Golf’s longest day is meant to be a brutal one. Each player grinds through 36 holes for a punch-in ticket to the U.S. Open, one of golf’s most prestigious tournaments, where Bobby Jones, Ben Hogan, Jack Nicklaus created history time and again.

But while some fought tooth and nail to secure their place, one golfer saw his dream slip away—not because of a bad round, but because of a hot dog.

Nick Barrett, a 31-year-old UPS driver from Maryland, had been on the brink of something special. He previously reached the final qualifying stage for the 2023 U.S. Open and had advanced to the Round of 32 in the 2024 U.S. Mid-Amateur.

This year, he was back at Woodmont Country Club, determined to make it to Oakmont. His first round score of 73, capped off with a birdie on the 18th hole, had kept him in contention.

But then, it was just a moment of distraction, and all the hard work got dumped in the sand.

After finishing his round, Barrett, surrounded by 40 friends and family members, made a critical mistake. Instead of heading to the scorer’s tent with his playing partners, he went to grab a bite to eat.

It wasn’t until he stood up after lunch that he realized his scorecard was still in his back pocket.

“I stood up after I had a hot dog or something at lunch, and I felt my back pocket, and I felt the scorecard in there, and as soon as I did that, my heart went straight to the bottom of my stomach,” Barrett admitted.

By the time he rushed to the tent, 20 minutes had passed, and the officials had already moved on.

His playing partners had waited as long as they could before signing their cards, but once the next group arrived, Barrett’s fate was sealed with straightaway disqualification.

Later, the 31-year-old expressed in frustration:

“It’s really upsetting to go out like that because it wasn’t anything I did on the course or because I signed something wrong.” He added, “I just got caught up in the moment. That was my responsibility, and I just didn’t do it.”

Barrett felt he had a real shot at making it through. “I’m not saying I was going to go out there and shock the world, but I was feeling a lot better after playing the first round. It’s just a real shame that I couldn’t go back out there.”

While the 31-year-old made a gut-wrenching mistake, other big names, too, saw their U.S. Open dreams slip away.

PGA Tour’s Rickie Fowler and Max Homa missed out after falling short in a 5-way playoff won by Cameron Young, proving that nothing is expected when it comes to U.S Open qualification.

Even the biggest names aren’t immune to the brutal nature of golf’s longest day.

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