Xander Schauffele sunk a clutch six-foot birdie putt on the 72 nd hole to go wire-to-wire at Valhalla and claim his first major at the PGA Championship.
Opening with a superb nine-under 62 to equal the lowest score in a major, Schauffele closed with a masterful six-under 65 to finish one stroke clear of runner-up Bryson Dechambeau.
Needing to birdie the par five 18th hole to win, Schauffele tugged his drive left.
Facing an awkward second shot, with his ball in the rough and his stance in a fairway bunker, the 30-year-old American nuked a perfect four iron just short of the green then chipped to six feet to give himself an excellent chance to convert.
His birdie putt wasn’t quite on line but it caught the left side of the cup and curled around the back before dropping. The sense of relief was palpable as Schauffele raised his hands in triumph and beamed with joy.
His winning total of 21-under-par was the lowest in major history. And, importantly, was elated to finally shake the tag of the best player to never win a major.
FINAL SCORES
- 1 Xander Schauffele -21
- 2 Bryson Dechambeau -20
- 3 Viktor Hovland -18
- T4 Thomas Detry -15
- T4 Collin Morikawa -15
- T6 Justin Rose -14
- T6 Shane Lowry -15
- T8 Billy Horschel -13
- T8 Justin Thomas -13
- T8 Robert MacIntyre -13
AUSTRALIANS
- T26 Min Woo Lee -9
- T43 Jason Day -6
- T43 Lucas Herbert -6
- T63 Cam Smith -3
- MC Adam Scott +3
- MC Cam Davis +7
After the high of the Masters, golf turns its attention to the PGA Championship!
The game’s top players are heading to Valhalla in hot form but can anybody beat Scottie Scheffler? Or will an underdog journeyman stare him down and reprise Bob May’s unexpectedly gritty resolve at Valhalla at the turn of the century?
Springtime in Kentucky will reveal all... bring it on!
Can anyone beat Scottie Scheffler at Valhalla?
Only his newborn baby, perhaps? On the course Scottie has been peerless this season: four wins from his past five starts, including his second major at the Masters. To put Scheffler’s two-month streak into perspective, former world No.1 and European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald has only won five PGA Tour events in his entire career (although he has also claimed seven European Tour titles). At the time of writing, Scottie is officially still on baby watch but becoming a dad for the first time will see him begin to make significant life adjustments amid a haze of insomnia; it’s the kind of curveball that has derailed even the most high-performing individuals. Scottie shapes as a hands-on type and if Scheffler junior is adamant sleep is for the weak, the PGA Championship at Valhalla might be a more even contest than most are expecting. Of course, there’s always the chance the sleep-deprived world No.1 decides the PGA Championship is not worth the hassle and goes back to bed.
How does Valhalla shape up in May?
Things might be a little spicier this time round if the rain stays away. Valhalla has hosted the PGA Championship three times (1996, 2000, 2014) — along with the 2008 Ryder Cup — and every tournament has seen the weather wield an influence. All three previous PGA Championships at Valhalla were held in the traditional August timeslot, which saw searing hot summer temperatures give way to stifling humidity, which eventually turned into thunderstorms that softened the course up no end. With the PGA Championship held in May since 2019, the weather in Kentucky might be more amiable this time around. If the rain stays away, the course should remain firm and fast and prevent the tournament becoming a bland and boring target golf shootout.
Does Brooks Koepka’s win at LIV Singapore mean he’s peaked too early?
The defending PGA champion’s ego would have been inflated after winning in hot and humid Singapore last start. But has he played his hand too early this year? Few players seem to be able to peak for a major like Brooksy, whose schedule is built around preparing to the time horizon of each major. Koepka’s win in Singapore was impressive, coasting to victory in the final round without breaking into too much of a sweat (metaphorically, of course) and it bodes well for Valhalla. Prior to his win at last year's PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club, Koepka was in top form after being pipped in the Masters. Seeking his sixth major win, Koepka is already one of the game’s greats and appears the best hope of matching Scheffler.
Which Aussie will do best this week?
On current form, Cam Smith looks the best hope at Valhalla but I’ll take Adam Scott this week in what is his 91 st consecutive start in a major. Scott’s remarkable longevity at the elite level is now second only to Jack Nicklaus, who made 146 consecutive starts between 1962 and 1998. Scotty finished T15 at Valhalla in 2014 and the 43-year-old’s elegant swing still makes golfers weak-kneed. He made the cut on the number at the Masters and then showed up on the weekend to finish T22. After playing the same irons for most of those 91 major starts, you’ve got to appreciate Scotty’s newfound affinity for equipment tinkering. The dude’s changing his equipment every week — he’s a walking, talking WITB rewrite! Scotty and Cam are joined in the PGA Championship field by fellow Australians Lucas Herbert, Cam Davis, Jason Day and Min Woo Lee.
Better 2024 PGA Championship: Rasmus or Nicolai Hojgaard?
