6 burning questions ahead of the PGA Championship

Is it PGA Championship week already?

Scottie Scheffler slipping into his second Green Jacket feels like it was merely days ago and yet here we are preparing to watch the world’s finest tee up in the latest battle for that giant Wanamaker Trophy.

So what can we expect from the latest major jaunt around Valhalla? We asked our team of editors six questions ahead of the PGA Championship to try and work it all out…

You have to go back to Tommy Armour in 1930 for the last British winner of the PGA Championship. Who has the best chance of ending that drought at Valhalla?

Michael McEwan: You’d have to say Tommy Fleetwood. He’s finished top-five in four of the last eight majors and has been top-ten in each of the last three. Forgive the incoming use of the ‘T’ word but he’s trending, no? 

Ben Parsons: Forgiven. Fleetwood’s getting closer and closer, but it won’t be the same without his right-hand man Ian Finnis. 

Alex Perry: Forgiven. Fleetwood is currently leading my Englishman I Desperately Want To Win A Major list. It was Luke Donald before that, if you’re wondering. Or Paul Casey. (One of those is a lie.)

James Tait: Fleetwood is solid of the off the tee and if he gets the putter working, he’ll have a chance.

John Turnbull: The British contingent is lacking a standout candidate, but if Fleetwood is ever going to win a major it has to be soon.

• Can anyone stop Scottie Scheffler? We’ve crunched the numbers!

Bryce Ritchie: That has to be the weirdest stat in golf. I have no idea why it is the case, either. The usual guys like Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick are our best bet but the field is rammed with Americans.

Lewis Fraser: I’ll go with Fitzpatrick, then. A proven major winner and he’s managed to have a pretty good break between the Masters and PGA, which should do him good. 

The bunkered Verdict: It’s your time, Tommy. 

We’ve had eight straight American winners – open it up to the rest of the world, who do you fancy to break that streak?

Bryce: Ludvig Aberg is going to spend his career winning majors, starting at Valhalla. 

James: Aberg is young, in form, and fearless. He’s got the right mental attitude to get it done. 

Lewis: Firstly, that is an incredible stat. Despite withdrawing from the Wells Fargo with a knee injury, I’m going with Aberg too. His performance at the Masters showed he’s cut out for this level. 

Michael: I can’t believe I’m saying this but it’s Aberg. The lad has absolutely zero fear and is primed for the biggest of stages. On the condition his knee injury isn’t anything too troublesome, I fully expect him to contend. 

• Golfer, 61, quits game for 20 years – now he’s in a major!

John: It doesn’t feel like there are many from outside the US who are a real threat coming in this week, except from… Rory McIlroy. 

Alex: McIlroy. Valhalla. Got a major point to prove after the latest PGA Tour shenanigans. Oh sign me up.

Ben: Jon Rahm was a shadow of himself at Augusta, but let’s not forget he’s still one of the best players in the world and hasn’t finished outside the top 10 on LIV all season. 

The bunkered Verdict: Looks like Ludvig’s early major career is going to read 2-1.

Despite its move in the calendar, the PGA is still regarded as the “fourth major”. What would you do to improve its identity?

Lewis: It’s difficult, but I actually think LIV Golf, in a roundabout way, will help the PGA Championship. It’s now only one of four events where the best players in the world all play together and the PGA prides itself on having the strongest field in golf. Even if it’s the fourth major, that’s still a big deal. Sorry, completely dodged the question there. 

Michael: One of two things. One, give it a permanent home. Stop visiting US courses nobody cares about. Create an identity around the familiarity of ‘home’, much like The Masters has done with Augusta National and The Players has done with TPC Sawgrass. Alternatively, take it on a global rotation and make it the ‘The World’s Major’. There are Professional Golfers’ Associations in every major country around the globe. South Africa, Australia, Japan and the like. Take a world view and watch your tournament grow. None of this will happen, though. The PGA of America is the original boys’ club. 

Alex: Answered for all of us there, didn’t you? Mix up the format. Have a couple of days of strokeplay with the top 64 or whatever going into a straight knockout matchplay section. 64th vs 1st, 63rd vs 2nd and so on.  

