Aaron Rai, one of the good guys, wins Wannamaker, ..Final Results including 3 Canadians

  PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Leaderboard Results

Aaron Rai won his first Major title at the US PGA Championship with a back-nine masterclass in composure that blew the field away at Aronimink Golf Club.

He entered the final day two shots off the lead and at +1 through eight holes of his round, there was little sign of the brilliance to come.

An eagle on the ninth then helped set in motion a back nine of 31 where he simply did not put a foot wrong.

His 68-foot putt for birdie on the 17th will be the most remembered of his 65 blows that got him to -9 and handed him a three-shot victory over Jon Rahm and Alex Smalley.

With victory, Rai becomes just the 14th non-American to lift the Wanamaker Trophy and the first Englishman since 1919 when ‘Long’ Jim Barnes won the second ever US PGA Championship three years after also winning the inaugural contest.

The win is Rai’s fourth on the DP World Tour and first since he won a second Rolex Series title at November’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.

His only win so far in 2026 was at the Masters Par Three Tournament alongside wife Gaurika but Major glory now moves him up to 5th on the Race to Dubai Rankings.

"It's been a bit of a frustrating season," said Rai, who has struggled with back and neck injuries in 2026. "So to be stood here is definitely outside of my wildest imagination.

"But I think just really good consistency over the last few weeks in terms of practice, body's been feeling great, and really enjoyed the course this week and continued to hold the rounds together as the week went on. Phenomenal to be stood here.

"It definitely feels like a journey. Everyone playing in the field this week has a great journey to be able to share, and I'm no exception to that.

"So much goes into it from being a junior golfer to developing the game to have aspirations of turning professional. Then you realise once you turn professional how good some of these guys are and how strong the level of professional golf is, not just on the PGA TOUR, the DP World Tour, and all the feeders that go into it.

"So, yeah, it's a really long journey to even get to compete at Major Championships at events like the PGA. Yeah, to be stood here, it still hasn't sunk in for sure. Amazing journey."

Rai looked serene in making routine pars at the 14th and 15th but Schmid got up and down from the sand for a birdie on the 13th to get within one as the leader came to the potentially pivotal par-five 16th.

Showing nerves of steel, Rai hit a perfect tee shot and then put his second to 17 feet for another potential eagle 3,  getting down in two for another birdie and to restore his two-shot lead. 

None of the others in contention late on Sunday except for an inspired Rahm were matching his shotmaking.

That advantage was three as Schmid bogeyed the 15th and then Rai produced a Major moment for the ages, holing from 68 feet on the 17th to take a four-shot advantage up the last and suddenly all the tension of the last 71 holes was gone.

With his win :  * $3,690,000, 1st Major, 15th owgr, 5th Race to Dubai, lifetime entry into US PGA Championship, 5 year exception into all the majors, 2nd Englishman to win PGA Championship.

Rahm T2, would birdie the 16th in a -2 68 to trim the advantage -6 and Smalley T2– who had earlier bogeyed the eighth and birdied the ninth, finished eagle-bogey-birdie to sign for a 70 -6 both won $1,804,000

Early in the day, American Justin Thomas carded a closing -5 65 to finish T4 four shots off the lead -5  alongside Schmid and Swede Ludvig Åberg, one clear of Rory McIlroy T7 -4, Xander Schauffele -4 and Cameron Smith -4

Earlier in the day, Kurt Kitayama equalled the lowest final round in Major history with a bogey free 30/33, 63 that got him into T10 at -3 alongside Chris Gotterup, Patrick Reed and Justin Rose.

EDIT>>>>> Canada's Nick Taylor was in the penultimate pairing with Rahm, holding his nation's hopes of being just the 2nd male after Mike Weir to win a major. 

He continued his steady play at -5 until he rescued a wayward drive with a bogey at the 10th, then the wheels came off with 5 bogey's in his last 6 holes for 40 and a closing 74 T26 E. $125,523

His fellow countrymen Taylor Pendrith 71 T44 +2 $50,348 and Corey Conners 72 T55 +3. $34,186.

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Who will in the Wannamaker ?....Sunday Live scoreboard / TEE TIMES

 PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Tee Times Leaderboard

Alex Smalley produced a brilliant, gutsy performance to take a two-shot lead into the final round of the US PGA Championship.

The American entered the third round in a share of the lead but on a day when 14 players would sit atop the leaderboard at some point, he bogeyed three of his first four holes to fall back.

