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WATCH: John Senden’s driver shaft snaps mid-swing

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5 years ago

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As challenging and unpredictable as golf is, professional golfers can usually count on one thing, making contact with the ball. However, when John Senden attempted to rip his tee shot at the par-5 ninth hole in his opening round at the Australian PGA Championship, the Aussie’s club snapped mid-swing producing an air shot.

Despite not causing himself a severe injury, Senden did wound his hand during the bizarre incident, and after deliberating with a rules official, things got even worse for the Aussie. After failing to make contact with the ball, rules officials told Senden that not only would that swing count as a stroke but that he would also be forced to play his next shot from the original high standing tee. A decision that left his fellow countryman Geoff Ogilvy seething.

Senden did, however, end up making a bogey on the hole, and despite being forced to finish his back nine driverless, the two time PGA Tour winner managed to get in the house with a solid round of level par.

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Gianni is the Managing Editor at GolfWRX. He can be contacted at [email protected].

22 Comments

22 Comments

  1. Dave f

    Nov 30, 2018 at 1:32 pm

    Good explanation from the full axcent of the one and only Charlie Rymer on the golf channel report, along with mr know it all Mr. Brandel man are they a pair or what they sure have it figured out.

    Reply Report comment

  2. James A.

    Nov 30, 2018 at 11:44 am

    That happened to me with one of the early gen lite-weight graphite shafts – I’ll just say it was 23yrs ago & they were bright red & light years ahead of the other offerings at the time. I had been using XXX Penley – which weighed in ALMOST twice as much as these did and the designer/owner was very good to us. It played almost as firm in the tip, but to do that a lot of material was taken from the butt. We still saw a lot of high breaks in many different shafts until maybe 8 yrs ago but these Red ones were cutting edge. If you leaned on it at all teeing up? – SNAP. Bag fell over? SNAP- but you could hit 300+ balls on a test day at 115-120 club head speed and (almost) no problem.

    I did snap 10 one day but was testing a couple versions for them and most snapped if I let it bounce off my back on a ‘gorilla swing’ follow through.

    The bad one was another gen later when they changed the outer layer material to be stronger lengthwise. I had a relatively slow backswing for my swing speed to force a big turn – being a big guy with a back injury. I capitalized on 20+ yrs of karate & being a professional drummer with fast hands. In a pro-am, I went after it on a reachable 340yd hole & the shaft snapped halfway into the downswing – at peak lag when my hands started to turn into impact, but instead of half the club flying away, the head stayed on – connected by a strip of the new outer layer. I hit the ball, but the head wrapped completely around my back & came up and drilled me right on my right eye brow…inch or so lower, it would’ve shattered the orbit & I might’ve lost the eye. As it was, I just saw all blue light – like gettin’ KO’d and almost went down. The missing 2′ of shaft hit someone 10yds away (no harm done) and I just put my hand on the spot which was golf ball size in 3 seconds…I was lucky.

    I ended up with 6 stitches. I called the company & ‘my guys’ were out & the person I talked to sounded a little spooked & just said “I don’t think I can talk to you about this…sounds like you need to speak to our legal dept (lol)…I told him I was a sponsored test ‘driver’ & I wasn’t gonna sue! I just needed them to know it happened & maybe they needed to let the head/broken piece just go flying down the fairway if one broke. They stopped using that material lengthwise & created ‘Rings’so to speak – to make sure if it broke it’d be ‘cleaner’…

    True story 🙂

    For 8 years I didn’t carry a 3 wd. Used a Big Bertha one iron with ‘the red shaft’ and couldn’t miss. Best combo EVER. Eventually, just got tired of them breaking hitting off the deck, & other – now the all well known ‘high end’ shafts got so good I moved on ????

    Reply Report comment

  3. Ray Bennett

    Nov 29, 2018 at 5:45 pm

    Come on USGA and R&A, surely this circumstance needs to be addressed in the Rules of Golf in the players favour.

    Reply Report comment

  4. jc

    Nov 29, 2018 at 5:19 pm

    one of my friends just ticked the ball and it fell off the tee, he used his 3 wood, then an iron and made the putt…one of the best pars I had eve seen.

    Reply Report comment

  5. Curt

    Nov 29, 2018 at 4:56 pm

    Was that a TPT Shaft?

    Reply Report comment

    • Michael

      Nov 29, 2018 at 8:26 pm

      I think so. Those shafts are incredibly overpriced for the lack of quality control that seems to exist. I’ve heard of many of these snapping, way above the norm.

