Rain soaks first practice day at PGA Championship
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Up to two inches of rain were expected with more showers due on May 13 and 14 but forecasts clear for May 15.
PHOTO: REUTERS
CHARLOTTE – Heavy rain soaked Quail Hollow for the second consecutive day on May 12, limiting what players could accomplish on the first official practice day for the 107th PGA Championship.
More showers were due on May 13 and 14, but May 15 is expected to be a clear day when an elite field of 156 golfers tees off.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, a two-time Masters champion coming off his first win of 2025 at the Byron Nelson tournament two weeks ago, and second-ranked Rory McIlroy, a five-time Major winner who completed a career Grand Slam by winning April’s Masters, are most fancied by the bookmakers.
Scheffler, who missed the start of the season with a right hand injury, matched the PGA Tour 72-hole scoring record in his Texas win and could continue a run of nine straight triumphs by American players at the PGA Championship.
“I feel like my game is trending in a good direction,” Scheffler said. “I’m excited to start the rest of the season.”
McIlroy, who had not won a Major title since 2014 until taking the Green Jacket, is a four-time winner at Quail Hollow and known for strong play on wet courses, famously dominating at the softened Congressional Country Club in a 2011 US Open win.
“I think I’m in a good place,” McIlroy said. “A couple little improvements and little tweaks, especially going to a place I love like Quail Hollow, and I feel like I’m in a really good spot.”
The Northern Ireland star, who has also won the Players Championship and Pebble Beach titles in 2025, has tried to reset after his emotional Masters victory, sharing seventh last week while trying to retain his Truist Championship crown in his first solo event as Masters champion.
Ireland’s Shane Lowry says the Masters win will always lift his pal as he tries to boost his career Major trophy haul.
“I’m sure Rory has won enough times, enough big tournaments to reset his goals and move on,” Lowry said.
Defending champion Xander Schauffele took the 2024 crown at Valhalla and also lifted the Claret Jug at the British Open, but the world No. 3 has not won since his Major double.
“I feel like I’m putting nice building blocks together to get me back to a place where I feel like I can win every week,” Schauffele said.
Jordan Spieth, a three-time Major winner, has four top-20 finishes in his past five PGA starts as he seeks a win to complete a career Grand Slam.
There are 15 LIV Golf players in the field, including reigning US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau, five-time Major winner Brooks Koepka and two-time Major winner Jon Rahm of Spain. AFP
