PGA Championship 2024: The large questions for the ultimate spherical

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Valhalla Golf Membership has carried out it once more. For all of the griping about low scores and lack of technique, the venue that has hosted a few of the most thrilling PGA Championships has set the stage for yet one more electrical Sunday.

Not solely are two gamers tied for the 54-hole lead, however 13 others are simply 5 pictures again and 6 are inside 3 strokes. Of these 15 gamers inside the highest 10, 10 are in search of their first main victory, whereas the remainder are hoping so as to add to their totals.

Similar to in 2000 when Tiger Woods beat Bob Might in a playoff or like we witnessed in 2014 when Rory McIlroy got here storming again to win his fourth main, Sunday’s remaining spherical seems to have loads of substances to offer yet one more traditional.

Listed below are 5 questions forward of the ultimate 18 holes:

What’s it about Valhalla that is creating such a crowded leaderboard?

Paolo Uggetti: Unsurprisingly, Justin Thomas, who’s from Louisville, has defined the phenomenon of Valhalla nicely this week. Between the smooth greens resulting from rain and the best way the golf course forces the very best gamers on the planet to play it a single approach (drive it nicely, putt it nice) as a way to succeed, Valhalla inevitably causes a leaderboard bottleneck.

“It simply does not matter what golf course you set us on, on planet Earth,” Thomas mentioned. “If the greens are smooth, we’ll tear it up. It simply does not have something to defend itself.”

And tear it up they’ve. 15 gamers are double-digits beneath par heading into Sunday — greater than twice as many as there ever have been at a significant championship. Two gamers, Shane Lowry and Xander Schauffele, have shot major-low rounds already this week because of scorching placing performances, and it feels just like the winner Sunday will probably be decided by who can catch hearth on the greens.

“It is arduous to separate your self,” Hovland mentioned. “You are going to need to make a bunch of birdies and roll a bunch of putts in.”

“It may come right down to much more than [putting], however it sort of feels that approach with the greens being receptive and the fairways being receptive,” Schauffele mentioned. “Hopefully it being a bit of bit — even drier, the ball would possibly roll a bit of bit extra. So yeah, it would come right down to one thing like that.”

Mark Schlabach: There is no query the smooth circumstances have helped the very best golfers on the planet. The 69.55 scoring common within the third spherical was the bottom common rating to par (-1.45) in PGA Championship historical past.

There are six gamers inside two pictures of the lead coming into the ultimate spherical. Anybody in that group — and doubtless a couple of guys behind them — is able to placing collectively an awesome spherical to seize the Wanamaker Trophy on Sunday. Schauffele carded a 9-under 62 on Thursday. Seven golfers posted 65s on Friday. Lowry put up one other 62 on Saturday.

Hovland mentioned there are some straightforward holes on the course and some troublesome ones the place it’s a must to hit into the center of the greens and hope for a par.

“I believe simply the greens being smooth and having zoysia across the greens, prefer it’s arduous to separate your self,” Hovland mentioned. “In case you miss in sure spots, guys appear to have the ability to spin it out of the bunker and spin it out of the green, so you possibly can form of get away with some unhealthy pictures.

“However if you happen to catch hearth, you possibly can shoot a low rating, which a few guys have carried out, but it surely’s arduous to do this each single day, in order that’s why I believe you see the bunched scores.”

Who has been the largest shock on the leaderboard thus far?

Uggetti: It must be Viktor Hovland. Simply final week, Hovland was speaking about how distant from good golf he felt. After splitting from his swing coach Joe Mayo, Hovland has been misplaced within the wilderness of swing tweaks and changes. The 2023 Tour Championship winner had no alternative however to return to Mayo this previous week forward of the PGA Championship, and it appears to have labored.

“I am stunned within the sense that — simply how distant I felt final week,” Hovland mentioned Saturday. “However I am not stunned in the best way that I am right here as a result of, like, I by no means doubted my skills. It was simply form of my equipment was not working very nicely. However now we’re transferring in the appropriate path.”

Hovland admitted that his swing instantly felt higher as soon as returning to work with Mayo, including that Mayo merely gave him one swing really feel to work on time and again and it has paid dividends. Although he thought he might do some “injury” this week, truly competing was not one thing he thought was potential. Now, with an actual probability at his first main, he is attempting to keep up perspective.