      Reply Report comment

      • Scheiss

        Nov 29, 2018 at 8:38 pm

        What do you expect from ski poles, they’re not meant to be swung at something lol

        Reply Report comment

  6. Kevin

    Nov 29, 2018 at 4:05 pm

    Very stupid ruling and yes they should be fkd off. Should the club shaft stay intact he would have hit the ball, it is the one thing that the player does not have any control over. There was no obstacles, no roots in the ground, it is a faulty shaft and the player could not anticipate nor be prepared for. Its the same as punishing a Bus taker for the bus’ engine failture as soon as he stepped into the bus.

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  7. KL Nix

    Nov 29, 2018 at 3:17 pm

    I had that happen to me once with a 1 iron during a tournament. Just after impact i heard and felt a snap and it didn’t compute until I felt the club pinching my hands and the head smacking me in the leg. One of the most bizarre things that I have ever had happen to me and until now I thought I was the only one to have that kind of luck. The following 16 holes of viagra jokes were not that funny at the time but in hindsight have grown on me.

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  8. Kevin

    Nov 29, 2018 at 11:35 am

    I very well may be mistaken, but should he not have been able to tee off again without a penalty? He did not make contact with the ball and that would only be a stroke if he intends to make contact with the ball. Much like Kevin Na from years back, he still followed through but was able to say that he did not intend to hit the ball. It very much looked like after the club snapped he tried to stop his swing?

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    • Tips

      Nov 29, 2018 at 1:11 pm

      No.
      In this case, it happened during the normal action of the actual swing, and the judgment is the same as if you were to break a club against a tree, for example. You can clearly see that it was not a practice swing or a waggle, it happened during the actual intended swing.
      Whether the shaft was poorly made or not is irrelevant.

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      • Kevin

        Nov 29, 2018 at 3:27 pm

        This is the ruling of which I am talking about.

        14/1.5 Intent to Strike Ball Ceases During Downswing; Club Not Stopped But Path of Clubhead Altered to Avoid Striking Ball

        Q.A player begins his downswing with the intention of striking the ball but decides during the downswing not to strike the ball. The player is unable to stop the club before it reaches the ball, but he is able to swing intentionally over the top of the ball. Is the player deemed to have made a stroke?

        A.No. The player is considered to have checked his downswing voluntarily by altering the path of his downswing and missing the ball even though the swing carried the clubhead beyond the ball.

        If the player had not successfully checked his downswing (i.e., he had struck the ball), he is considered to have made a stroke.

        Any doubt regarding the player’s intent must be resolved against the player.

        Although it does not match perfectly and the rules in Australia may vary slightly I think this would apply. I would say once the shaft broke he clearly made an attempt to not make contact/check his swing and he did not make contact.

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    • jc

      Nov 29, 2018 at 5:17 pm

      nope, if you take a swing, it is just like a whiff…the only thing that will change wit the new rules is that if the ball was falling off the tee, you no longer get a penalty for hitting a moving ball…

      Reply Report comment

      • Willem van der Merwe

        Nov 30, 2018 at 5:22 am

        Under the new rules, the ball is still on the teeing are, so although the stroke counts, he would be able to re-tee, put the ball on the ground or on any surface irregularity, whether created by the player or natural.

        In fact, if you had hit a shot which rebounded and ended up back on your teeing area (the 2 club-length space behind the tee markers for your tee on the hole), you would be entitled to tee it up again for your second shot.

        Reply Report comment

  9. Thomas Horonzy

    Nov 29, 2018 at 11:13 am

    I would have never assessed him a swing. I feel Geoff felt likewise. Where’s the logic?

    Reply Report comment

  10. KingSingh

    Nov 29, 2018 at 9:53 am

    What shaft was Senden using in his driver?

    Reply Report comment

  11. Nigel Kent

    Nov 29, 2018 at 9:39 am

    He did not have to finish the round driver-less . If you break a club deliberately (in temper across your leg ,against a tree or the ground ),that would be true .If it just breaks in normal play , you are allowed to have it replaced either from the pro-shop or your own spare supply in your vehicle , as long as you don’t delay play . I saw Sam Torrance snap a driver across his back on the follow-through,they sent a buggy to the pro- shop ,had a new one back to him in 15 minutes .

    Reply Report comment

    • GP

      Nov 29, 2018 at 9:48 am

      The commentators said he didn’t have a back-up driver that day, but was hoping to get one for the next day from some place.

