CROMWELL, Conn. — J.J. Spaun had never been one to give in when backed to the wall. His instinct was always to fight back, but a string of rough tournaments to start 2024 and a series of illnesses had him wondering if his pro golf career was still worth fighting for.

He drew sudden inspiration from the 2004 film “Wimbledon,” about an aging tennis player who had slipped from 11th to 119th in the world, but dug in and came out winning the sport’s biggest prize.

“It’s pretty cliché, but never give up,” was Spaun’s takeaway. “There’s two ways you can take when your back’s up against the wall. You can succumb to it and just say, ‘OK, this is my way out,’ or ‘I’m going to fight back.’ I’ve been kind of through these situations in my life before, and I’ve always kind of fought back and come out the other side instead of kind of succumbing to it and letting it get to me and ending any sort of dream I had.”

Spaun, 34, as the sporting world now knows, fought back and, last Sunday, his 64-foot birdie putt made him the U.S. Open champion. He began this year ranked 109th in the world, now he is No. 8, his life imitating art as he returns to action at the Travelers Championship this week at TPC River Highlands..

“It’s just crazy,” Spaun said. “It’s like all this back and forth in my career. Then kind of what happened last year the first half of the year, kind of slumping, falling down, and getting back up. There’s a Confucius quote. He says — God, I’m going to butcher this — something like, ‘The glory isn’t for how high you get or something, but it’s more about the rise when you get pushed down or something like that. … The glory isn’t for how high you get in your peaks, it’s more of like when you bounce back, that’s where it’s at.’ That’s kind of, I feel like, my career.”

Confucius actually said: “Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but rising every time we fall.” So Spaun didn’t sink that one, but got close enough for a tap-in.

This redemption story, which comes at a good time for the sport, reaffirmed that the highest level is not necessarily a game for 20-somethings, and while the tour has its stars, there is room for a relative unknown to emerge on its biggest days. Not only did Spaun win the U.S. Open, he won it at Oakmont CC in Pennsylvania, one of the most challenging courses in the country, and in rainy, borderline unplayable conditions, coming from four strokes back after five early bogeys in the final round to play perhaps the best back nine of his career, birdies on 17 and 18.

“That’s what you’ve got to do to finish off major championships and tournaments out here,” said Scottie Scheffler, the No.1 golfer in the world, defending Travelers champ and Spaun’s playing partner for the first two rounds. “For J.J. to step up and birdie 17 and 18 in those conditions to win the tournament is pretty special.”

Spaun, who is from L.A., and his family stopped off in New York Monday, something they’d been thinking of doing along the way from Oakmont to Cromwell, but spent much of the day reveling and retelling his story on “The Today Show” and for others.

“It’s been pretty hectic but also very fun,” Spaun said. “It’s been nice to be given the opportunity to express my feelings, my emotions. A lot of people want to hear from me. I was really grateful to have the opportunity to tell everyone about it. So I enjoyed it. It was a fun time.”

For another golfer, it may have meant skipping The Travelers, but there’s special meaning here for Spaun. In 2020, after he was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, Spaun won the closest-to-the-pin umbrella challenge, and donated the $10,000 prize money to the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, a cause near and dear to Travelers Executive Vice President Andy Bessette.

Two years ago, his daughter, Violet, was born during the Travelers; her birthday falls on Thursday, the day of Round 1 this year. Violet had a role in the family’s storybook weekend at Oakmont, too. She had taken ill the night before the final round, sending her father to the drug store at 3 a.m.

At TPC River Highlands, which is as well known for its low scores as Oakmont is known for its unforgiving nature, Spaun has never finished higher than a tie for 30th, and missed the cut three of six times. Now, he is in the field with the vast majority of the world’s top players, with no cut to make and $3.6 million to the winner.

Doors keep opening for the U.S. Open champ. He has risen to third in the Ryder Cup standings, well-positioned for a spot on the U.S. team, where captain Keegan Bradley says Spaun could be “the heartbeat.”

“Going to a (difficult) course like Bethpage Black (in September), the people are really going to be behind a guy like J.J. Spaun,” Bradley said. “His story is incredible. He’s a hard-working guy that’s just building and building and building his whole career. To win the U.S. Open at Oakmont, in my eyes, is the pinnacle of major golf. It’s as tough as you can get. I’m really proud to have him on this team.”

Spaun arrived in Connecticut, he said, with his head just coming “down from the clouds.” Humble, he still seemed bewildered from the fame that has suddenly come in his 12th year as a pro, a year or so after he fended off the demons goading him to give it up. This is not a movie, it’s real. He has seen his name engraved on the U.S. Open trophy, and nothing can erase it.

“I’m super grateful to have won the championship and to be given this experience,” Spaun said. “It’s something I’ll never forget obviously for the rest of my life. I guess I’m a part of history now.”

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