Scott s US Open dream gets washed away at rainy Oakmont

OAKMONT, Pennsylvania - Adam Scott believes he needs another major title to boost his World Golf Hall of Fame credentials and while the Australian was in the hunt during Sundays final round at the U.S. Open his challenge faded as conditions became tougher in heavy rain.

The 2013 Masters champion would have broken the record for the longest time between a player winning his first and second majors but signed off with a nine-over-par 79 that dropped him into a share of 12th on six over for the tournament, seven shots behind winner J.J. Spaun.

A 96-minute suspension in play caused by rain that left pools of water on the putting surfaces and fairways made the already treacherous Oakmont layout even tougher.

It was bad conditions. No one really had a good score, said Scott, who has 32 worldwide wins, including 14 on the PGA Tour. Once the fairways were soaked, it was very hard controlling the golf ball.

The 44-year-old Scott, playing in his 96th consecutive major, started the day as the only player from the starting field of 156 golfers with three rounds of par or better.

Two over on the day when play was suspended, Scott bogeyed his first hole after the restart, the par-three eighth, but still reached the turn one shot off the lead.

Scott then found himself in a five-way share of the lead early on the back nine as conditions saw positions change rapidly on the leadeboard, but his game then started to unravel.

I felt better before the rain delay, thats for sure, said Scott. I went back out feeling okay, but then I left every kind of tee shot to the right coming in, and that was impossible to recover from almost.

Scotts slide started at the par-four 11th where he