      Reply Report comment

    • Eric Clancey

      Nov 29, 2018 at 9:51 am

      Good call Nigel.

      It looked like a snap at the grip from banging the club head on the ground after a bad shot.

      Reply Report comment

      • Engineer Bob

        Nov 29, 2018 at 3:26 pm

        No…. that’s the result of applying a hands force couple to the club handle and the very thin-walled butt section of the shaft collapsing under the grip. Do not apply a hands force couple approaching impact because that signifies you are attempting a swing compensation.

        Reply Report comment

        • gps

          Nov 29, 2018 at 5:53 pm

          Its very natural that there are forces at the point of the fulcrum, between the hands.

          In 5L, Ben Hogan pointed out the center of gravity of a golf club, without the golfer
          and fulcrum when it becomes a lever in the hands of the golfer.

          Reply Report comment

          • Engineer Bob

            Nov 29, 2018 at 6:57 pm

            Sorry but there is no golf swing ‘fulcrum’ between the hands during a force couple, just a rotation axis. A fulcrum is a support whereas the rotation axis just floats through the downswing. You are confusing a lever with a static fulcrum and a moving object subject to a force couple.

            Reply Report comment

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Can you believe it? Professor Xavier won the 2024 PGA Championship

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2 hours ago

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May 19, 2024

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PGA Championship Sunday is a multi-tiered celebration. It begins with the identification of the top PGA professionals in the USA, and their naming to the USA side for the PGA Cup competition. This biennial event pits the best club professionals from Great Britain and Ireland, and the USA. Beginning with this year’s low PGA professional, Braden Shattuck, and his fellow cut-maker, Jeremy Wells, and concluding with last year’s darling, Michael Block, ten golfers were selected to represent the stars and bars at Sunriver Resort in Oregon.

The next bit of intrigue is a bit larger, in news terms. Who would hoist the Wannamaker Trophy, the largest of all the men’s major vessels, as the 2024 PGA Champion? Would it be a former major winner like DeChambeau, Lowry, or Morikawa? Or, would a first-timer prevail, perhaps with the last name of Hovland, Theegala, or Schauffele? After his third-round 73, we knew that the grand slam of golf would not happen in 2024 for Scottie Scheffler, but we admired his moxie.

For those architecture luddites who proclaim that if it ain’t Raynor, it ain’t golf, we hear you, but we don’t side with you. Major-championship golf needs courses like Valhalla, with odd, stone-lined, island greens, alongside forced carries over water. A little thick rough is all right, from time to time. Quail Hollow might have some rough in 2025, but there is no doubt that Aronimink in 2026, and PGA Frisco in 2027, will play lean, fast, and firm. Be patient; you’ll get what you crave.

Valhalla gave us all the drama we needed, waaaayyyyy more than we had at Augusta in April. This first-gen bloke from California made birdie on his first hole, to jump into a tie for the lead. This leader of mutant super heroes took the lead back, and held it for most of the day. Some muscular physicist entered the fray, alongside a fan of Norwegian death metal music. Let’s be honest: that’s quite a mixed bag, and could we ask for anything more? Nah. Here we go, then, with the one thing we learned on Sunday at the PGA Championship.

Sahith Theegala began the day with a longish putt for birdie on his first hole of the day. If he had stuffed his approach and made the same score, he might have made believers of us. As it was, that was the last hurrah for the young Californian. He gave the stroke back at number two, and failed to find any balance nor momentum on the day. Five bogeys and three birdies gave him 73 on the day, and he dropped from solo third to T12. There’s still a bit of learning on how to close a major championship for Theegala, but he has time.

On the other end of the spectrum, Shane Lowry figured to have the poise to make a run at a second major title. The pride of Ireland started well, standing minus-two through four holes. Unfortunately for Shamrock Shane, he didn’t make another birdie until the 14th hole. His 70 kept him inside the top six, but seven strokes off the winner’s pace.

Collin Morikawa and Thomas Detry each arrived at four-place-tie station on different horses. Morikawa began round four in a tie with Xander Schauffele, at minus-sixteen. Morikawa did not have his “A” game on this day, and his “B” game wasn’t good enough to keep him in contention. Detry bounced back from a Saturday 70 with 66 on day four. He moved up six spots on Sunday, almost as magnificent a jump as Billy Horschel, who climbed from 29th to 8th with 64. The T4 was a ringing success for Detry, his best major finish ever. For Morikawa, it was another gut punch, suggesting that his major wins in 2020 and 2021 were more fortune than fame.

