Anticipation for a PGA Championship has never been higher. Here are the storylines you need to know heading into the first round.
The 104th PGA Championship and second men’s Major of 2022 is already upon us as the world’s best make the pilgrimage to Tulsa, Oklahoma to contest for the Wanamaker trophy.
Often regarded by the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) as having the strongest field in golf, this PGA is shaping up as another cracking major.
The course
Founded on oil money and cheap labour during the Great Depression, Southern Hills Country Club is a beauty of a golf course with a rich 86-year history. With seven men’s Major Championships (four PGA’s and three US Open’s), Tour Championships and a wealth of USGA events already to its name – this course that regularly ranks inside the Top 50 for golf courses in America and across the world, is the perfect host for what is the most anticipated PGA Championship for some time.
This will be the first Major Championship held at Southern Hills since 2007, when Tiger Woods won his 4th PGA by cleverly manoeuvring his way around the course, and fighting-off a final round challenge from 43-year-old Woody Austin to secure a two-shot victory amidst a summer heatwave that saw temperatures hit 39 degrees Celsius.
This playing however will differ from what most remember 15 years ago. Firstly, the PGA was moved from August to May last year, which rules out the chance of stifling ‘survival of the fittest’ weather conditions.
Secondly, the course was renovated in 2018 to showcase a fuller range of skills by placing a greater emphasis on creativity, recovery and decision-making. This has been achieved by expanding fairways and shaving the ultra-penalising rough to allow for greater freedom off the tee and enabling golfers the opportunity to hit aggressive recovery shots. Bunkers have also been reshaped, while the rough has been trimmed around the greens to facilitate run-off from raised surfaces. This permits the PGA to cut tighter pin placements that results in a greater importance on approach-shot-accuracy and forcing creativity around the greens for those that miss. All in all, it sets the stage for a truer and more entertaining test of golf.
Oh, and did we mention there was once a mob-hit in the carpark?! We’ll save that for another time, but who doesn’t love a little southern murder mystery?
The defending champ
Uh, what defending champ? One year removed from his record-breaking victory as a 50-year-old at the 103 rd PGA championship at Kiawah Island, defending champion Phil Mickelson has sensationally withdrawn from competing at this year’s PGA. This comes after the man affectionately known as ‘Lefty’ removed himself from competitive golf and the public eye since February following his widely condemned comments regarding the PGA Tour and controversial Saudi-backed LIV Golf League. His tone-deaf comments and half-baked apology that ensued saw him lose respect, sponsors and the support of his peers – whether he has lost the support of the golfing galleries remains to be seen. For arguably the most popular golfing personality since the turn of the century, this entire debacle is a truly saddening black spot on a colourful career.
The GOAT
Not even the greatest screenwriter could envision the Tiger Woods story following his last PGA Championship win 15 years ago – the 2008 US Open victory on one leg, the trial by public opinion following his infamous infidelity and marriage breakdown, the debilitating back injury and subsequent years in the golfing wilderness, the fairy-tale comeback win at the 2019 Masters and the car crash which almost took his leg (and life). Now, before our very eyes, he looks to add another captivating chapter to his legacy by attempting to reach the summit of the golfing world once again.
While another fairytale win here, or ever again, seems unlikely, the old adage ‘never write off a champion’ rings truer with Woods above all else. His return to top level competitive golf at The Masters last month and ability to make the weekend despite being so obviously hampered by his injured right leg, is a testament to the mental fortitude that saw Woods become the most dominant golfer and sporting figure on the planet. The arduous task of scaling the famed hills and slopes of Augusta National eventually took a toll on his injured body as he faded from contention in rounds three and four. However, with that invaluable experience and an extra month of rehab under his belt, coupled with his past success at
Southern Hills, it will come as no surprise if Tiger goes one better and grinds his way into contention over the weekend. Just how dramatic will this next chapter be? Only time will tell.
The world number 1
At just 25 years of age and in only his third full season on the PGA Tour, Scottie Scheffler is currently amid what many veterans would classify a ‘career year’ with four wins from his past seven individual events (including a Major Championship breakthrough at The Masters, and World Golf Championship victory at the Dell Technologies Match Play). While many pundits are quick to compare Scottie’s run to ‘early millennium Tiger’ – it would be wise to hold fire. In recent years we have seen both Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth burst onto the scene with a litany of big time wins which saw them rocket to World Number 1 and earn similar comparisons, before succumbing to a humbling stretch of mediocrity.
Regardless of whether Scottie can continue his rich vein of form, he is a natural born winner with immense talent and a perfect temperament who will no doubt remain a heavy presence on the PGA Tour for decades to come. With a T4 in 2020 and T8 in 2021, he has already proven he has no problems rising to the occasion of the PGA. Now, armed with the belief that comes with executing and winning on the biggest stage, there’s no reason why Scottie can’t add the Wanamaker trophy to his cabinet this weekend.
World number two
After an indifferent first half of the season, fiery Spaniard Jon Rahm seems to be peaking at the right time following his last start win at the Mexico Open. The victory was Rahm’s 7th on the PGA Tour which moves him past Jose Maria Olazabal into outright 3rd on the all-time list for most Spanish wins behind Seve Ballesteros (9) and Sergio Garcia (11). Still only 27-years-old, it seems a sure thing that John will finish his career atop this list, likely by a long way.
After becoming the first Spanish golfer to win the US Open at Torrey Pines last year, he will be aiming to repeat that slice of history this week at a tournament where none of his countrymen have won before. If he’s anywhere near his best, it would take a brave person to bet against him.