“This has exceeded all expectations,” Hovland mentioned. “My life goes to be fairly good if I do not win tomorrow, and I will have a couple of extra possibilities after this, as nicely. All I will do is simply present up, do the very best I can and we’ll see the way it goes.”

Whether or not Hovland wins tomorrow or not, the truth that he’s even in competition this rapidly after altering his swing ought to scare the remainder of the golf world going ahead.

Schlabach: How about Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre. He is a two-time winner on the DP World Tour and was a member of the European Ryder Cup crew that spanked the U.S. squad in Rome final yr.

However MacIntyre has struggled since transferring to the U.S. to attempt to compete often on the PGA Tour. He missed 5 cuts and had only one top-10 end in his first 10 begins. Because of this, he has slipped to 84th on the planet.

MacIntyre, 27, mentioned earlier this week that he was homesick and missed his household and buddies, so he went again to Scotland for 3 weeks and did not contact his membership. When MacIntyre returned to the U.S., he paired up with Thomas Detry to tie for eighth within the Zurich Traditional crew occasion and tied for thirteenth within the Myrtle Seaside Traditional final week.

“Everybody is aware of I have been fighting residing in America since January,” MacIntyre mentioned. “It has been troublesome. I went dwelling there for 3 weeks. Spent loads of time with family and friends and everybody that actually issues to me, and I got here again out eager to play golf. In case you’re eager to play golf, you are going to follow arduous, you are going to take pleasure in it.”

MacIntyre is having fun with himself this week — he is tied for seventh at 12 beneath, 3 strokes behind the leaders.

Who outdoors the highest 10 might nonetheless contend tomorrow?

Uggetti: Does Justin Thomas rely? Technically, Thomas is tied for tenth, however he’s 5 pictures again, which is definitely 2 pictures nearer than he was when going into Sunday of the 2022 PGA Championship. At Southern Hills that yr, Thomas shot 3 beneath and was in a position to get right into a playoff that he gained for his second profession main.

It is no secret that the two-time main winner has struggled since that win in 2022, and although he has been adamant {that a} return to kind is nearer than it could seem, it hasn’t been till this week that the golf world has seen the proof that Thomas can nonetheless compete at a excessive stage.

“This week has exceeded all my expectations,” Thomas mentioned. “It has been higher. It has been extra enjoyable. It has been extra pleasing than something I actually thought or might have imagined. I am very, very excited for tomorrow, and it ought to be loads of enjoyable.”

If Thomas desires a reputable shot tomorrow, he’ll possible need to shoot far decrease than 3 beneath given the best way Valhalla is enjoying. Any form of hometown benefit or familiarity with the golf course could come into play, however in the long run, Thomas must put collectively the most effective rounds of his profession to really get into competition. Of these gamers who’re 5 pictures again or extra, nonetheless, he may very well be the one to do it.

Schlabach: Is it the final man who gained a Wanamaker Trophy at Valhalla — Rory McIlroy in 2014? He’ll begin the ultimate spherical 7 pictures behind the leaders at 8 beneath. At one level Saturday, McIlroy was proper there after making 4 straight birdies on Nos. 7-10.

However Rory made a few bogeys on the again 9 and just one extra birdie for a 3-under 68. The percentages of him ending a virtually 10-year drought with no main championship victory are fairly lengthy, however what number of occasions have we seen him throw a low quantity on Sunday? His putter must get scorching — he was solely 2-for-9 on putts outdoors 10 toes within the third spherical.

Which participant has probably the most at stake tomorrow?

Uggetti: There may be an apparent identify on the high of the leaderboard, however I will zag right here and go together with Collin Morikawa.

Does he have two majors already? Sure. However after successful the 2020 PGA and the 2021 Open Championship, the golf world was able to crown him the game’s subsequent star. Since then, Morikawa has had 4 top-10s at majors but in addition two missed cuts. He has additionally notched just one PGA Tour win since 2021 on the 2023 Zozo Championship.