Death Metal merchant Viktor Hovland came to the last hole at 19-under par. His game is built around power, and birdie should have been a possibility for the Norwegian nightmare. His drivefound the left side of the fairway, but his approach was more foozle than flame, and was fortunate to find the right tongue of fairway, short of the green. He pitched to 10 feet, but missed the putt for birdie. Knowing that the tournament was lost, he proceeded to miss from three feet and finished in solo third. If there was one bit of consolation, the missed tap-in mattered not at all in the final tally.

Bryson DeChambeau made his bed when he defected from the PGA Tour in 2023. Like Hovland, he challenged for the 2023 PGA Championship in Rochester, at storied Oak Hill, before ultimately offering a golf clap for winner Brooks Koepka. DeChambeau did everything that one might do on Sunday, save win the tournament. Unlike the other contenders, the 2020 US Open winner signed for a clean card on day four. His seven-birdie 64 was the day’s low round, matched by the aforementioned Billy Horschel, and England’s Jordan Smith. Knowing that he had to make a 72nd-hole birdie to pressure the leader, DeChambeau hit a marvelous pitch from thick rough, to ten feet. Unlike Hovland, he converted the birdie and went to the scorer’s pavillion at 20-deep. Only a birdie from the final pairing could ruin his day.

Xander Schauffele, along with the other Olympic gold medal winners, gets a major win from this writer. Olympic Gold is akin to immortality. From his peers and from the rest of the media, it may not count quite so high. Affirmation comes from winning one of the four big ones. The men’s tours have the fewest major events, so their value escalates. Schauffele had come close before, and two weeks ago, he faded against Rory McIlroy in the final round at Quail Hollow (next year’s PGA Championship site, doncha know?!)

On Sunday, Schauffele was a lion. He made seven birdies on the day, and survived a bogey at the benign tenth, a straightforward par-five hole. He followed the bogey with a pair of birdies, to reclaim the lead. It wasn’t until DeChambeau made birdie at the last, that the outcome was in doubt. With gravel in his belly, a boy named Xander rose up and kept his ball dry at the last. He pitched to six feet, and rammed the winning putt into the back of the hole. In a flash, all the unwanted finishes washed away: Xander Schauffele was, finally, the owner of a grand slam tournament title.

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Five Things We Learned: Saturday at the PGA Championship

Published

14 hours ago

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May 19, 2024

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Moving Day is a term applied to round three of a four-round tournament. It suggests that competitors need a solid or spectacular round on Saturday, in order to position themselves for potential Sunday victory. Among the favorites in contention after 36 holes, only Scottie Scheffler fell out of contention. The Texan suffered a par-double-bogey-bogey start, and could not recover. Three more bogeys damaged his score even more. Scheffler begins day four at seven-under par, eight shots behind the leaders.

As for those leaders, it’s a familiar pair, and we’ll get to them. We saw Justin Rose return to major-championship contention for the first time in a while. He’ll need 63 on Sunday to matter, but it’s still good to see the two-time major winner (Olympic Gold counts!) in the mix. Bryson DeChambeau carried the LIV flag into the day-four conversation, and with a low 60s score, he’ll have a chance at a second major title. Even the home-state feloow, Justin Thomas, found a way to matter. He’s on the outside, looking in, but a 60 is not inconceivable, and 11-under would certainly win the day, if not the week.

1. Xander holds the lead

There’s a burden that comes with posting a score of 62. Media, fans, and even the player hope and even expect to see it again. Xander Schauffele wasn’t on track to repeat that number of Saturday, but he stood in the middle of the 15th fairway and thought about how low he could go. Three-under par on the day, coming off birdie at 14, with a pitch to the green, and he went for the flag and missed.

Schauffele made an unanticipated mistake and it cost him two shots. His most immediate competitor was in his group and made birdie, retrieving three shots in one hole. That’s the sort of moment that goes down in history as a gut check. Schauffele’s gut responded. He leveled the wings with par at 16, then closed with birdies at 17 and 18, to returne to 15-under par. The X Man will tee off again in the final pairing, and take a run at his first major title. The fifteenth hole might loom large again in the outcome; hopefully, a lesson has been learned!

2. Morikawa can taste another PGA

For two years, Collin Morikawa was that guy. He won this tournament in 2020, then collected the Open Championship jug at Sandwich in 2021. Win two majors, and everyone heads down the career grand slam discussion. Three years on, Morikawa has the same number of majors on his dossier, and two more professional wins to show. He’s probably antsy for another major.

