Majors are often won as Saturday shadows lengthen. It feels as if we have again witnessed precisely that.
Quail Hollow’s devilish last three holes, the Green Mile, can ruin tournament aspirations. Scottie Scheffler decided to play that stretch in two under par. The world No 1 had already produced an outrageous eagle at the 14th and birdied the next. Five holes, five under. Catch him if you can.
Scheffler’s 65 and 11-under-par total means this US PGA Championship is suddenly his to lose. He leads Alex Norán by three in Charlotte. Daylight, such valuable daylight to a player of Scheffler’s strength. It is almost as if he has making up to do; a year ago, his US PGA plan was disrupted by an arrest outside the gates of Valhalla. This is far more familiar stuff.
History is on Scheffler’s side. On the previous two occasions he has held 54-hole major leads, both at Augusta National, he has won. There feels inevitability about what comes next. Norén has never won a major before. Neither have JT Poston, Kim Si-woo or Jhonattan Vegas. Jon Rahm is six under and not without hope or motivation. Including, that is, in proving his switch to LIV Golf has not undermined his major chances. The odds of toppling Scheffler in this mood, though, are long.
“It is hard to express how hungry I may be for a major,” Rahm said. “About as hungry as anybody can be in this situation.
“Me going to LIV and playing worse in majors had nothing to do with where I was playing golf. My swing was simply not at the level it had to be for me to compete. It’s easier to post a score on non-major championship courses and venues, and I think when you get to the biggest stages like this one and these courses, those flaws are going to get exposed.
“There’s been weeks where I was able to play better, like the Open last year. The Masters wasn’t a good start but it got better as the week was on and I’m still working and trying to get my swing to a better spot.
“I would say even in 2023, after winning the Masters, I did not play good at all until the Ryder Cup. So I think the problems began earlier than people think. But I’m now getting closer to a position of being comfortable. I think this week so far and this round has been a show of it.”
As Rahm spoke, Scheffler was pressing upon the accelerator. This was his 25th major round in the 60s since 2022. These three in a row – 69, 68, 65 – will scare the field. And yet, Scheffler was merely one under for his day on the 14th tee. There, he cracked a three-wood from 304 yards to within 3ft of the cup. It was the moment of this slow burning major.
“I battled hard out there, it was really tough today,” Scheffler said. “The winds were really gusting, the greens firmed up but I did a good job of staying patient. I struck the ball a lot better than in the first couple of rounds.
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“I wanted to finish off the round the right way. I was able to find some momentum there. I need more good golf, I need to stay in the present. I have a lot of very good players chasing me on the leaderboard.”
Rahm’s fellow LIV man Bryson DeChambeau is a shot further back, a situation that would be even better but for a horrible finish. DeChambeau three-putted the 16th and found water on 17. When asked about his level of frustration, he replied: “That’s why golf is the worst four-letter word in the world.” DeChambeau at one point held the lead. His 69 represented poor return.
Keegan Bradley, the US Ryder Cup captain, has matched DeChambeau’s total. There may yet be a serious conversation to be had over whether Bradley should play or direct operations at Bethpage later this year.
Rory McIlroy’s 72 means he is playing for a place at two over. The Northern Irishman can already turn attentions towards next month’s US Open, when the noise associated with Masters glory will have quietened down somewhat. Those to make round three headway included Matt Wallace and Adam Scott. Matt Fitzpatrick is in the five-under group after a 72.
