What Is The US Open Playoff Format?

Very occasionally, one player blows away the rest of the field to win the US Open at a canter.

The most notable came in 2000, when Tiger Woods won by an almost inconceivable 15 shots at Pebble Beach - the largest margin of victory in Major history. In 2011, Rory McIlroy beat Jason Day by eight at Congressional, while Martin Kaymer won by the same margin at Pinehurst No.2 in 2014. Another big margin of victory came in 2020 at Winged Foot, when Bryson DeChambeau won by six.

Perhaps given the notoriously tough course set-ups imposed by the USGA, it's not surprising that those wins tend to be the exceptions rather than the rule, with most editions of the Major coming down to less than a handful of shots, with every mistake coming at a potentially catastrophic cost.

Indeed, the last four editions of the US Open have all been won by just one, including the fine margins that separated McIlroy and DeChambeau in 2024, with the LIV Golfer winning the title.

Because of that, it's hard to believe that there hasn't been a playoff to decide the US Open since 2008, when Tiger Woods beat Rocco Mediate in sudden death following an 18-hole playoff.

Whether we get a playoff in 2025 or not, it's safe to say we're due one, but it won't follow the same format as the last time extra holes were needed to decide the title. So, what is the playoff format?

US Open Playoff Rules

A playoff has settled the US Open 33 times in its history. However, the 18-hole format was scrapped in 2018 in favor of a two-hole aggregate affair, which is still in place today.

In the event of a tie at the end of the regulation 72 holes at Oakmont, the players sharing the lead will play an extra two holes. If one player has the lowest aggregate score after the two holes, he wins the title. However, if two or more players are still tied, they go to a sudden-death playoff until someone prevails.

That format is unique among the four Majors. In contrast, The Masters goes straight to sudden death, the PGA Championship features a three-hole playoff, while four extra holes are the norm at The Open.

When Was The Most Recent US Open Playoff?

The most recent playoff came 17 years ago, when Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate faced an 18-hole decider on the Monday at the Torrey Pines tournament. 

Even that wasn't enough to separate them, and Woods finally won the trophy after the first sudden-death hole, drawing to a close an epic five-day contest.

The current 17-year wait for the 34th US Open playoff is the longest gap in the tournament's history. Before Woods and Mediate's tussle in 2008, the most recent playoff had been in 2001, when Retief Goosen beat Mark Brooks.