Sign up for our daily newsletter
Latest news, reviews, analysis and opinion, plus unmissable deals for bunkered subscriptions, events, and our commercial partners.
We’ve certainly seen the scariest moment of the 2025 PGA Championship.
During Friday’s second round at Quail Hollow, Englishman Aaron Rai had a moment to forget. In fact, things almost went very wrong.
Standing over his second shot on the 526-yard par-4 16th hole, Rai had to avoid a tree to send his ball towards the pin, some 221 yards away.
• PGA Championship hopeful withdraws midway through second round
• Major winner gets snake fright at PGA Championship
With the ball back in his stance, he tried to keep his ball low but slammed it straight right off the heel towards some brave fans.
Thankfully, it bounced back into the fairway from the tree and away from danger.
You can watch the close call, below.
— Golf Clips (@clips_golf) May 16, 2025
It resulted in a double-bogey six for Rai, pushing him back to one-over-par for his round.
But at –3 thru 36 holes, the 30-year-old is comfortably through to the weekend, making it six consecutive made cuts in major championships.
Rai, who won his first PGA Tour title in August, has only played in the Wanamaker trophy contest twice. He missed the cut at Kiawah Island in 2021 before finishing T39 at Valhalla last year.
His best effort, however, remains a T19 finish at both the 2021 Open Championship and the 2024 US Open.
After his opening round, Rai spoke about progressing into a real major championship contender and Ryder Cup hopeful.
• PGA Championship: The big names in danger of missing the cut
• Major champions take aim at PGA Championship officials
“I think everyone is always trying to improve, and you have to,” he explained. “The game always keeps moving forward. The standard always keeps getting better year on year.
“But I think what we’ve tried to do as a team is to always try and underline all of the good things that are already there in the first place and keep trying to build and try and build in the easiest way possible way through the most minimal amount of change and to keep trying to add bits to the game during the season.
“Obviously, I don’t know what the future looks like. But yeah, hopefully I’ll try and stay on the same path moving forward.”
ALL ABOUT THE OPEN
More Reads

The bunkered Golf Course Guide - Scotland
Now, with bunkered, you can discover the golf courses Scotland has to offer. Trust us, you will not be disappointed.
Find Courses