World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler came back from surrendering a five-shot lead and held off a final round surge from Jon Rahm to secure a first PGA Championship triumph.
The 28-year-old American came into the final round at the iconic Quail Hollow course with a three-shot advantage and briefly extended that advantage to five in the early stages. However, he saw that advantage quickly evaporate following a difficult front-nine where he recorded three bogeys on his way to shooting two over par and a revitalised Rahm sunk three birdies in four holes to join Scheffler at the summit at the midway point of the final round.
But Scheffler managed to regain control on the back-nine with birdies at the 10th, 14th, and 15th to pull away from the Spaniard who suffered a stunning capitulation over the tough ‘Green Mile’ stretch which began at the par-four 16th in which he played the final three holes at five over par effectively ending his hopes as he carded a costly 2-over 73 to drop down to T8.
As a result of Rahm’s collapse, a bogey at the last was enough for Scheffler to seal the deal closing with a level-par 71, securing a five-shot victory, and get his hands on the Wanamaker Trophy for the first time, an achievement that led to an outpouring of emotion following his final putt.
“I just kept hitting it left,” Scheffler said when revealing his troubles during the first half of the final round. “I knew it was going to be a challenging day. Finishing off a major championship is always difficult and I did a good job of staying patient on the front nine.
“I didn’t have my best stuff but I kept myself in it, and I stepped up on the back nine and had a really good nine holes. I’m just really proud of the way I fought this week.”
The victory arrives a year after his arrest outside Valhalla Golf Club in Kentucky in the 2024 iteration of the event which saw him charged with second-degree assault of a police officer, third-degree criminal mischief, reckless driving, and disregarding traffic signals from an officer, charges which were subsequently dropped afterwards.
It is his third major triumph of his career with his two previous victories both coming at the Masters in 2022 and 2024.
Rahm, who was Scheffler’s closest challenger in the final round focused on the positives following his rollercoaster final day.
“It was really close,” Rahm said. “It’s been a while since I had that much fun on a golf course, 15 holes. Even the first seven of the day where I was swinging well and things weren’t happening. I kept myself in it, made the pars that I needed and played really good golf from the eighth to the 15th.
“The last three holes, it’s a tough pill to swallow right now. A lot of positives to take from this week. Pretty fresh wound right now. But there’s been a lot of good happening this week and a lot of positive feelings to take for the rest of the year.”
Bryson DeChambeau continued his good form at the major championships this season backing up his T5 finish at last month’s Masters with a T2 finish at Quail Hollow alongside fellow Americans David Riley and Harris English.
“I felt like I had the game to win this week and the golf course suited me pretty well,” the LIV Golf captain said. “Missed a few putts coming down the stretch and got a little unlucky in this great game of golf. It kind of is what it is.
“I’m sure you heard me out there really baffled quite a bit. It was a good fight, good battle and I take a lot from it. It’s just burning a bigger fire in my belly.”
Grand Slam winner Rory McIlroy was unable to replicate his glory in Augusta as the Northern Irishman struggled throughout the event and finished with a final-round 72 to claim a share of 47th on 3 over. Defending champion Xander Schauffele was also unable to challenge at the top of the leaderboard as he finished in a share of 28th on one under.
When is the next major?
The next major on the men’s calendar is the U.S. Open taking place between 12-15 June at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania.