inside there, I like that position a lot for him," said U.S. captain Christian Pulisic, who won the CNL Best Player Award. "I think he's dangerous. He causes a lot of problems and you could see that today."

The U.S. entered the tournament enduring some chaos, as Callaghan was named interim manager late last month after the previous interim manager, Anthony Hudson, left to take a managerial post with Qatari side Al-Markhiya. Despite the CNL marked the first time Callaghan had taken on a manger's role in the professional ranks, he led two superb U.S. performance against Mexico and Canada paid off.

He will get a chance to further hone his managerial skills in the Concacaf Gold Cup, which starts on June 24.

"I'm just super proud of the group," Callaghan said. "We've been faced with adversity. We've been faced with obstacles and challenges and it's only brought us all together. So my personal feelings, I'm absolutely elated for all of the guys, all of the staff, everyone that just continues to put so much into this.

"To have those two performances is just a way for us to show the country and the world how committed and collected we are. There's something special happening with this team."

Canada manager John Herdman said he felt preparation was the difference between the two teams on this occasion, especially on set pieces, where the U.S. was a threat all evening. That led to a complaint about a lack of resources, in this case the limited number of training days he had with his team. He even called out the Canada Soccer Association for not doing more to help his side.

"We've got to figure this out financially," Herdman said. "We've got to get serious about winning a World Cup. When you're playing at home, you get a chance to win it. You get a chance to get a quarterfinal, semifinal and then get on that road to win it. We're not serious.

"We brought a World Cup to our country and we're not serious about winning it. You see how close our team is tonight. Tactically, we were there. Chances, shots, we were there. The margins were so tight tonight, so tight. We've got to get real. We've got to get real and quick."

LAS VEGAS -- The United States retained its Concacaf Nations League crown Sunday with a 2-0 victory over Canada thanks to first-half goals from Chris Richards and Folarin Balogun.

Richards put the USMNT on top in the 12th minute, heading home Giovanni Reyna's corner. Balogun then doubled the advantage in the 34th minute with a deft finish from Reyna's through ball that got past Milan Borjan in the Canada goal.

- Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, more (U.S.)

Canada did what it could to get back in the game, and enjoyed a hefty 62-38 edge in possession. But despite finding star attacker Alphonso Davies in some good positions, the visitors were unable to make a dent in the U.S. lead. U.S. interim manager B.J. Callaghan went to a five-man back line late on and, despite some tense moments, the hosts were able to see out the match and hoist the Nations League trophy once again.

Honor is due to Callaghan as well. He came into a difficult situation -- being the interim to the interim -- and was spot-on with his decisions. Keeping him on the staff would have to be a priority for Gregg Berhalter when he takes over for good.

Rapid reaction

1. U.S. reaffirms king of Concacaf mantle

There had been plenty of chatter prior to Sunday's match as to who exactly should be declared king of Concacaf. Canada certainly had an argument to make in its favor. Not only did the Reds take four points off the U.S. during World Cup qualifying, but they finished top of the Concacaf standings. The U.S. could point to the fact that it is the reigning Gold Cup and Nations League champion, and went deeper in the World Cup.

It's a debate that will no doubt continue to rage, but on the basis of this match, the U.S. looked a cut (or two) above when the game was in doubt. Every time the U.S. went forward in transition in the first half it looked dangerous, especially when Reyna was on the ball. The movement up top continually befuddled Canada's back line, as witnessed by Balogun's clever run and finish off Reyna's inch-perfect through ball.

Set pieces, long a staple of the U.S. attack, were an area where it had a significant advantage as well, with Richards' manhandling of Canada counterpart Alistair Johnston allowing him to nod home Reyna's corner in the 12th minute to put the U.S. ahead.

The U.S. was left to soak up plenty of pressure in the second half, especially with Reyna forced off at halftime because of injury. Canada was also intent on pushing forward given the first-half deficit but couldn't get the goal that would have added some tension to the game's final moments.

Instead, Canada was left to endure taunts of "Stick to hockey!" as the game wound down.

2. Reyna and Balogun: The start of something special?

By his own admission, Balogun didn't have his best game in Thursday's 3-0 demolition of Mexico. But part of this was down to where and how he was getting the ball. Too often he was fed with his back to goal instead of being given the ball in the channels with room to run. That made him easier to defend, even as he put in a shift, and led to a somewhat ineffective performance.

That was a lesson taken to heart by not only Balogun, but Reyna as well. The U.S. found its new forward with room to run more often, and he was much more dangerous, with the goal the prime example.

Alas, Reyna's performance was cut short by a calf injury and he was replaced in the second half by Luca de la Torre. Reyna could have been cleaner on the ball as well, but his moments of magic far outweighed his missteps and, based on these two games, he looks to have found a home in the center of midfield. Oh, and please let Reyna take set pieces from now on. The quality in his delivery amounted to a huge upgrade in this department. And best of all, it looks like some chemistry with Balogun is well on its way to being established.

This leads to an intriguing question, however. If Tyler Adams, Reyna, Weston McKennie and Yunus Musah are all healthy, which one sits? At this stage, McKennie would seem to be the odd man out, but that is by no means a slam dunk. In the future it will likely come down to health and form, but Reyna seems a lock.