As a player without a professional win, the World #78 could have possibly been forgiven for staying in the pack but to his immense credit he fought back at Aronimink Golf Club.

After turning in 37, he came home in 31 and a 14-footer on the last handed him a 68 and a -6  total.

There was then a five-strong group at -4 made up of two-time Major champion Jon Rahm, Ryder Cup star Ludvig Åberg, two-time Rolex Series winner Aaron Rai, German Matti Schmid and Canadian Nick Taylor.

Two-time reigning Masters champion Rory McIlroy, Race to Dubai Rankings leader Patrick Reed, 2024 US PGA champion Xander Schauffele and another American in Maverick McNealy were at -3 with 30 players within 5 shots of the lead including current owgr #1 Scott Scheffler who has struggled like all the rest but although T23 67 71 71 -1 still has an outside chance.

"It's a difficult golf course," Smiley said. "Conditions are tough. It's been windy the last few days. Greens were a little firmer today. I anticipate it's going to be that way tomorrow, too, just because of the forecast. It's going to be hot. It's going to be sunny. There's not going to be a whole lot of moisture on the golf course, I would imagine.

"Any time you can shoot under par on a golf course of this calibre, under these conditions, I think anybody would take that. So I'm hoping to put up another under-par score tomorrow. I recognise that it will be difficult because the golf course is playing difficult. The hole locations are probably going to be difficult as well.

"We'll just add them up at the end of the day and see where that takes me."

For Schmid and Nick Taylor, who both carded rounds of 65, a win would also represent a new chapter, although the Canadian already has five PGA TOUR titles, but this would be his first major, and Canadian men's first since Mike Weir won the Masters in 2003.

Rahm is looking to become the first Spanish winner of this event and he carded five birdies and two bogeys on Saturday, while Åberg made four birdies and two bogeys in a 68.

Rai was among the leaders after six birdies and two bogeys but he dropped a shot on the last before Smalley's big finish.

EDIT >>> the world's bookies aren't giving much more than even money on a Sunday playoff

europeantour.com

Bryan Angus (edit)

Nick Taylor 65 T2, 30 in contention at PGA Championship.... 54 hole results.. Sunday pairings

   PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Tee Times Leaderboard

With a superb scrambling bogey free round of 65 on moving day, Canada'a Nick Taylor, reknown for playing well on the toughest courses has shot himself right up to the front of the pack T2 -4.

In 54 holes he has only 3 bogeys which is incredible on this Aronimink GC, 44 pars and 7 birdies, 5 of them today.

He is #1 in scrambling, T2 in strokes gained. All this bodes well for him tomorrow, however the pack in contention is enormous for what will be a cavalry charge to the finish sometime on what is forecast to be a hot sunny Sunday to decide the 108 PGA Championship.

There are 28 guys from -1 to -4 and the lead at -6 is a 29 year old American owgr #78 Alex Smalley looking for his1st win. To his credit he was +3 through 4 holes for 37, but his back nine was terrific with 5 birdies 31 and 67 69 68 -6, and a 2 shot lead.

Canadians 

Nick Taylor, of Canada,

Nick Taylor T2  69 72 65 -4

Taylor Pendrith T45  72 72 67 +1

Corey Conners T54  68 73 72  +3

Sudarshan Yellamaraju 75 75 MC

Sunday

The first of 41 pairings are off the 1st tee at 7.40am EST. 

Group 27: 1205 Scheffler, Puig

Group 35  1325  Rose, Niemann

Group 37: 1355 Reed, McNealy

Group 38: 1405 McIlroy, Schauffele

Group 40: 1425 Taylor, Rahm

Group 41: 1435 Smalley, Schmid

It is impossible to pick a winner with this many players in contention. 30 or more in all, makes it difficult for anyone player to achieve separation no matter who they are. 

McIlroy, Rahm, Schauffele, Rose, Aberg, Reed, Matsuyama, Koepka, even Scheffler who  did not make a move T23 67 71 71 -1 still have a chance, just to name a few...

So I expect the old Cavalry charge Sunday afternoon with the likelihood of a playoff.

Bryan Angus

Patience key, Conners/Taylor paired together, PGA Championship... Saturday pairings, Live scoreboard

  PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Tee Times Leaderboard

WEATHER : Philadelphia is expecting a warm mostly sunny day with temperature reaching 27*c (80*f) with a SW wind reaching 21km/h (13mph).

