The Greatest Ever PGA Championships

The PGA Championship has been the final act for the majors on the golfing calendar, but starting in 2019, it has been shifted to second headline event of the season.

Tiger Woods made a huge statement at The Masters by claiming the Green Jacket for the fifth time in his career, ending his ten-year drought without a major.

Woods will be eyeing another crown to close the gap to Jack Nicklaus and his all-time record of 18 major wins. He has triumphed on four occasions in the PGA Championship, including a memorable victory at the tournament in 2000.

We’ll now look back his win and other enthralling PGA Championships over the history of the competition.

Tiger Woods (2000)

Woods had won the PGA Championship at Medinah the previous year and had followed his triumph with victories at the US Open and The Open in 2000. He was eyeing a third major on the bounce at Valhalla and made an impressive start to the tournament, recording rounds of six and five-under par to put the pressure on the rest of the field.

Bob May answered the call on the third day of the competition to rise up the leaderboard, pulling within one stroke of Woods at the top. May recorded three rounds of 66 to pull level with Woods on the final, who found his form just at the right time on the final two holes, birdieing the 17th and the 18th to force a playoff. Woods birdied the first playoff hole, which was enough to fend off May’s charge once and for all to clinch the title.

Vijay Singh (2004)

The 2004 PGA Championship proved to be a battle of who could lose the crown on the final day. Vijay Singh had manoeuvred himself into a strong position after the opening three rounds, leaving himself on 12-under heading into Sunday. He was one stroke ahead of Justin Leonard, while the rest of the field were well back on eight-under, handing the two frontrunners a healthy cushion. Both players needed their advantage, enduring a nightmare on their final round.

Singh carded a four-over performance of 76, while Leonard failed to capitalise with a three-over outing. Chris DiMarco was the only player in the final nine groups to finish under-par for the final round, improving one stroke to set up a three-man playoff. However, Singh finally got his act together to birdie the opening two holes of the playoff before notching a par on the final hole to secure his third major.

Yang Yong-eun (2009)

When Woods took control of a major, there was no hope for the rest of the contenders in the field. He was a perfect 14 for 14 after leading on the final day of major competition. The 2009 PGA Championship appeared to be his 15th major, as he held a two-stroke lead of Padraig Harrington and Yang Yon-eun. However, on this occasion, the South Korean ripped up the form book and delivered a final-day performance to stun Woods and the spectators at Hazeltine. The American dropped a shot on the fourth hole, which brought Yang level at the top of the leaderboard.

Both players then slipped before the turn, leaving the Championship evenly poised down the back nine. Woods gained and then lost a stroke, before Yang produced a brilliant eagle on the 14th to take the outright lead, cranking up the pressure on his rival. For once, Woods lost his composure, dropping two shots on the 17th and 18th, while Yang birdied the 18th to see out the victory by three strokes. It would be the beginning of a long wait for another major crown for the great American.

Bob Tway (1986)

Greg Norman was renowned for his lack of composure on the final day of majors, although he had made his breakthrough in the previous competition for the 1986 PGA Championship at The Open – the first major of his career. However, the PGA Championship would be another missed opportunity for the Australian as he threw away a four-stroke lead on the final round to lose out to Tway.

Norman had made an excellent start to the competition at the Inverness Club in Ohio. He extended his advantage on the second day, producing another solid round on the course of three-under. By the time Norman entered the clubhouse on Saturday after his third round, he was placed on 11-under for the tournament, four strokes ahead of Tway.

The American had made a charge on the third day with the best round of the competition, scoring a seven-under 64. He was close enough to apply pressure on Norman on Sunday before the Aussie collapsed. A double-bogey on the 11th brought Tway into contention – two shots behind. The gap closed as Tway notched a birdie on the 13th and Norman dropped a shot on the 14th. Norman’s collapse was complete on the final hole dropping a stroke, while his rival birdied to claim the crown.