• 7 players who somehow never won the PGA

John: Another hat in the ring for taking it around the world. 

Ben: I’d move it – but just take it Down Under. Give Australian golf fans what they deserve and make this tournament feel like a major again. 

James: I think it needs to be spaced out better in the calendar. It just feels like another elevated PGA Tour event, and it’s always going to be tough following the Masters. 

Bryce: Stop talking about it being the fourth major. I’m serious. It’s the same chat every year. Can’t we just move on? 

The bunkered Verdict: Move it. Change it. Stop talking about it. Hope that clears things up.

What’s your favourite PGA Championship memory from watching it over the years?

Bryce: That’s a better question. There’s been some truly turgid PGA moments in my time, but some crackers, too. I remember being gutted watching Greg Norman lose out in ’93. Woods in ’99 was a highlight as that was the birth of Sergio Garcia. I suppose, in recent times, any of Brooks Koepka’s wins. He’s a complete bully when he’s on it, and that’s great to watch. 

Alex: I reckon I think about Shaun Micheel’s win at least once a week. Other than that, it’s McIlroy easing out David Lynn by eight at Kiawah or finishing in pitch black last time out at Valhalla. 

Ben: McIlroy necking that 3-wood to win in the dark. What else? 

• The incredible history of the Wanamaker Trophy

Michael: There honestly haven’t been all that many – certainly relative to the other majors – but Phil Mickelson in 2021 is a clear standout. We observed golf history in real time and it was a privilege. 

John: Recency bias has won over. Mickelson was quite something to watch. Chuck in Brooks vs Bryson, too. It was some week. 

James: Vintage Tiger winning back to back in ’99 and 2000. 

Lewis: I have a vivid memory of watching two, at the time, relatively unknown Americans battling in a playoff in the 2011 PGA Championship at the Atlanta Athletic Club. There was something about Keegan Bradley’s stare while reading putts, his lean after every iron shot, and his Oakley get-up that sticks in the mind. What a guy. 

The bunkered Verdict: McIlroy vs Mickelson. The showdown we didn’t know we needed.

Will we see a sixth entrant to the Grand Slam Club on Sunday?

Lewis: I love Jordan Spieth but unfortunately, I don’t see it happening. Not this year at least. His game just hasn’t been up to standard in 2024 and that showed at Augusta. I hope I’m wrong. 

John: It’s not happening. He’s missed four cuts in his last six starts. 

Ben: He’s been battling a wrist injury for months and his form hardly screams Grand Slam winner-elect, does it? 

• Where to watch the PGA on UK TV

Bryce: His iron play is too erratic just now for him to contend. There would have to be an unbelievable turnaround for him to even get a top-ten.

Michael: Slimmer than Kim Kardashian’s waist at the Met Gala. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: we’ve seen the best of ol’ Jordan. Just like Antti Niemi, he’s finished. 

Alex: And yet stranger things have happened…

James: I have more chance than Jordan Spieth being the sixth entrant to the Grand Slam Club. 

The bunkered Verdict: Some claim from James there, but we’re not liking Spieth’s chances.

And finally, your life savings on the line, who will win the PGA Championship?

John: Rory McIlroy. Confidence booster with Shane Lowry aside, he can enjoy himself with fond memories at Valhalla.

Ben: Come on. It’s Scottie Scheffler. Obviously. 

James: Scheffler.

Lewis: Scheffler. As long as he doesn’t need to leave to head to a maternity ward.

Bryce: I have no savings and I’m still saying Scheffler. I need the money. 

• Every LIV golfer in the field at this year’s PGA

Michael: This is Brooks Koepka’s record in the championship since 2015: T5, T4, T13, Won, Won, T29, T2, T55, Won. So, yeah. Any other answer is wrong. 

Alex: I’ll join you on the Brooks bandwagon. But you knew that already… 

The bunkered Verdict: A Scheffler-Koepka-McIlroy battle down the stretch on Sunday, please.

We’ve previewed the PGA Championship in much more detail on The bunkered Podcast – so make sure you’re subscribed!