This yr’s Masters was a low level for Morikawa, who was within the remaining group alongside Scottie Scheffler — simply 1 stroke again — however shot a 74 to utterly eject himself from competition.

“I felt sharp in every little thing, however I really feel like I might have had a bit of little bit of self-talk earlier than I went out on that first tee and actually simply not obtained forward of myself,” Morikawa mentioned Saturday of his Masters Sunday efficiency. “Tomorrow I am simply going to place every little thing I’ve on the market and see the way it performs out.”

There is no query Morikawa has the expertise to maintain successful majors and at 27 years previous, he’ll possible proceed to have extra alternatives to take action. Including a 3rd main, nonetheless, would bolster his résumé and place him again on observe to be one of many sport’s greatest. When requested Saturday if he looks like he has been forgotten, Morikawa mentioned sure.

“I really feel like folks aren’t rooting for me out right here,” Morikawa mentioned. “They like a superb story. Xander hasn’t gained one, different guys, no matter it could be. However, you recognize, I might care much less.”

Schlabach: Schauffele. He is most likely probably the most proficient golfer on the planet with no main championship victory, and he is proper there in competition once more.

In 27 begins in majors, Schauffele has 20 top-20 finishes, 12 top-10s and 6 top-5s. He completed eighth on the Masters. He has been knocking on the door within the massive 4 since 2017 and must kick it in on Sunday.

“It could imply loads,” Schauffele mentioned. “On the finish of the day, it is only a end result. Profitable a event is only a end result. All I can deal with are good golf pictures and putting good putts. On the finish of the day, wherever the playing cards fall, they fall. Yeah, it could imply loads, clearly.”

That is the ninth time that Schauffele has held the lead or co-lead after 54 holes. He went 2-for-8 previously.

Schauffele is aware of he’ll need to go low on Sunday with so many nice gamers in putting distance. He adopted up his 62 with back-to-back 68s. These rounds had been good however not spectacular.

“I imply, I mentioned it yesterday, it is humorous, so there’s blood within the water,” Schauffele mentioned. “Everybody form of laughed, after which Shane Lowry virtually shot 61 as we speak. Yeah, I think about somebody in that threshold now that it has been carried out twice goes to shoot one thing low and submit a quantity early. I think about that is going to occur.”

Who’s your winner?

Uggetti: Hear me out. Only a few months in the past, all of us thought Hovland was the most effective gamers on the planet. He seemed each bit the half, and it felt just like the sky was the restrict. Did he make some regrettable selections about his swing? It seems so. Has he now mounted all of them? No, however his efficiency this week makes me imagine that not an excessive amount of has modified since he gained the 2023 Tour Championship the best way that he did.

What’s extra: he has but to really get scorching along with his putter. On Saturday, Hovland missed a number of makeable birdie putts by mere inches. If a few these drop, he is all of a sudden main this event too.

This week, Hovland is 51st within the subject in toes of putts made and has solely gained 2.96 strokes on the sphere along with his placing (twenty third). Perhaps that efficiency holds and he is not in a position to make a run tomorrow. However throughout every week when the greens are this smooth and simple and everybody appears to suppose that whoever can take advantage of putts Sunday will win, there’s additionally an opportunity Hovland finds his groove on the greens.

“When there’s that many guys near the leaderboard, it’s a must to simply be within the state of mind that, okay, I will need to roll some putts in,” Hovland mentioned. “Clearly the winner of this event goes to make a few birdies [on harder holes] however that is most likely not going to return from stuffing a 5-iron in there. It may come from rolling in a 25-footer … We’re nonetheless going to be affected person and play good, and hopefully we get a couple of putts moving into early and form of trip that momentum.”

Schlabach: Give me Morikawa. I am not fully certain I belief his placing, however he has been there and carried out that in majors, successful the 2020 PGA Championship at TPC Harding Park and the 2021 Open Championship at Royal St. George’s in England. He believes he was two unhealthy holes away from successful a inexperienced jacket on the Masters in April.

Morikawa’s putter is usually a legal responsibility, but it surely has been scorching this week — he’s twenty second in strokes gained placing and tied for first across the inexperienced. That is a brief recreation that can stand the take a look at of 18 extra holes.