The California native stumbled early on Saturday. He made bogey at the two-shot second hole, then dug in with everything he had. A birdie at three balanced the card, and four more came his way. None was bigger than the three that he made at the 15th, as the leader was making double bogey in his group! Morikawa took a one-shot lead there, then closed with birdie at the last to reach Sunday morning tied at the top with Xander Schauffele.

Sunday will fill with drama, but it won’t involve just that grouping. When Morikawa tees off at 2:35 Louisville time, a move will have been made. Someone close by (one at -14, three at -13, two at -12) will be a few under par, and the thermometer will have risen. Our guess, simply, is that Morikawa will need 66 to win outright on Sunday. 20-under par should get it done, and to go down as one of the greats, he’ll need to be great.

3. Shane shares PGA record

Shane Lowry goes down as one of the most popular major champions of this era. His Open Championship win at Royal Portrush in 2019 kicked off a massive celebration of Irish pride and delight. Lowry hasn’t added to that major total of one, but the cask-chested, smile-and-a-beard doesn’t need to. He’s the sort who can take a two-man win, as he had this season with Rory McIlroy in New Orleans, and elevate its worth. He’s the sort who anchors an international side, as he does every two years in the Ryder Cup.

This week in Kentucky is different. Lowry has the chance to keep the hot hand and claim a second major title. These opportunities don’t come around that often. Lowry was fire on Saturday. He posted the first, sub-thirty nine of the tournament on the outward half. HIs six birdies and three pars gave him 29, and he looked for all the world to be the man to chase. The inward half wasn’t quite as volcanic, but the card was clean, and he came home in 33. His score matched Schauffele’s opening round, for the all-time low, 18-hole score, in PGA Championship history.

What’s to do? Make putts early. Find a way to get back in the zone and ride that spaceship to the final green. Lowry most likely needs to finish Saturday in 65 strokes or fewer, and posting 127 on a major championship weekend is unheard of. That’s why they play, though, isn’t it? Why not Shane, why not today?

4. Theegala lost, then found

As far as I was concerned, Sahith Theegala was yesterday’s news. Consecutive bogeys at five and six, supported by zero birdies through eight holes, destined him for the also-ran section of the leader board. I was frightfully incorrect.

Theegala found some inspiration at the ninth tee. Maybe it was a kick in the arse by his caddie, or by him, but a flame ignited. Theegals made the first of six birdies at the outward home hole, and posted 31 coming home. Birdie at the final hole ensured that he would tee off in Sunday’s penultimate group, with Shane Lowry.

It is often written that all should be wary of the wounded, as they fight for survival. Theegala dislocated a rib two weeks ago, at Quail Hollow. This week, he has been under the weather with some bug. With his mind focused on health, rather than score, he has done quite well. If he stays that course, one last round, he might have to do a heavy lift on Sunday, with the Wannamaker trophy in his hands.

5. The Prediction!

Despite all the kind words I’ve written about the aforementioned four gentlemen, none of them will exit Louisville with the happiest of visages. The winner, however, will not let us down in the smiles department. Viktor Hovland teed off in the final pairing last year, at Oak Hill, and had a front-row seat in the Koepka Koaster, as Brooks Koepka showed the Norwegian how to win a major championship. Rest assured that Hovland took copious notes. His frustration at a Masters missed cut in April has been channeled into his performance this week.

What will go down? Hovland will have at least one holed shot from off the green on Sunday’s outward nine. He’ll find a groove and the putter will warm up quickly. Hovland will sign for the third 62 of the week, but will have to wait as each of the final four golfers has a chance to tie at the final hole. One will, and they will head to a play-off, where Hovland will emerge in overtime.

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Five Things We Learned: Friday at the PGA Championship

Published

1 day ago

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May 18, 2024

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Early on Friday morning, a vendor working for the PGA Championship was struck and killed by a tournament shuttle bus. Nearly at the same time, as he arrived for his second round of tournament play, Scottie Scheffler attempted to detour around the scene, and was arrested, booked, then released. Somehow, Scheffler returned to Valhalla and played his second round of the tournament. Despite the jokes and memes of some in the golf industry, the tournament took a back seat to life and humanity on Friday morning. Our prayers are with the family and friends of the vendor, as well as with all involved.