Morning 8am-12pm mostly sunny temperature rising rapidly 16*c -24*c

Afternoon 1pm-5pm  peak temperatures 27*c (80*f), abundant sunshine.

Evening 6pm-11pm  temperatures will drop 27*c to 20*c as clouds arrive with chance of showers overnight.

The weather has warmed up, with the wind dying down, shifting from NW to SW, the penal pin placements from Friday are more accessible today, the cut fell at +4 resulting in 82 players or 41 pairings all getting set with the lead only -4, many feel like they have a chance, 58 players within 4 shots of the lead

Canadians (Tee times 1st tee) 7.45am is the opening pair.

11.50am  Nick Taylor T30 69 72 +1

11.50am  Conners T30  68 73 +1

8.30am   Taylor Pendrith T41 72 72 67 +1

Sudarshan Yellamaraju 75 75 MC

Other notable pairings

9.15    Justin Rose, Brian Harman

10.30  Matt Fitzpatrick, Martin Kaymer

11.00  Rory McIlroy, Brooks Keopka

1.40  Scott Scheffler, David Puig

2.30  Hideki Matsuyama, Chris Gotterup

2.49  Alex Smalley, Maverick McNealy

 

Saturday thoughts 

* The American media covering the event are as one, fully expecting Scheffler to make the most of moving day at -2, despite a poor driver, only 7 fairways

* Rory " I shot myself back in contention, I think with the weather improving, the pins at least more accessible you could get on a run on the front nine with your wedges to get a few under par" 

* Canadians Corey Conners /Nick Taylor together, will be encouraging each other and at T30 +1 a good start will go a long way  to becoming a factor.

* With this field so bunched due to the severity of Aronimink, there is nobody getting away from each other, and that opens the door for everyone.

* A key word from all the Friday interviews apart from the pin placements was "Patience." Par is a very good score, bogey's are to be expected, birdies will be plentiful today in ideal conditions so I expect scoring to be lower, and those who have patience will be rewarded.

Bryan Angus

Aronimink's stern test has field bunched, 36 hole results...

 PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Tee Times Leaderboard

The Aronimink GC and some cold windy mornings is the combo that is stumping the worlds best after with round 2 winding down and the clubhouse lead only -4.

Follow the live scoring by clicking on my links above.

Final Edit 8pm  26/05/15

With Aronimink proving a tough adversary, cold (for these pampered pros) early mornings, and according to Scheffler "some of the toughest pin placements" he had ever encountered, the result for the top 100 golfers is a leading score of only -4 after 36 holes.

Alex Smalley 67 69 -4 and Maverick McNealy 69 67 -4 share that distinction.

However the field remains so bunched heading into the weekend there are 26 players within 4 shots and if you count the +1's, 40 players within 5 shots.

The weather is forecast to warm up considerably reaching nearly 30*c by Sunday afternoon and the wind will shift from NW to a much warmer SSE.

So Aronimink will firm up, become faster, especially thee greens which a tough enough as it is already.

Chris Gotterup somehow posted the lowest score of 65 today so it can be done, but I can't see anyone running away with it, the formula, get it in the fairways to be able to hit appropriate approaches, then who can make the most putts will reveal the eventual winner.

Canadians (The cut fell at +4)

Nick Taylor T30 69 72 +1

Corey Conners  T30  68 73 +1

Taylor Pendrith T68 72 72 +4

Sudarshan Yellamaraju 75 75 MC

Notes

*M/C.   Tommy Fleetwood, Tyrrell Hatton, Bob MacIntyre, Stewart Cink who is dominating the Senior Circuit, Adam Scott, Bryson DeChambeau, Viktor Hovland amongst the well knowns who will not win the PGA Championship this year.

*Garrick Higgo was penalized 2 shots for being "late", MC by a shot...

* Rory T30 74 67 +1 is back in the game as is the other favourite Scott Scheffler T9 67 71 -2

* This is shaping up to be a big bunched group coming down the stretch on a lovely Sunday afternoon, all with a shot, either a dead heat, or a winner by a nose, would not be unlikely.

Bryan Angus

Conners leads Canucks crowded leaderboard at PGA Championship...18 hole results

  PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Tee Times Leaderboard

WEATHER: 550am EST :   Expect cool and breezy with lingering morning showers on Thursday, to turn dry, warm and sunny by the weekend.

