Beginning in 1916, just months after the birth of the PGA of America, the PGA Championship perennially showcases the strongest field in golf (a record 99 of the top 100 players in the Official World Golf Rankings competed last year at Kiawah Island) and also features the top 20 PGA Club Professionals.
This year’s edition will return to a very familiar course in the form of Southern Hills Country Club, which has already played host to eight Major Championships, including four PGA Championships, making it the PGA’s most frequent venue.
Southern Hills, which was only named host of the tournament last year after Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster was pulled from the schedule, last hosted the tournament in 2007, when Tiger Woods captured his fourth Wanamaker Trophy with a two-stroke triumph over Woody Austin. After making a miraculous return to the game last month at the Masters Tournament, it remains to be seen if Woods will tee it up in the second Major of the year, but he has given fans a glimmer of hope after the PGA of America released the entry list, which included Woods, along with 16 other PGA Champions, although there’s no guarantee that Woods will play.
The former World No.1 was in visible pain at Augusta National after he had dragged himself up and down and all around the hilly course. But he still appears determined to play in all four Majors this year if his body allows.
“I won’t be playing a full schedule ever again, and so it’ll be just the big events,” he said after the final round of the Masters. “I don’t know if I’ll be able to play Southern Hills or not, but I am looking forward to St. Andrews. And so that is something that is near and dear to my heart. I’ve won two Opens there, it’s the home of golf and it’s my favourite golf course in the world. So, I will be there for that one. But anything in between that, I don’t know. I will try, there’s no doubt, this week I will try and get ready for Southern Hills and we’ll see what this body is able to do.”
It came as quite a shock last month when Phil Mickeslon decided to skip the Masters, a tournament he has won three times, but it would probably be an even bigger shock if he didn’t defend a tournament he won so gloriously 12 months ago.
Lefty became the oldest man to win a Major title at Kiawah Island amid extraordinary scenes as thousands of fans swarmed on to the final fairway to witness the winning moment. It was arguably one of the greatest ever moments the game has witnessed, but that now seems like a lifetime ago following the recent controversy around Mickelson.
The six-time Major champion hasn’t played since February after apologising for comments regarding a proposed breakaway league, where he accused the PGA Tour of being “manipulative and coercive” before ironically going on to admit he was using the threat of a breakaway to “reshape” how the Tour operates, and also revealing he’d recruited three other players to the league and that he and other players paid attorneys to construct the proposed league’s operating agreement.
He has been named on the entry list for this year’s Championship but a spokesperson for management company certainly didn’t assure us he would be defending his title. “Phil currently has no concrete plans on when and where he will play,” said Steve Loy, the co-president of SportFive. “Any actions taken are in no way a reflection of a final decision made, but rather to keep all options open.”
While Phil Mickelson remains in a seclusion of his own making – with both the Tour and Augusta National claiming he has not been suspended – it would be a real shame for the golfing world not to see him in Oklahoma.
Jordan Spieth will have a sixth shot at a slice of history at this year’s PGA Championship with a victory putting the Texan alongside esteemed company by winning the career Grand Slam.
Spieth, who recently became a father, would join Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only players to win all four of golf’s Major Championships. According to the man himself, this could well be Spieth’s best opportunity to join golf’s most elite club.
“I think on paper, yes, just given grass types, winds are more similar to what I’m used to at home, and it’s about as close to home as we get for a PGA, at least until we go to Frisco,” said Spieth earlier this year.
“It’ll be by far the closest PGA I’ve played to home, and the best chances I’ve had are when courses are played with wind and firmer conditions at PGA Championships. I remember the course being way too big for me at 14 years old. Hopefully I feel a little differently going back.”
As well as the course conditions suiting him, Spieth also comes into the tournament off the back of a win after tasting victory for the second consecutive Easter Sunday at last month’s RBC Heritage at Harbour Town.
With the victory, the 28-year-old earned $1,440,000, which pushed him past $50 million in career earnings, lifting him to $50,578,855. Just 10 other tour pros have broken the $50 million barrier.
Spieth sits just over $3.7 million behind Sergio Garcia. A win at Southern Hills would certainly see him close that gap coupled while becoming just the sixth player to complete the career Grand Slam.