3. Canada with some questions to ponder

This was supposed to be Canada's coming out party, a time to end its title drought by winning a trophy for the first time since the 2000 Gold Cup. Instead that wait will have to continue, though the start of the Gold Cup later this month will give the Reds another opportunity.

In the meantime, there are some problems in need of solving. Canada's back line looked absolutely flummoxed by the movement in the U.S. attack. At one point in the 41st minute, Scott Kennedy engaged in what could only be described as a rugby tackle on Balogun that went unpunished only because Reyna was running with the ball at his feet. Kamal Miller didn't fare much better.

Manager John Herdman will also need to find a way to get Davies more help. Joe Scally, Brenden Aaronson and Timothy Weah all ran with the ball at the Bayern Munich star, and when Davies had possession, the U.S. threw two and sometimes three defenders him, basically daring someone else in the Canada lineup to beat them. Usually, the dual threat of forwards Cyle Larin and Jonathan David is enough. But this time, it didn't happen.

Davies did shake loose a few times, including one first-half shot that was well saved by U.S. keeper Matt Turner, but there was almost always a second defender to halt his progress, and he was lacking in end product when he did deliver the ball into the box. It's an issue that the U.S. has faced with Christian Pulisic in the past, and Canada will need to come up with a solution of its own. Tajon Buchanan was thought to be a player who could provide some balance, but he was limited to 30 minutes as a substitute.

Best and worst performers

BEST

Giovanni Reyna, U.S.: Sure, he only played 45 minutes, but he made his time on the field count with two sublime assists.

Folarin Balogun, U.S.: Even beyond his goal, Balogun was a constant threat all night, and the understanding between him and his teammates is only going to get better.

Chris Richards, U.S.: In addition to his goal, he marshaled a U.S. back line that bent but didn't break. Also helped keep Larin and David mostly in check.

WORST

Scott Kennedy, Canada: Simply had no answer for the movement and mobility of the U.S. attack, and Balogun in particular.

Alistair Johnston, Canada: Was badly outmuscled on the U.S. opener. He simply needs to be stronger in that situation. He struggled on the ball as well.

Jonathan David, Canada: On a day when Canada needed a big performance, he had one first-half shot that missed and another one late that was wide of the target. The latter miss summed up a frustrating night.

Highlights and notable moments

Richards opened the scoring Sunday from a classic USMNT set piece.

CHRIS RICHARDS SCORES HIS FIRST INTERNATIONAL GOAL ?

The @USMNT take the lead in the Concacaf Nations League final. ?? pic.twitter.com/kjym95pywc

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) June 19, 2023

Not to be outdone, Balogun also bagged himself his first senior international goal.

FOLARIN BALOGUN SCORES HIS FIRST GOAL FOR THE @USMNT IN HIS SECOND APPEARANCE! ?? ? pic.twitter.com/YtrrkRNx8x

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) June 19, 2023

Once ahead, the USMNT rarely looked troubled and held on to lift the Nations League trophy.

?THE @USMNT ARE THE 2023 CONCACAF NATIONS LEAGUE CHAMPIONS ? pic.twitter.com/sGUV601ORs

— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) June 19, 2023

Key stats (provided by ESPN Stats & Information)

- The United States secured its ninth major trophy Sunday (7 Gold Cups, 2 Concacaf Nations Leagues).

- Richards' goal in the 12th minute is the quickest in any game of his career. It's his first time scoring in the first 30 minutes of a game.

- Richards' goal was the third-fastest by a USMNT player in a final in the past 35 years. Only Clint Dempsey (10th minute in 2009 Confederations Cup) and Michael Bradley (8th minute in 2011 Gold Cup) have a faster one in that span.

- Balogun (21) is the second-youngest player to score for the USMNT in a final over the past 35 years, after 18-year old Giovanni Reyna in the 2021 Concacaf Nations League.

Folarin Balogun scored his first goal for the United States in its 2-0 win over Canada on Sunday in the Concacaf Nations League final at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

First-half goals from Chris Richards and Balogun put the U.S. on its way to a team record third-consecutive title in Concacaf competitions following wins in the 2021 Nations League and Gold Cup.

- Carlisle: Reyna, Balogun ensure U.S. kings of Concacaf

- What Gregg Berhalter's return means for the USMNT

"I've only here a short amount of time, but already I feel a part of it and I feel a part of something bigger," Balogun said after the match.

The U.S. was without Sergino Dest and Weston McKennie, both of whom were out for the match after picking up red cards in a fiery semifinal win over Mexico on Thursday. Interim coach B.J. Callaghan, still overseeing the team after Gregg Berhalter was rehired Friday, started Joe Scally and Brenden Aaronson in place of his two suspended players.

"We're looking beyond to the 2026 World Cup, and we need to perform in high-intensity knockout games," Callaghan said. "That's something that we learned from the World Cup."

Richards kept the momentum from Thursday going for the U.S. with an early goal, powering a header from Giovanni Reyna's corner kick past Milan Borjan in the Canada goal in the 12th minute.

