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For Dallas businessman, Bryson DeChambeau’s U.S. Open victory was a win for SMU

Robert Dedman Jr.’s family, which owns the Pinehurst Resort, celebrated Open wins by DeChambeau and the late Payne Stewart.

When Payne Stewart won the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 in 1999, he turned to Dallas businessman Robert H. Dedman Sr. and said he should be proud, because SMU won that day.

Twenty-five years later, Robert H. Dedman Jr. said those same words to Bryson DeChambeau, another alum of the Dallas university: “SMU won today.”

DeChambeau claimed the U.S. Open title Sunday on the same course at Pinehurst, which the Dedman family has owned since the 1980s. Stewart won four months before he died in a plane crash.

“It’s like we caught lightning in the bottle,” Dedman Jr. told The Dallas Morning News in an interview this week. “It was otherworldly. To me, it’s almost as if it was preordained. I think maybe Payne and my father were up in heaven and put their thumb on the scale to Bryson’s advantage.”

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DeChambeau, 30, was only 5 years old when Stewart sank his 15-foot par putt on the 72nd hole to claim the 1999 Open title. He wanted nothing more than to follow in his footsteps.

“He’s the reason I went to SMU,” DeChambeau said during the Open trophy presentation.

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When DeChambeau was an 19-year-old freshman in 2013, Dedman said SMU golf coach Josh Gregory asked Dedman to mentor DeChambeau, who credited that first trip to Pinehurst as what led to his win Sunday.

“We’ve kind of seen him grow up and I think he has grown up well,” Dedman said. “His career is far from over. I’d be disappointed if he doesn’t win future majors as well because I think he embraces it the right way.”

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Dedman, 66, earned an MBA from SMU in 1980 and later served as chairman of the board of trustees, as did his father, who received his law degree from SMU and for whom the law school is named.

Dedman Sr. started ClubCorp Inc., a family-owned business that managed more than 170 golf courses, in 1957, the year his son was born. The business was put up for sale in 2006, shortly after the elder Dedman passed away in 2002, but there was one asset Dedman Jr. made sure to hold onto – the Pinehurst Resort located in North Carolina.

“It was the crown jewel of ClubCorp,” Dedman said. “Our family wanted to continue our legacy in the hospitality business. It meant a lot to my father. … He was actually buried in his Pinehurst jacket.”

“I was fortunate to be blessed with a father that was an outstanding businessman and leader,” he added. “I’m hoping some of that rubbed off on me.”

Dedman said he was overjoyed his longtime friend and mentee pulled off a win on his course, but when asked about his favorite memory at Pinehurst, he hesitated.

“It’s like asking which child you love the most, you love them all,” he said.

But Dedman conceded DeChambeau’s victory Sunday may have surpassed any cherished memory he has from Pinehurst.

“I was just so proud of him,” he said. “He’s gone through his own personal transformation journey, he’s an incredible entertainer now and that has evolved … he’s a special person. He’s incredibly smart, and you have to admire him because he likes to challenge the status quo.”

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DeChambeau, 30, was among the first to sign with the Saudi-backed breakaway LIV Golf league, which has created a rift at the highest level of the sport.

Before flying out of North Carolina late Sunday after the win, Dedman said DeChambeau stopped by his home. He took photos with the family and friends and they drank red wine out of the 18-inch-tall, sterling silver U.S. Open championship trophy. Before drinking from the trophy, Dedman said they first had to clean out sand from the bunker on No. 18 at Pinehurst. DeChambeau had filled the trophy’s cup with sand from where he got up-and-down from 55 yards to clinch the tournament.

“He went out of his way [to share the moment],” Dedman said of DeChambeau. “He didn’t have to do that, but that shows you the kind of person he is. It meant a lot to me.”

For Dedman, DeChambeau’s win will always remind him of what happened at Pinehurst 25 years ago.

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“I still get chills every time I [think of] Payne and knowing what he told my dad afterwards,” he added. “But this one was really one for the ages. It was just an experience that you’ll never forget. I know it’s certainly true for Bryson.”

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