SOUTHHAMPTON, N.Y. — Wyndham Clark does a lot of stupid things. He complains. He pouts. He lets out his anger in irresponsible ways and often doesn’t think before he speaks. He is, among other things, one of the more disliked characters in golf at this moment.

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I’m using that word dislike purposefully because it is not so much that Clark is hateable. It is that, for so many, he is specifically unlikeable. He is dominating this U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, and even the manner in which he’s winning makes people angry. His first round 64 came largely after the gnarly winds died down and the course eased up. They wanted carnage, and they got Wyndham.

It’s why the story over the next two days isn’t about who wins this U.S. Open. If Clark continues his run, will the golf world embrace him?

A year ago at this very tournament, Clark had a bad time. He missed the cut at Oakmont, went into the locker room, and lost his temper. Thanks to the sleuthing of No Laying Up’s Tron Carter, it surfaced that Clark kicked in two of its 121-year-old lockers so badly the club ultimately banned him from the club until he repaired the lockers, contributed to charity and underwent counseling. A source at Oakmont, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly, said the lockers were indeed repaired this winter.

“I’ve gotten a lot of grief since last year, rightfully so,” Clark said after he shot a 69 Friday morning. “The thing that’s unfortunate is that’s not who I am, what happened last year. I’m hoping I can win back the fans that I had or some new fans because it was a terrible incident. You know, I really feel like I can show people that I’m fun and outgoing, I’m fierce, competitive, love the game, respect the game, and I just had a bad moment.”

Three years ago, again at the U.S. Open, Clark was embraced by the golf world. A former Oklahoma State All-American, Clark struggled after the loss of his mother, Lise, to breast cancer. He transferred, faded and considered quitting multiple times as he hopped in the car and drove to nowhere. He worked on mental health with specialist Julie Elion, turned the corner and became 2023’s breakout star as he won on the PGA Tour for the first time and then the U.S. Open at Los Angeles Country Club.

More importantly, Clark told his story so well.

He was and is an open vein. He cried. He laughed. He insightfully broke down his mental health struggles, always happy to discuss his worst moments. He talked so well about his mother, who introduced him to the game.

Clark once told me that when he was a relative nobody on the PGA Tour, he always noticed the guys who got beckoned over to do press conferences, and he knew what it felt like to be a background character. He never took that for granted and always understood the obligations involved with being a star. He never quite gets credit for that.

But even at the highs, people still didn’t really like Clark.

That openness can be his downfall. He always answered the tough questions and remains an open book, so sometimes (often) he puts his foot in his mouth. He tends to just miss the right message, like in his first apology from the locker incident saying, “I’d also like to move on, not only for myself but for Oakmont, for the USGA.” Or this week when he said he’s looking “for some redemption,” as if he was overcoming challenges against him, not self-inflicted.

Some of it’s because spectators accused him of cheating. Some of it’s because he was found liking election-denial posts on X, and others suggesting Jan. 6, 2021, protests were fake. But really, if we’re being honest, people just didn’t like his vibe.

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At that same U.S. Open at Oakmont where Clark damaged lockers, Rory McIlroy smashed a tee marker. Brooks Koepka did it too, a week later. Scottie Scheffler has become more and more known for petulant rants. Yet those are, broadly speaking, three of the most loved golfers in the world. Golf Channel’s Brandel Chamblee once put it this way about why some golfer tirades add character while others are despised. “Tyrrell Hatton is kinda funny,” Chamblee said. “Wyndham Clark is not funny.”

Clark also became so visible so fast. He went from unknown to the face of SoFi, a TGL star, and a frequent commercial presence all in mere months. Maybe there was also a thirstiness there, too. He was everywhere, then his game swiftly declined from a Ryder Cup in 2023 to missing the second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs in 2025.

“I was on top of the world in my game at least when I won the U.S. Open and then had some good years,” Clark said. “Then next thing you know, I’m apologizing for breaking a locker the year later. I just think with the mental game there’s ebbs and flows. If you think of it as climbing Everest, sometimes you go up, sometimes you have to go down to go back up.”

He started the 2026 season ranked No. 76 on DataGolf, but during the offseason, he started working with coach Pat Coyner to return to that 2023 swing. Clark quietly got better and better and broke out with a Sunday 60 to win the CJ Cup last month. Suddenly, he’s one of the hottest golfers in the world, following that up with a solo third at the Memorial, a T11 at the Canadian Open and now a four-shot lead at the U.S. Open.

Then, the moment Clark broke out Thursday evening, the golf world had to reckon with what it wanted.

Social media was filled with posts about how somebody had to put a stop to Clark’s run. People criticized a soft setup for allowing Clark to go low. A U.S. Open at an iconic venue won by their least favorite player? Nightmare.

Yet when Clark is on, which he is right now, he’s one of the best golfers in the world. And he’s now 36 holes away from having as many majors as Jon Rahm, Xander Schauffele and Bryson DeChambeau.

U.S. Opens have always been constructed on highs and lows, rises and falls. The best U.S. Opens give you chances to score and chances to collapse. Perhaps nobody has lived this as much over the last four years as Wyndham Clark. He is human, for better or worse. What you — or the people at Shinnecock Hills — make of that is the real story of this major championship.

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This article originally appeared in The Athletic.