To be honest I can never tell them apart, but I’ll give Nicolai the nod because he’s such a machine from tee to green. Or is that Rasmus I’m thinking about? Either way, it’s pretty much a toss-up whenever the Danish identical twins play in the same tournament.
Who is the PGA Championship roughie?
Dean Burmester will be flying under the radar this week. The big South African isn’t a household name but his body of work this season has been rock solid. Burmester claimed consecutive DP World Tour titles on home soil late last year and won LIV Miami in April, performances that triggered an invitation to contest the PGA. Sixteen LIV players will tee it up at the PGA; don’t be surprised if Burmester is the one who is leading them all at Valhalla.
Will Rory have good memories of his 2014 Valhalla win? Or will he be reflecting on his decade of regret and major hurt?
Professional golfers are generally a superstitious bunch. If they win at a course, it quickly becomes one of their most-loved tour stops. Valhalla obviously suited Rory’s eye back in 2014 so you’d expect him to appreciate being back at the scene of one of his greatest victories. But nothing ever seems a given with Rory: he is a brilliant golfer but is flawed, just like the rest of us. Maybe that’s why we all care so much that he hasn’t won a major since 2014? Winning the Zurich Classic with Shane Lowry in New Orleans a couple of weeks back should boost Rory’s mindset this week. And maybe a week with Shane Lowry will be the spark for Rory to rattle off a string of majors in quick succession before the game passes him by. Whatever happens this week, golf is always better when Rory is in contention.
What would an 18-handicapper shoot in a round at Valhalla this week?
Triple figures easily: 115 off the stick, with 11 lost balls.
Which of the current BPTNWAM crew looks most likely to shake the dreaded tag at the PGA Championship?
After finishing second in his first major start at the Masters last month, you could argue Ludvig Aberg is the best player to never win a major. But to qualify for this unwanted title, major heart break is a box that needs to be ticked. With that in mind, Tommy Fleetwood has the best chance of shaking the tag at Valhalla. The Englishman has seven top fives in majors and finished third at the Masters. Honourable mentions also go to Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele and Joaquin Niemann.
Has the Scottie Scheffler epoch begun?
Golf has been patiently waiting for the next mega talent ever since the Tiger era began to sputter to an end. On the sample size so far, Scheffler seems poised for dominance. But let’s tap the brakes a bit because there have been a few false dawns. Both Spieth and DJ were anointed as the chosen ones but shaky play ultimately saw them shy away from becoming the next Tiger Woods. The question that really needs to be asked is: does Scottie really want to become the next Tiger? While he’s every bit as ruthless on the course and possesses a game far beyond most of his competitors like Tiger, it’s clear Scottie isn’t driven by success and validation like the 15-time major winner. The Texan’s neighbourly disposition and stable life off the course is a jarring contrast to Tiger’s obsessive personality and scandalous private life: if that’s the recipe to becoming the next Tiger, it’ll be a hard pass from an even-keeled bloke like Scottie. If it does eventuate, the Scheffler epoch will feature a truckload of tournament wins and majors but expect a healthier work-life balance.
Where does Tiger’s famous Valhalla bounce rank on the all-time lucky leaderboard?
It’s got to be the clubhouse leader, for sure. On the first hole of a three-hole aggregate play-off against journeyman Bob May at the 2000 PGA Championship at Valhalla, Tiger Woods’ ball appeared to have ended up where tee shots go to die. Seven seconds later it reappeared, bounding at some pace into the clear. Did it ricochet off a solid object in the large grass-covered mound? Extremely doubtful. Did a fan kick it out of there? Not likely. Did a fan throw it out of there? Quite possibly. Golf’s grassy knoll moment has been forensically studied like the Zapruder JFK film, yet there’s no definitive answer as to how Tiger’s ball finished where it did. In a career where most of his bad breaks were to ankles and femurs, it was the luckiest break of Tiger’s career. He went on to win his fifth major, completed the third leg of the Tiger Slam (which he wrapped up at the Masters the following year) and the rest is history. As Gary Player once said, the more I practice, the luckier I get. But Tiger found a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow at Valhalla in 2000 and will be hoping for more of the same this week.
Who shapes as a potential Bob May this week?
Zac Blair. Slightly paunchy, a battler who wouldn’t look out of place behind the Bunnings paint counter. Zero wins from 186 PGA Tour starts and is playing just his fourth major. Enjoys semi-cult hero status for hitting himself in the head with his putter and subsequently being disqualified for playing a non-conforming club back in 2016. What an underdog story it would be if Blair went toe-to-toe with Scheffler, Rahm or Koepka, just like May did at the turn of the century.
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Written by Jamie Martin
Jamie Martin is currently locked in a battle to keep his handicap hovering around the mid-single digits. Despite his obvious short-game shortcomings, Jamie enjoys playing and writing about every aspect of golf and is often seen making practice swings in a mirror.
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