PINEHURST — All Spencer Oxendine wants is a chance.

The chance of a lifetime.

As the U.S. Open is played in his backyard this week at Pinehurst No. 2, Oxendine is painstakingly close to the opportunity to play in his first major championship. Now that fate is out of his hands.

Oxendine, a Fayetteville native and member of the Lumbee Tribe, is an alternate to get in the Open field as of press time on Tuesday. As alternates are allowed to do, he has spent the days leading up to the tournament’s Thursday opening round by playing practice rounds on the host course.

“It’s fun,” Oxendine said. “You get all the privileges as the players, which is great; I can eat in players dining, get access to the facilities, it’s a blast. I’ve been able to meet new people that I didn’t think I’d meet for at least a while. … They kind of get where you’re at; they see you as an alternate and they understand that you don’t want to be there, and everybody’s been so gracious to me.”

Monday, Oxendine’s practice round saw him play alongside five-time major champion Brooks Koepka; they were later joined for “a couple of holes” by world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, the week’s overwhelming favorite.

“They were super nice, and it was honestly encouraging; you’re a little intimidated, because you don’t know these people, but then they were so welcoming, and that was good to just feel that,” Oxendine said. “It didn’t seem like I was in their way or was a problem. And a little bit of me expected for me to be that way before getting out here, but they totally weren’t, they were so welcoming and I appreciated that. I saw a bit of what it means to look like a pro. That was something I definitely needed to see.”

Oxendine says he’s low on the USGA’s priority list of alternates; this information is not published by the organization. While the practice round experience is an enjoyable one, the wait to see if he gets in the field is also difficult.

“I’m not really too high up on the list of alternates that would get in, so I’m not the most hopeful for it — but I still have hope. You never know, something crazy could happen. I would love to get in. I don’t wish anything bad upon anybody, but I would love to be able to play. But the waiting, it’s pretty tough, it’s not fun.”

If Oxendine does get in, he’ll have a connection to Payne Stewart’s iconic 1999 U.S. Open win on the bag. Jacob Hicks, the son of Stewart’s caddie Mike Hicks, is carrying the clubs for Oxendine this week.

“If I got through and something happened, I think that would be one of the craziest stories of the year,” Oxendine said. “Having him out here, he has a great dad who has showed him the ropes, and he’s been an amazing caddie for me the two days we’ve been out here. We have a good relationship, and that allows us to be comfortable with each other, we can be real with each other, and he’s doing what he needs to do.”

Oxendine would be the first Lumbee to play in the U.S. Open if he is able to get into the field before Thursday’s opening round, a Lumbee Tribe spokesperson told The Robesonian. He’s got the Tribe’s seal on his golf bag this week as he represents it on one of golf’s biggest stages.

“I’ve got the Tribe on the bag, I’m representing this week,” Oxendine said. “That would be a very big deal for me. Just to represent the people, whatever that is, whether I’m playing on the Korn Ferry (Tour) or on the PGA (Tour) or in the U.S. Open. I want to represent them and I want to do it well, that’s what I want.”

As Oxendine began the wait last week between Open qualifying and the potential to compete in this week’s championship, he and his family came to the Lumbee Tribe offices in Pembroke on Friday to renew their membership. He even took photos with Tribal Chairman John Lowery.

After recently turning pro upon completing his athletic eligibility at N.C. State, Oxendine competed in a U.S. Open final qualifier last Monday at Duke University Golf Club in Durham as one of 84 players vying for seven spots in the tournament field. He tied for sixth in the 36-hole competition after shooting 3 under par, which left him in a seven-way playoff for the final two spots in the Open.

With Golf Channel cameras rolling live, Oxendine birdied the first playoff hole to stay in the fight; he was eliminated from the playoff on the second hole as Harry Higgs and Raleigh native Carter Jenkins advanced to the Pinehurst field.

“I think it was exactly what I needed to see from myself. I handled adversity, I feel like, pretty well. I worked really hard on my routine, and that led to some success,” Oxendine said. “My game was good enough to hang around with some PGA Tour players and Korn Ferry (Tour) players, and that was the first time that I’ve really done that, had that kind of test. … That experience, that’s something I’ll lean on for a while for sure.”

Oxendine earned his spot as an alternate as the highest finisher outside of the transfer positions at the Open qualifier. While Oxendine says he is not high on the general priority list for alternates, if one of the seven players from the Durham qualifier were to withdraw he would get their tee time on Thursday.

A standout at Jack Britt High School, Oxendine went on to graduate from N.C. State last year with a business degree. Results in his final college season included a tie for 37th at the ACC Championship in Charlotte in late April and a tie for 21st at an NCAA regional in Chapel Hill. He turned professional after the conclusion of his college season.

He has four mini-tour starts scheduled later this summer as he tries to navigate life as a new professional, with the potential of PGA Tour qualifying coming this fall.

“I kind of want to get my game right, and kind of be a little more comfortable, and then put myself in the uncomfortable whenever the fall and the spring roll around,” Oxendine said. “Being around my coach, having access to the facilities at N.C. State at a consistent rate, that is important to me.”

With a game self-described as “long and patient,” he hopes to play well enough moving forward to make a good career at the professional ranks.

“I think that I hit the ball a long way, I get a lot of opportunities, and as soon as I kind of settle down and play within myself I can get things going,” Oxendine said. “It just takes me being OK with whatever my score is and kind of waiting for something good to happen, rather than forcing something to happen.”

Now, with the opening tee shot of Pinehurst’s fourth U.S. Open drawing closer, he’s waiting on something good to happen in a big way, hoping for that invaluable opportunity.