It’s certainly tough to pick against Scottie Scheffler at Valhalla Golf Club this weekend.
He’s won four of his last five PGA Tour events, including the Masters last month. But the PGA Championship has belonged to Brooks Koepka and Justin Thomas of late.
Koepka (2018, 2019, 2023) and Thomas (2017, 2022) have combined to win five of the last seven PGA Championships. Now, Koepka will have a chance to join Tiger Woods (1999, 2000, 2006, 2007) as the only players to win back-to-back PGAs twice in the stroke-play era, while Thomas returns home to Louisville seeking his third win in the 106th edition of the event.
Koepka can also match Woods with four PGA Championships and move within one of the all-time record for wins held by Jack Nicklaus and Walter Hagen (see below).
We’re taking a stroll down down the fairway and revealing the champions through the years and the tourney’s all-time rankings (all data from the DP World Tour’s official website):
Most PGA Championship Victories: 5 – Jack Nicklaus/Walter Hagen
From 1916-57, the PGA Championship was played under match-play rules. And Hagen dominated with four consecutive victories between 1924-27.
The great Jack Nicklaus captured his first PGA title in 1963 before winning three more times in the 1970s (1971, 1973, 1975) and again in 1980. The Golden Bear is the record holder with 18 major championships throughout his illustrious career.
- 4 – Tiger Woods (1999, 2000, 2006, 2007)
- 3 – Gene Sarazen (1922, 1923, 1933)
- 3 – Sam Snead (1942, 1949, 1951)
- 3 – Brooks Koepka (2018, 2019, 2023)
Youngest PGA Championship Winner: 20 Years, 169 Days – Gene Sarazen
Sarazen won the first of back-to-back PGA crowns in 1922 when he was 20 years and 169 days old at Oakmont Country Club. He still ranks as the third-youngest champion of all time for his victory a year later.
Sarazen would go on to win for a third time – albeit a lot older – in 1933.
- 20 Years, 219 Days – Tom Creavy (1931)
- 21 Years, 210 Days – Gene Sarazen (1923)
- 23 Years, 97 Days – Rory McIlroy (2012)
- 23 Years, 177 Days – Jack Nicklaus (1963)
Oldest PGA Championship Winner: 50 Years, 338 Days – Phil Mickelson
Who can forget when Mickelson captivated the imagination and made history at Kiawah Island? He became not only the oldest PGA champion but also the oldest to win any of the four majors when he lifted the Wanamaker Trophy in 2021.
Mickelson topped Julius Boros’ record, which had stood for 53 years after his victory at Pecan Valley. Jerry Barber remains the third-oldest champion after his win at Olympia Fields in 1961.
- 48 Years, 136 Days – Julius Boros (1968)
- 45 Years, 92 Days – Jerry Barber (1961)
- 44 Years, 258 Days – Lee Trevino (1984)
- 41 Years, 172 Days – Vijay Singh (2004)
- 40 Years, 198 Days – Jack Nicklaus (1980)
Largest Winning Margin: 8 – Rory McIlroy
McIlroy has won the PGA Championship twice, although his last victory in a major was at Valhalla 10 years ago. He’s since suffered his longest win drought over his last 35 major appearances.
However, in 2012, McIlroy was dominant in winning the PGA Championship by eight strokes at the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island. He bested the previous record for the widest margin of victory, Jack Nicklaus winning by seven at Oak Hill in 1980.
Wire to Wire Winners: Five Players Tied
- 1964 – Bobby Nichols, Columbus CC
- 1971 – Jack Nicklaus, PGA National GC
- 1982 – Raymond Floyd, Southern Hills CC
- 1983 – Hal Sutton, Riviera CC
- 2019 – Brooks Koepka, Bethpage State Park Black Course
Lowest 18-Hole Score: 63 – 18 Golfers Tied
Bruce Crampton was the first to card a 63 at the PGA Championship in the second round at Firestone in 1975 – and Bubba Watson was the last in the second round at Southern Hills in 2022.
