PGA Championship Takeaways: What Really Mattered at Aronimink
Look, the PGA Championship at Aronimink? It feels like ages ago already. Seriously, adjust for everyone’s shrinking attention spans and it’s practically ancient history. But some of the stuff that went down? It’s still buzzing around the old noggin. We saw some serious golf, some wild comebacks, and a few things that just make you shake your head and say, “Yep, that’s golf.”
Harrington's Encore: Not a Fairy Tale, But Still Damn Good
Padraig Harrington. Man, the guy was dreaming of a Sunday charge, right? Coming from T31, a good six shots back. Sounded like a long shot, a real fairy tale. He didn’t get the fairytale ending, no dramatic win. But what he *did* get? Pretty damn cool.
After a pretty meh first 15 holes on Sunday, he holes out for eagle on 16. Then a par on 17. And then, to cap it all off, a sweet little bladed wedge into 18 for birdie. Under par, top-20 finish. Not bad for a guy who’s been around the block a few times.
Let’s break down just how impressive that was:
- His T18 finish? Best major performance in five years. Since that T4 at the 2021 PGA. That’s a solid comeback.
- He’s one of only three players, 54 or older, to snag a top-20 at a PGA Championship. Sam Snead and Gene Sarazen are the other two. Snead, by the way, was pulling off T4-T9-T3 finishes in his early 60s. Just absurd.
- If you take out his opening 74, Harrington shot 69-67-69 over the last 54 holes. That’s five under par. Only Ludvig Aberg and Aaron Rai went lower. Pure grit.
Now he’s off to the U.S. Open at Shinnecock, still dreaming. Good on him.
Cam Smith's Resurgence: A Putter and a New Coach
It was just good to see Cam Smith in the mix at a major again. Part of it was just watching him hit those big-time putts. After six straight missed cuts in majors, Smith hooks up with a new swing coach, Claude Harmon III. And what happens? Immediate stripe show with his irons. That pairs nicely with a putter that’s been money for his entire career.
His driving? Still a complete adventure. Adds to the thrill, I guess. But he definitely found some magic at Aronimink. Curious to see where he takes this form next. He was pumped afterwards, but admitted it was bittersweet finding success with a new coach.
He said it himself: “I’m proud of how I showed up this week, with a new thought and a new swing.” He called it a hard call to make. He’d been with his old coach, Grant Field, since he was nine. Twenty-three years. One of the toughest phone calls he’s ever made. Still lingering, he said, but he feels it was the right call. He’s seeing it in his golf, the strike of the ball, different shots. “It’s been nice.” Yeah, nice is one word for it.
Rahm's Near Miss: Close, But No Cigar (This Time)
Winning takes care of everything, right? That’s what Tiger always said. Well, finishing T2 by playing damn good golf, only to get beaten by a guy who drops four birdies and an eagle in the final ten holes? That takes care of almost everything. Enter Jon Rahm.
He was all smiles after his final-round 68, which landed him in solo second. His first major top-five since 2023. I appreciated his golf, sure. But I also appreciated his honesty Sunday night when he talked about the early-week predictions of crazy low scores.
“Most of Monday and Tuesday I spent thinking what was wrong with me, because everybody was saying we were going to shoot 15-to 20-under here, and I didn’t see any chance in the world of that happening,” he said. “Nine and six [under par, for first and second place] is still lower than what I expected.”
He’s been playing well, too. T8 at LIV Virginia, won LIV Mexico. After the Masters, he was playing good. But, as he put it, “when the pressure is the highest in majors, some of those things you’re working on, those weak links can damage the foundation, right? Just happy that all those things I felt like I could have done better at Augusta ended up working out this week.” Smart guy, Rahm. Knows his game.
Smalley's Breakthrough: Masters Bound!
Alex Smalley. He couldn’t hold onto that two-shot lead heading into Sunday. But man, did he get a boatload of consolation prizes. Including a ticket to next year’s Masters. How about that?
Long after the winner was decided, Smalley finished eagle-bogey-birdie to snag a T2. His playing partner, Matti Schmid, finished T4. Neither had ever played Augusta National. But a top-four finish in any major? That gets you in. And for Smalley and Schmid, that’s about to change.