The U.S. doubled its lead later in the first half with a classy finish from Balogun, who picked up a through ball from Reyna after a giveaway from Canada and fired past Borjan from a tight angle to notch his first goal for the Americans since committing his international future to the team.

The Brooklyn-born Balogun, 21, scored 22 goals in 39 games in all competitions for French League 1 club Reims last season, the most ever for an American in a top-five European league.

Reyna, who was stellar for Callaghan in the first half, came off at the break after being on the receiving end of a hard foul from Canada's Richie Laryea and was replaced by Luca de la Torre. 

Canada looked dangerous at times in the second half, but a resolute U.S. defense and more solid play in goal from Matt Turner, who had four saves, kept John Herdman's team off the scoresheet as the U.S. was able to win the trophy for the second time.

"It's another step in the right direction," said U.S. captain Christian Pulisic, who scored twice in the semifinal win over Mexico. "It's just going to be about these knockout games. Come those big tournaments, Copa America, World Cup, it's time to get tough.

"We got to step up and score the goals when it counts and keep them out of our goal."

The result means the U.S. extended its home unbeaten streak against Canada to 22 games dating back to 1957, while Canada remained without a title since the 2000 Gold Cup.

"We're just not in that killer area of the pitch," Canada coach Herdman said. "We've talked about this post-World Cup. It's in the boxes where Canada's suffering. You don't get time to work with the players. There's no time. But we need this September window.

"We need the resources where we can actually put a camp together, where I can work for six days on the things that make the biggest difference moving forward."

In the consolation match earlier Sunday, Mexico held on to beat Panama 1-0 to take third place in the four-team final.

Information from The Associated Press and Reuters was used in this story.

LOS ANGELES -- Rory McIlroy got the sort of break most players need to win a U.S. Open. If only he could've made a putt or two to go with it.

The golf gods, to say nothing of the golf rulebook, gave McIlroy a chance to save par after his approach on the 14th hole came up short and embedded in the deep grass above a greenside bunker. But McIlroy missed the putt -- a common theme Sunday -- and made his only bogey of the day. That single shot cost him in a one-stroke loss to Wyndham Clark.

McIlroy shot even-par 70 -- one birdie, 16 pars and that single bogey -- to finish his four rounds at Los Angeles Country Club at 9-under 271. His drought in the majors is now at 33 tournaments, a dry spell that is nearing nine full years.

"I think the putter, I'll rue some of the chances that I missed," McIlroy said. "It was hard to get the ball really close all day. It was that and that wedge shot on 14, coming up a little short, those are the things I'll rue today."

He finished the day with 36 putts over 18 holes -- no need for complex math there -- and didn't sink a single putt over 8 feet.

His attempt to tie things on the 18th green looked like most all of the birdie tries he had over a day in which he hit the ball as well as anyone from tee to green. It was a 40 footer that was tracking but drifted away at the end for a simple tap-in par.

But if there was a single moment that defined the day for McIlroy, it came on the par-5 14th. After driving into the left rough, he punched out to the fairway and had a 125-yard shot into the narrow green.

McIlroy pulled out a sand wedge but then felt the wind kick up. He went to a choked-down gap wedge instead. The approach came up short. He put both hands on his knees, bent down and stared at his caddie, Harry Diamond, in disbelief.

"I might have just had to wait an extra 15 or 20 seconds to let that little gust settle," McIlroy said.

Instead, moments later, he was down on his knees near the bunker, desperately trying to find the ball that had disappeared in the gnarly grasses above the sand.

He found the ball embedded in the facing just above the bunker. In the past, an embedded ball that wasn't in the fairway had to be played as it lied. But after a reworking of the rulebook in 2019, free relief is now granted for any ball plugged in any area other than sand.

McIlroy dropped above the bunker, 40 feet away in a perfectly workable lie. He chipped to 10 feet but missed the par putt. His only bogey of the day put him three behind Clark.

"I felt like my chance was sort of gone," McIlroy said.

Clark wobbled with two bogeys down the stretch. But McIlroy, his putter still ice cold, couldn't convert birdie tries from 22, 62, 33 or 40 feet over the last four holes.

"I can play free, I think I proved that today," he said. "Just felt like my speed control was a little off with the putter. That's probably why I didn't make a birdie since the first."

Indeed, the birdie on the short par-5 first was the only time he cashed in on any of the 15 greens he hit in regulation. Those 15 greens tied Jon Rahm for best in the fourth round.

For the week, McIlroy hit 59 greens. That was six more than anyone else in the field. What is often a formula for victory instead resulted in McIlroy's third runner-up finish at a major. He will go to Hoylake next month for the British Open still without a major title since the 2014 PGA Championship.

This close call felt a little like the last one. Last year at St. Andrews, he shared the lead going into the final round. He made two birdies that day and finished two shots back. This time, he made one birdie and finished one shot back.

Someone asked if these close calls are exhausting for a player who ripped off four major titles in his first 25 appearances but remains stuck at four despite spending most of the past nine years among the top 10 players in golf.

"It is, but at the same time, when I do finally win this next major, it's going to be really, really sweet," he said. "I would go through 100 Sundays like this to get my hands on another major championship."