Day two of Valhalla’s fourth PGA Championship did not see a repeat of the record-setting 62 posted by first-day leader, Xander Schauffele. The low card of 65 was returned by five golfers, when play was suspended by darkness. Five golfers still on the course, were on the positive side of the expected cut line of one-under par, while 12 more either had work to do, or knew that their week had come to an end.

The best 70 golfers and ties would advance to the weekend. 64 golfers figured at minus-two on Friday evening, with another 15 at one-under par. The most likely scenario saw those at even par, headed home. The formula was simple: finish under par and stick around. Play resumed at 7:15 on Saturday, to sort through the last six threesomes. Before the night turned over, we learned five important things to set us up for a weekend of excitement and excellence. It’s a pleasure to share them with you.

1. The 65s

On Thursday, three golfers etched 65 into the final box on their card of play. On Friday, nearly twice that number finished at six-under par for the round. Collin Morikawa moved from top-five into a spot in the final pairing. The 2020 PGA Champion at Harding Park teed off at the tenth hole, and turned in minus-two. He then ran off five consecutive birdies from the fourth tee to the eighth green, before finding trouble at the ninth, his last hole of the day. Bogey at nine dropped him from -12 to -11.

The same score moved Bryson DeChambeau from 11th spot to T4. Joining the pair with 65s on day two were Matt Wallace and Hideki Matsuyama (each with 70-65 for T11) and Lee Hodges (71-65 for T16.) Morikawa, Matsuyama, and DeChambeau have major championship wins in their names, while Wallace has been on the when to break through list his entire career. Hodges epitomizes the term journeyman, bu the PGA Championship is the one major of them all when lesser-known challegers find a way to break through.

2. The Corebridge team of PGA Professionals

Last year’s Cinderella story, Michael Block, did not repeat his Oak Hill success. Block missed the cut by a fair amount. Of the other 19, however, two were poised to conclude play and reach the weekend’s play. Braden Shattuck had finished at one-under par, while Jeremy Wells (-2) and Ben Polland (-1) were inside the glory line, each with two holes to play.

With three holes to play on the front nine, Kyle Mendoza sits at even par. His task is simple: play the final triumvirate in one-under par or better. If Mendoza can pull off that feat, and if the aforementioned triumvirate can hold steady, the club professional segment of the tournament will have four representatives in play over the weekend.

3. Scottie Scheffler

In his post-round interview, Scheffler admitted that his second round, following the surreal nature of the early morning’s events, was made possible by the support he received from patrons and fellow competitors. The new father expressed his great sadness for the loss of life, and also praised some of the first responders that had accompanied him in the journey from course to jail cell. Yes, jail cell. Scheffler spoke of beginning his warm-up routine with jail-house stretches.

Once he returned to Valhalla, Scheffler found a way to a two-under, opening nine holes. He began birdie-bogey-birdie on holes ten through twelve, then eased into a stretch of pars, before making birdie at the par-five 18th. His second nine holes featured three birdies and six pars, allowing him to improve by one shot from day one. Scheffler found himself in a fourth-place tie with Thomas Detry, and third-round tee time in the third-last pairing. Scheffler’s poise illustrated grace under pressure, which is the only way that he could have reached this status through 36 holes.

4. Sahith!

It’s a little bit funny that the fellow who followed 65 with 67, is nowhere to be found on the video highlight reels. He’s not alone in that respect, as Thomas Detry (T4) was also ignored by the cameras. Theegala has won on tour, and has the game to win again. The Californian turned in four-under par on Friday, then made an excruciating bogey at the par-five tenth. He redeemed himself two holes later, with birdie at the twelfth hole.

Theegala is an unproven commodity in major events. He has one top-ten finish: the 2023 Masters saw him finish 9th. He did tie for 40th in 2023, in this event, at Oak Hill. Is he likely to be around on Sunday? Yes. Will he be inside the top ten? If he is, he has a shot on Sunday. If Saturday is not a 67 or better, Theegala will not figure in the outcome of the 2024 championship.

5. X Man!!

After the fireworks of day one, Xander Schauffele preserved his lead at the 2024 PGA Championship. He holds a one-shot advantage and will tee off in the final pairing on Saturday, with Collin Morikawa. Eleven holes into round two, Schauffele made his first bogey of the week. The stumble stalled his momentum, as he had played the first ten holes in minus-four. Will the run of seven pars at the end signal a negative turn in the tide of play for Schauffele? We’ll find out on day three. One thing is for sure: minus twelve will not win this tournament. Schauffele will likely need to reach twenty under par over the next two days, to win his first major title.

 

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