It was clear that was on Smalley’s mind on the final green. “I’m thrilled to be going to Augusta next year. I knew that top four and ties gets you into Augusta, so I knew that was a possibility,” Smalley said. “I wasn’t really thinking about it, honestly, until I hit the green on 18 and saw where I was. Was really just trying to two-putt, just trying to lag it up.” That 20-footer up the hill on 18? He was just trying to get a tap-in. It went in. Fortunate. And, like, worth a million bucks. “As far as this tournament, in terms of my career, who knows? Maybe it’s a springboard. It gives me a lot of confidence coming away from this week to know that I can compete on the PGA Tour and even some of the major championships.” Big stuff.
The 2027 PGA Championship Guarantee: A Nice Safety Net
The top 15 finishers and ties? They get invited back to next year’s PGA Championship. That’s a massive opportunity, you know? The 2025 PGA had some wild-card contenders, which meant guys like Davis Riley, Joe Highsmith, and Jhonny Vegas got back into the 2026 PGA when they might not have otherwise.
This year’s top 15 was mostly the usual suspects, the high-ranked players we expect back anyway. But it’s a nice assurance for Smalley (World No. 42) and Schmid (No. 65), along with Kurt Kitayama (No. 29) and Max Greyserman (No. 63). They’ve got one major tee time in 2027 locked down, even if other stuff goes sideways. Peace of mind, right?
World Ranking Jumps: Proof of the Supporting Cast
This is more of a fun fact than anything, but some of the biggest world-ranking jumps after the PGA Championship really highlight the unexpected players who made noise that week. It’s a reminder that golf isn’t just about the top dogs.
- Club pro Ben Kern made the cut, finished 80th, and went from unranked all the way to No. 1781.
- Harrington’s T18? It rocketed him from No. 894 to 502.
- Martin Kaymer finished T35, jumping from No. 1160 to 720.
- Reigning Ryder Cup hero Luke Donald made the cut, finished T70, and jumped from No. 1300 to No. 1081.
- And Cam Smith’s T7? Took him from No. 239 to 145.
These guys are grinding. And sometimes, they get rewarded. It’s what makes golf interesting.
The Big Three's Unrelenting Consistency
Rory McIlroy finished T7. That’s his 15th finish of eighth or better at a major since 2020. Let that sink in. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler finished T14. How consistent have these two been? It’s been over five years now – since the 2021 Masters – since a major finished without McIlroy or Scheffler in the top 10. Unbelievable.
And then there’s Xander Schauffele. His T7 was his 16th top 20 in his last 17 major starts. Sixteen! That’s just preposterous consistency at the game’s biggest events. It’s no coincidence that these three have won seven of the last 10 majors. They are on another level.
Aaron Rai's Moment: The Shot That Sealed It
I spent some time behind the drivable par-4 13th on Sunday afternoon. Watching the action, listening to the rest on the radio. They give out these headsets at big events – they’re a blast when things get chaotic.
McIlroy and Schauffele came through, both made a mess of the hole, battling just to make bogey 5s. But then Aaron Rai came through. From the same front bunker where Schauffele had just sailed one past a hole location teetering in the back corner, Rai pulled off the perfect shot. When he finished off his birdie 3, he seized control of the tournament for good. That was the moment.
If there’s one ball flight I’ll remember from this PGA Championship, it’s Rai’s approach shot on the par-5 16th. A soaring, left-to-right banana ball. Watched it from behind the green. It didn’t just find the green; it landed in the perfect spot to chase towards a precarious back-right pin. Set up an easy eagle putt, which turned into a ho-hum birdie. If he’d made par there, the door would have stayed open. But with that birdie? It really seemed over.
I stayed put by the 17th tee as Rai marched towards the green. Par-3 over water. A sketchy tee shot – his brain’s anti-left mechanism kicking in – left him with nearly 70 feet for birdie. The amphitheater around the 17th green and 18th tee was the best spot on the property all week. Enjoyed the wide-angle view from a couple hundred yards back. I wondered what a three-putt might mean. At impact, Rai looked like he’d crushed it. For a split second, I thought it might race past the hole and into the water.
Turns out his judgment was a little better than mine. As the ball found the bottom of the cup, I saw the crowd’s reaction just a split second before the sound hit me. Somehow, that made the roar even louder when it arrived. What an exclamation point. He played like a champion. He won like a champion.
If you want to dive deeper into the strategy and shot-making that defines major championship golf, check out resources like PGA Tour Major Championships for insights into the highest level of the game.