As the 2016 U.S. Open Championship gets underway today at Oakmont Country Club in Plum, Penn., former U.S. Open champion Webb Simpson is back at it again — poised and ready to win his second U.S. open title and his fifth PGA Tour event.

His history on the Tour proves his drive and capability to repeat his 2012 Major win — but Simpson wasn’t always like that.

Back in 2011, before Simpson had earned any victories on the PGA Tour, he was caught in a trap. Not a literal sand trap, but a metaphorical, mental trap. He was taking a somewhat passive approach in his golf game — using his faith in God as an excuse.

“Whatever God has planned, I’ll accept it.”

Although recognizing God’s sovereignty isn’t inherently wrong, Simpson knew that this mindset was trapping him — holding him back from an active pursuit of success. He felt God calling him to be a champion — to actively pursue success on the golf course instead of laying over to let God do all the work.

When he changed his mindset, he broke free. God began to use him in ways he may have thought were impossible — like winning the 2012 U.S. Open.

“As we look at biblical manhood, all the great men of the Bible had similar characteristics,” Simpson said in his interview with Sports Spectrum in 2012. “Leadership, lovers of God, lovers of his Word. When you ponder those qualities, most of those men were fighters and strong men that loved the Lord. That’s a mantra I want to be known for. I want to be a strong man and a warrior with a soft heart when it comes to God.”

To read the full article on Simpson from the “In His Grip” section of the Spring 2012 issue of Sports Spectrum, click HERE. Simpson will tee off today alongside Graeme McDowell and Geoff Ogilvy as Day 1 of the U.S. Open Championships gets underway. Follow him live HERE.