Rory McIlroy will look to continue his major-winning form as he bids for a third US PGA Championship title at Aronimink Golf Club in Philadelphia. The contenders are queuing up to take a shot at McIlroy in the second major of the year, and a look at those likely to challenge for the Wanamaker Trophy reveals a formidable field.
Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler
The world’s top two golfers by a distance will be gunning for more success, having won five of the last nine major championships between them. McIlroy held off the charge of Scheffler to win consecutive Masters titles by a shot last month, and Scheffler himself will be looking to go back-to-back by retaining his US PGA title in Philadelphia. These two are without doubt the ones to beat as their rivalry at the summit of the sport intensifies, and a course which lends itself to iron play should work in their favour.
Justin Rose
The 45-year-old’s unfortunate tag as Masters ‘nearly-man’ continued at Augusta as he surrendered a lead at the turn of the final round to fall two shots short. He will look to hit back and land a second major title in a state where he has shone. Rose’s only major came at Merion Golf Club near Philadelphia in 2013, and he also won the AT&T Championship at Aronimink in 2010. That will give him heart, but Rose’s decision to switch to McLaren Golf irons – a project he has been part of building – just weeks before the season’s second major would appear a gamble. He was tied for 65th on his first outing with them and will hope his new clubs fire on a course that requires careful approach play.
Matt Fitzpatrick
Fitzpatrick went into the Masters as many people’s pick to clinch the green jacket but was unable to contend around Augusta, ending in a tie for 18th. He was back on track straight away by beating Scheffler in a play-off to win the RBC Heritage and followed that by winning the Zurich Classic alongside brother Alex. That was his third PGA Tour win of the season after success at the Valspar in March, while he was also runner-up to Cameron Young – another serious contender – at the Players Championship at Sawgrass. The 31-year-old, whose sole major came at the US Open in 2022, will expect to be in the hunt on Sunday at Aronimink.
Collin Morikawa
The 29-year-old won majors in back-to-back years with PGA Championship and Open Championship success in 2020 and 2021 as he emerged at the forefront of golf. He has struggled to keep up that winning momentum and has been plagued by injury issues in recent years. But Morikawa is a consistent performer at the majors, with 10 top-10 finishes in his 25 major starts, and his charge up the leaderboard on Sunday at Augusta to finish tied for seventh, despite a back problem, showed his quality. He tied for fourth at the RBC Heritage and is among the best iron players on tour.
Jordan Spieth
A career grand slam-clinching win for Spieth would be quite the story and, given he has not won on the PGA Tour since 2022, is admittedly unlikely. Since storming to three majors between 2015 and 2017, the 32-year-old has endured more downs than ups amid a niggling wrist injury. But there are just flickers of life in Spieth’s game. He carded a final-round 68 at Augusta before claiming it was “the best I ever hit it here,” and he has recorded four top-12 finishes this year. At his peak, there were few better with irons in hand, and Aronimink might just be the course Spieth needs to contend again.
