PGA Scheffler & McIlroy vs LIV Koepka & Rahm
Woods Returns After One Month Since Masters
Seven Players Including Korean An Byeonghun, Im Sungjae, Kim Juhyung Compete
The 106th PGA Championship, the second major tournament of the year, is set to take place.
From the 16th (local time) for four days, the event will be held at Valhalla Golf Club (par 71, 7,609 yards) in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. A total of 156 players will compete for the championship. As a 'big match,' all of the world's top-tier players will participate. In addition to PGA Tour players, many LIV Golf players have joined, promising fierce competition for the title. Here are three key points to watch in the 2024 PGA Championship.
First, the pride clash between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (USA) and No. 2 Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) lead the 'PGA loyalists.' Scheffler is aiming for his second consecutive major win following last month's Masters, marking his fifth victory of the season. He has opened the 'Scheffler era' by winning four out of ten tournaments this year. All four wins came in premium events with total prize money exceeding $20 million (approximately 27.4 billion KRW).
Scheffler's recent five tournaments record is 'win-win-second-win-win.' He ranks first not only in wins but also in world ranking points (14.7116), prize money ranking ($18,693,235), FedEx Cup points (3,915), and average score (68.743). On the 8th, he also welcomed his son Bennett. Since winning the RBC Heritage on the 22nd of last month, he did not participate in tournaments due to his wife's imminent childbirth. Regaining his competitive rhythm will be crucial.
McIlroy secured his 26th PGA Tour victory last week at the Wells Fargo Championship, completing his preliminary battle. His last major win was the 2014 PGA Championship held at Valhalla Golf Club. Since then, he has not lifted a major trophy. He hopes to recreate glory at Valhalla after 10 years. He also won the PGA Championship in 2012.
Among the 16 LIV Golf players, defending champion Brooks Koepka (USA) and world No. 5 Jon Rahm (Spain) are the flag bearers. Koepka became the first LIV Golf player to win a major by capturing this tournament last year. Along with the Claret Jug awarded to The Open champion, the symbolic moment of an LIV player lifting the Wanamaker Trophy at the PGA Championship was also made. Koepka is a 'major hunter' with five major wins among his nine PGA Tour victories. Attention is focused on whether he will continue his strong performance in this tournament.
Rahm played as an ace on the PGA Tour before transferring to LIV Golf last December. Although he has yet to win on the new stage, he is a player who can unleash his winning instincts at any time. He has 11 PGA Tour wins and has held the world No. 1 ranking for 52 weeks. Last season, he accumulated four wins, including a major victory at the Masters.
The participation of 'Golf Emperor' Tiger Woods (USA) in a tournament just one month after the Masters is also a point of interest. He won the PGA Championship held at Valhalla in 2000. He has fond memories of achieving back-to-back wins at this tournament in 1999 and 2000. He also won this tournament in 2006 and 2007, ranking second in all-time PGA Championship wins (4) behind Jack Nicklaus (USA, 5 wins). This year, he has only played in two tournaments. At the Genesis Invitational in February, he withdrew during the second round due to cold symptoms, and at the Masters, after setting a record for 24 consecutive cuts made, he struggled in rounds 3 and 4, finishing 60th.
A total of seven Korean players will participate. The rising form of Byeong Hun An and Sungjae Im, who both finished in the 'top 5' at last week's Wells Fargo Championship, is generating expectations. An finished 3rd at the Wells Fargo Championship, jumping from 32nd to 23rd in the world rankings, the highest among Korean players. Im, who withdrew from the CJ Cup due to a severe cold, showed signs of recovery by finishing tied for 4th last week. Additionally, Juhyung Kim, Siwoo Kim, Kyunghoon Lee, and Sunghyun Kim will also compete. Yang Yong-eun, who defeated Woods in 2009 to become the 'first Asian male golfer to win a major,' is also on the list.
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