Brooks Koepka has done it twice (the only player to do so), first in 2018 at Bellerive and then again a year later at Bethpage State Park in New York.
- Bruce Crampton – 1975 Round 2 (Firestone, -7)
- Raymond Floyd – 1982 Round 1 (Southern Hills, -7)
- Gary Player – 1984 Round 2 (Shoal Creek, -9)
- Vijay Singh – 1993 Round 2 (Inverness Club, -8)
- Michael Bradley – 1995 Round 1 (Riviera CC, -8)
- Brad Faxon – 1995 Round 4 (Riviera, -8)
- Jose Maria Olazabal – 2000 Round 3 (Valhalla, -9)
- Mark O’Meara – 2001 Round 2 (Atlanta, -7)
- Thomas Bjorn – 2005 Round 3 (Baltusrol GC, -7)
- Tiger Woods – 2007 Round 2 (Southern Hills CC, -7)
- Steve Stricker – 2011 Round 1 (Atlanta, -7)
- Jason Dufner – 2013 Round 2 (Oak Hill, -7)
- Hiroshi Iwata – 2015 Round 2 (Whistling Straits GC, -9)
- Robert Streb – 2016 Round 2 (Baltusrol GC, -7)
- Charl Schwartzel – 2018 Round 2 (Bellerive, -7)
- Brooks Koepka – 2018 Round 2 (Bellerive, -7)
- Brooks Koepka – 2019 Round 1 (Bethpage State Park, -7)
- Bubba Watson – 2022 Round 2 (Southern Hills, -7)
Lowest 72-Hole Score: 264 – Brooks Koepka (2018)
It’s Koepka again. He added a first-round 69 and 66s in his final two rounds to go with his record-tying 63 in the second round of the 2018 PGA Championship.
David Toms held the previous record, shooting a 265 in 2001 at the Atlanta Athletic Club. That same year, Phil Mickelson fired a 266 in a thrilling finish in which Toms held him off.
- 265 – David Toms (2001)
- 266 – Phil Mickelson (2001)
- 266 – Jimmy Walker (2016)
- 266 – Tiger Woods (2018)
Lowest 72-Hole Score (To Par): 20-Under Par – Jason Day (2015)
Day played like a man possessed on the way to winning his only major in 2015, carding a record 20-under par at Whistling Straits.
He also became the first player in history to finish at 20-under, breaking the record set by Tiger Woods in 2000 at the Open Championship (-19).
- 18-under par – Bob May (2000)
- 18-under par – Tiger Woods (2000)
- 18-under par – Tiger Woods (2006)
Biggest Comeback After 54 Holes: 7 – Justin Thomas (2022)/John Mahaffey (1978)
Thomas looked like a long shot to win heading into the final round at Southern Hills Country Club in 2022. But he caught fire to catch Will Zalatoris and tie the record for the largest final-round comeback when he finished the job in the playoff.
The record was previously set in 1978 by Mahaffey, who won his only major in a sudden-death playoff over Jerry Pate and Tom Watson at Oakmont Country Club.
Most Runner-Up Finishes: 4 – Jack Nicklaus (1964, 1965, 1974, 1983)
Not only has Nicklaus won the event five times, he also also holds the record for second-place finishes in the PGA Championship with four.
- 3 – Byron Nelson (1939, 1941, 1944)
- 3 – Billy Casper (1958, 1965, 1971)
- 3 – Arnold Palmer (1964, 1968, 1970)
- 3 – Lanny Wadkins (1982, 1984, 1987)
- 3 – Tiger Woods (2002, 2009, 2018)
Most Top-10 Finishes (Stroke-Play Era): 15 – Jack Nicklaus
- 10 – Tom Watson/Phil Mickelson
- 9 – Tiger Woods
- 8 – Raymond Floyd/Sam Snead/Gary Player/Bill Casper
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