Aaron Rai became the first Englishman to win the PGA Championship since 1919 when he teed off on the compact course at Aronimink Golf Club in Philadelphia to win his first major title.
The 31-year-old from Wolverhampton upset his 250-1 odds, and beat a host of battle-scarred majors, including Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, Cameron Smith and Xander Schauffele, to lift the Wanamaker Trophy after catching fire on a hot Sunday afternoon in Pennsylvania to win by three.
The first non-American to win the PGA Championship in a decade, Rai relied on his fairway-filling ability off the tee, laser-like iron play and a hot Sunday putter to separate himself from a field that had been weighed down by windy conditions the previous three days, fast fairways and other challenging pin locations.
Although one of the shortest hitters on tour – he’s ranked 161st in driving distance on the PGA Tour – Rai did his best to bring the ball far enough to give himself a chance to catch the endless greens in his ways and let his touch work its magic.
Starting the final round two shots off the lead, Rai played the first eight holes in one, making two birdies and three bogeys. His round ignited on the par-five 9th, where he hit his second shot from 270 yards to 25 feet and holed an eagle to reach the turn in 34.
When he drove the 413-yard 11th and the accessible par-4 13th – up and down from the greenside bunker – to 7-under it looked like a score that would be difficult to hit.
Nowhere was Rai’s style on display better than when he covered the 527-yard, par-4 15th – a hole that drilled a quarter of the way – where he drove the ball 293 yards, hit a 225-yard drive to 30 yards and two putts. He then drove 551 yards, on the 5th 16th after finding the green twice, then doubled on the 210-yard, par-3 17th hole, where he found the green and then pulled in a 68-foot birdie putt to move four shots ahead and shut the door on his struggling rival.
Playing three groups before the unheralded final pairing of Matt Schmid and Alex Smalley, Rai finished with a stress-free par on 18 and had to wait nearly 45 minutes before properly celebrating his famous victory.
A major victory filled with record-breaking scores, Rai became the first player since he defeated Mark O’Meara at the Open Championship in 1990 to record better scores in each of the four rounds, scoring 70, 69, 67 and 65 to finish 9-under-par on the par-70 Aaron’s Mink course.
That was enough to finish three shots clear of major Spanish champion Jon Rahm and unseeded American Alex Smalley – the overnight leader – who finished joint second.
A SURREAL MOMENT
“It’s very surreal,” said Rai, who has struggled to practice at times this year due to a neck injury. “It’s been a frustrating season, so standing here is beyond my wildest thoughts.”
Speaking of the magic putt on 17, he added: “I certainly wasn’t trying to cover that putt. The shadow of the pin gave it a good line for the last 10 feet to help visually. It tracked really well – it was amazing to see it go in.”
ARONIMINK AND RANS
Behind Rahm and Smalley was a three-under-five tie between two-time American champion Justin Thomas, Sweden’s Ludwig Aberg and Germany’s unheralded Matthias Schmid.
Thomas posted an early target after a 5-under 65, then sat in the clubhouse to watch and wait, while hoping for “a little help” to win.
The wind didn’t blow as much as Thomas had hoped. However, with the heavily sloped greens playing tough in the Pennsylvania sun and the ever-present difficulty causing penalties, scoring opportunities remain at a premium.
Bidding to add a third US PGA title to his CV, Rory McIlroy closed with an under 69 to finish five shots behind Rai in a tie for seventh place. The reigning Masters champion started the day three behind Smalley and bogeyed the second hole, but his frustration grew during the 10th run before his hopes were extinguished with a bogey on the driveable par-four 13th.
Errant off the tee – hitting just four of 14 fairways – the six-time major winner failed to make the par five on Sunday and finished tied for the longest hole of the tournament.
“I’m proud that I gave myself a chance,” said the best player in the world. “But there are three holes I’m going to hit – not that I birdie two pars and make a bogey on a drivable par-four. Those three holes cost me a chance to win.”
Rahm bogeyed the first two holes to quickly get to six under and a half off the lead before bogeying the third and seventh holes. Although the Spaniard picked up two birdies to finish tied for second, he was unable to match the blistering pace set by Rai.
Rahm and McIlroy’s Ryder Cup teammates Ludwig Aberg and Justin Rose also missed out. Aberg threatened to challenge, but three bogeys in four holes on the turn stymied his challenge before two birdies on his last three holes lifted him to fourth on five under, while Rose finished with nine straight pars to close on three under and tie for 10th.
No fee from the world’s best Scottie Scheffler. The defending champion started the round fifth behind, but his woes continued – he missed 13 putts inside 10ft all week – as he finished seven shots off the winning mark at the 14th.
But the week, and the Wanamaker Trophy, belongs to Aaron Rai – the last man standing in Aronimink, and a thoroughly deserving champion.
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Aaron Rai’s PGA winning gear
Driver: TaylorMade M6 (9°)
Fairway Woods: TaylorMade Qi10 (15°, 18°)
Mixture: Titleist GT2 (24°)
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW (5-9)
Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM9 (44°, 49°), Titleist Vokey SM11 (54°), Titleist Vokey WedgeWorks (60°)
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour V
Football: Titleist Pro V1
Shoes: ECCO Biom Tour