Friday : Sunny and pleasant, cooler with highs in the mid to upper 60's*f (20*c)

7am  12*c sunny, wind 20km/h  NW gusting 29km/h  P.O.P 20%

11am 17*c sunny, wind 20km/h NW gusting 30km/h  P.O.P 10%

4pm   20*c mix of sun/clouds, wind 19km/h NW gusting 29km/h  P.O.P 20% 

EDIT 8pm  26/05/14

7 players share the 18 hole lead.. Aldrich Potgieter RSA, Stephen Jaeger Ger., Min Woo Lee, Aussie, Ryo Hisatsune, Japan, Martin Kaymer, Ger, Alex Smalley USA, Scott Scheffler USA all with -3 67

*The early wave, many used to playing in hot weather recently, found it very cold at 7am with the ball feeling heavy, travelling 20-30 yards less and skidding on the damp fairways into the rough.

*As expected the greens proved to be the main story, more importantly, players had to keep the ball in play off the tee to have any chance of hitting it to the correct quadrant of the greens to be successful.

*Playing out of the gnarly, thick rough made it nearly impossible to control approaches.

*Rory drove the ball poorly, his result +4 74. Conversely Scheffler onr of seven lleaders, played for position of the tee with 3 woods, kept it in play for -3 67.

*Aronimink GC proved to be a stern test, even in what was decent weather, which will just get warmer without any rain in the forecast for the weekend.

*-3 67 was the best the field could post, which is indicative.  

Canadians (Friday tee times)

7.56am  1st  Corey Conners T8 -2 68 with his superb ball striking Corey is a shot off the lead, he will have a chance to win if he can just take advantage with his putter.

7.51am 10th   Nick Taylor T15 -1 69

12.26  1st      Taylor Pendrith T67  +2 72

9.02am 10th  Sudarshan Yellamaraju T120 +5 75

Notables

Rory McIlroy T105 +4 74    T15 Jon Rahm -1 69  T15 Jordan Spieth -1 69  Justin Rose T34 E 70, Matt Fitzpatrick T34 E 70

Others

DeChambeau T135 +6 76, Ludvig Aberg T67 +2 72, Rickie Fowler T34 E 70, Xander Schauffele T8 -2 68,  Koepka T15 -1 69,  Hatton T67 +2 72 

Hovland T105 +4 74, Morikawa T15 -1 69, Lowry T8 -2 68 , Young T49 +1 71, Tommy Fleetwood T67 +2 72,  MacIntyre E 70 

* The Game Plan is clear, keep it on the fairways, hit correct approaches, make some putts is the key to competing this week.

Bryan Angus

PGA Championship TEE TIMES, including 4 Canadians.

 PGA Championship : Aronimink GC  Tee Times Leaderboard

Here is a full list of the Thursday tee times for the 155 players who have qualified for this second major of the year, PGA Championship.

Aronimink Golf Club has played host to three PGA TOUR events: the 2010 and 2011 AT&T National and the 2018 BMW Championship

This year it is on an old parkland Donald Ross course outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania called Aronimink which was restored in 2018 bi Gil Hanse and Jim Wagner.  

While the PGA Championship boasts the "strongest strength of field ratings" (top 100 owgr, previous major winners and 25 top club pros) it is considered by the top pros to be the weakest of the 4 majors.

While the Masters may have the weakest field with only 90 or so being invited, including older past champions with no chance of winning it still has the lore of Augusta.

The Open Championship is the grand daddy of the 4, steeped in the history of the game, played at the home of golf, and an Open to all qualifiers from around the world.

The US Open is also Open with a history, tradition of brutal rough, narrow fairways and lightning fast greens, all of it's own, mainly American.

The PGA Championship, despite the world's top players just doesn't carry the same aura. It was a match play event until 1957, and seems to lack the identity of the others.

While Rory and defending champion Scott Scheffler have won 4 of the last 5, and 5 of the last majors there are a few others who are in tremendous form this year like Matt Fitzpatrick and Cam Young to name two.

Also it  was in 2010 that Justin Rose won the AT&T National, while in 2018 at the BMW Championship on the PGA TOUR here,  he finished runner-up to Keegan Bradley after a play-off defeat. 

There are 155 players and every one of them has their own story to be told.

Canadians 

Corey Conners #50

Nick Taylor #58

Taylor Pendrith #86

Sudarshan Yellamaraju #105

Bryan Angus