The Aussie bounce back
If one thing has been determined over the past 18 months, it’s that Cameron Smith is the torchbearer for Aussie Major Championship success in the foreseeable future. There is no question he has the game to win anywhere in the world, under any conditions, with a short game that is the envy of all golfers. The one question that remains though; can he get the job done on the Sunday of a Major?
His gun-slinging approach to the game has treated him well enroute to two PGA Tour wins this season at the Tournament of Champions (shooting a tour record 34 under par) and the Players Championship (firing 10 birdies in the final round). However, it’s this attacking style of play that also saw his downfall on the back-9 at Augusta on Sunday, when he triple-bogeyed the famous 12th hole by finding the water after misfiring at the tight-right pin.
His ‘live by the sword, die by the sword’ strategy and willingness to back his short game and recovery skills may see him win more than he loses when in contention on tour. The concern is repeated failings while playing this way may start to affect his confidence when it matters most in Majors – we’ve seen it all before with fellow Queenslander and Aussie golfing legend Greg Norman. While this one question remains unanswered, one thing we can all agree on is that this loveable lad deserves all the success that comes his way, and his response this week following the heartache at The Masters will give us all comprehensive insight into the character and resilience of the man.
The South African drought
A decade is a long time for a proud golfing nation like South Africa to go winless in the Majors. When Ernie Els won The Open in 2012, South African golfers had accumulated four Majors in a five year stretch and were a powerhouse of men’s golf. Now, 10 years on, and with only one golfer inside the Top 50 (Louis Oosthuizen – 15th ), it has many doubting whether that next victory will come anytime soon. It’s not like they haven’t been without their chances though, with Oosthuizen himself registering a staggering six runner-up finishes in this time. Since his lone Major title at The Open in 2010, the enigmatic golfer has
repeatedly failed to get the job done, which begs the question as to whether he has what it takes to become just the 4th South African to win multiple Majors. Despite having no recent form-line to read from following his injury withdrawal at The Masters, there is every chance the diminutive Springbok who finished T3 or better in three Majors in 2021 (including T2 at the PGA) will be sniffing around the front page of the leader board come Sunday. If he is to secure that long awaited second victory, it will be an extremely popular win among many.
The career Grand Slam pursuit
Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods – these five legends are the only golfers to register a ‘Career Grand Slam’ by winning all four of golf’s modern Majors within the span of their careers. This week at just 28 years of age, Jordan Spieth gets another opportunity to add his name to this decorated list. Following his wins at the Masters, US Open (both 2015) and The Open (2017) it would have been unfathomable at the time to suggest we would be waiting this long for his next Major title. But following his famous victory at Royal Birkdale, Spieth’s game gradually declined as he lost confidence in his swing. This trickled into his once ironclad short game and he subsequently endured a
barren run of form that saw him go winless on the PGA tour from 2018-20 with only three Top-5 finishes in the process.
After finally breaking that drought at the Valero Texas Open last year, Spieth recorded a T-3 at the Masters, a 2nd at The Open, a further win at the RBC Heritage last month and a 2nd at the Byron Nelson just last week. While still not at the peak of his powers, he is trending in the right direction and a win this week to catapult him into the upper echelon of golfing royalty is a possibility once again.
The Norwegian trailblazer
Oslo native Viktor Hovland continues to go where no Norwegian has gone before. At 24 years of age, his ever-expanding CV includes becoming the first Norwegian to win the US Amateur, to win on both the PGA and European Tours, and to represent Europe at the Ryder Cup. Although a long way from his homeland, Hovland will still feel at home this week as he immigrated to America to play college golf at Oklahoma State University and resides just an hour west of Southern Hills in Stillwater. Although yet to record a Top 10 at any Major in his brief career, it’s only a matter of time before his name is atop the leader board. With four wins worldwide over the past 12 months and ‘hometown vibes’ on his side, expect to see the World Number 6 at the business end come Sunday.
Embed from Getty ImagesThe American stranglehold
The current generation of American golfers is undoubtably the best a nation has ever produced. With 15 of the past 20 Major titles between them (including the past 6 PGA’s) and eight currently sitting within the Top 12 in the world (seven being 30 years or younger), it’s a crop of talent which should be dominating the world of golf for a long time. While many have already claimed their maiden Major title, some are still searching for that extra layer of career credibility. Two who teamed-up to win the Zurich Classic last month and are both seemingly primed to take this next step are Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
Reigning Fedex Cup Champion, Cantlay, has four PGA Tour wins in the past 12 months and four Top-5 finishes this season. His performances under pressure in the Fedex Cup Playoffs, especially at the BMW Championship where he defeated Bryson DeChambeau in a six-hole playoff, prove that he has the mentality to win the big events. The challenge for him now is to translate this across to Major Championships where he only has two Top-10 finishes.
Schauffele on the other hand, has no issues placing himself into contention with six Top-5 and nine Top-10 Major Championship finishes over the past five years – his issue, has been winning in general. Following a fruitful start to his PGA career, Xander is currently experiencing a winless drought in individual competition that stretches back to January 2019.
While confidence would have been gained with his win partnering Cantlay at the teams’ event in New Orleans, he will be desperate to notch another of his own to correct the downward trend. Expect to see both amongst the action over the weekend.
Whatever unfolds this week, the world class venue, engrossing storylines and breadth of genuine contenders guarantees the 104 th PGA Championship will be one to remember!
