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05-16-2023 players
Power Rankings
https://www.pgatour.com/article/news/power-rankings/2023/05/15/power-rankings-pga-championship-oak-hill-country-club-jon-rahm-scottie-scheffler-rory-mcilroy
RANK
PLAYERS
COMMENT
20

Wyndham Clark
Wyndham Clark

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

The recent breakthrough champion at Quail Hollow already had planned last week off, so there’s nothing abnormal about his scheduling. While he’s cited a renewed outlook, improvement in his irons is the technical reason why he's 16-for-16 in the last seven months.

19

Adam Scott
Adam Scott

AUS
AUSTRALIA

Not that the 42-year-old Aussie ever slumps, but his surges still pop from his elevated floor. With a T5 at Quail Hollow and a T8 at TPC Craig Ranch serving as exceptional tune-ups ahead of the PGA Championship, he’s poised to pile onto a phenomenal record in the majors.

18

Rickie Fowler
Rickie Fowler

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Despite his struggles in recent memory, he’s never missed the PGA Championship. What’s more, he finished T8 (2021) and T23 (2022) in the last two amid the inconsistency. Now 34 years of age, he’s again sharp with eight top 20s in his last nine starts since late January.

17

Sungjae Im
Sungjae Im

KOR
SOUTH KOREA

It took a trip to his native South Korea but it resulted in a victory on the KPGA on Sunday. He’s been simmering and teasing since last summer, so he might be the most confident (and perhaps jetlagged) talent at Oak Hill this week. Missed the 2022 PGA due to COVID-19.

16

Tommy Fleetwood
Tommy Fleetwood

ENG
ENGLAND

Often just outside the bubble for many Power Rankings but the 32-year-old Brit struts in having finished T15 at Harbour Town and T5 at Quail Hollow (where he was the R1 leader). Five career top-five finishes in the majors includes a T5 at Southern Hills last year.

15

Matt Fitzpatrick
Matt Fitzpatrick

ENG
ENGLAND

This is the last major before he defends his breakthrough at the U.S. Open in a month. He’s gone T21-T10 in the others in the interim, but, more impressively, he emerged from a persistent neck injury earlier this year with a memorable win at Harbour Town.

14

Justin Thomas
Justin Thomas

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

This ain’t nothin’ new for the defending champion. After his breakthrough in the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, he finished T6 at Bellerive. Now he’s fresh off a T14 at Quail Hollow for the Wells Fargo Championship, but his shorter irons still need to be crisper.

13

Max Homa
Max Homa

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

In 13 starts in the majors, his only top 35 was at the PGA at Southern Hills last year. Sure, that’s a different site but it’s enough to validate the potential on this kind of stage. Not that he’s knocked off balance much, however, what with two wins among four podiums this season.

12

Viktor Hovland
Viktor Hovland

NOR
NORWAY

Because the PGA Championship is one of the majors contested on a different site every year, he’s a threat solely on his power and precision tee to green. Not that he’s a two-trick pony by any means, but with smaller greens at Oak Hill, his strength plays up even more.

11

Tyrrell Hatton
Tyrrell Hatton

ENG
ENGLAND

With a solo second (PLAYERS), a T3 (Wells Fargo), a T4 (Arnold Palmer), a T5 (Byron Nelson), a T6 (WM) and a T7 (Abu Dhabi) all on the board this year, all that missing from the straight is a win. It’d be his first in a major. Sixth in adjusted scoring and third in the all-around.

10

Dustin Johnson
Dustin Johnson

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

He’s one of the returning competitors from the 2013 PGA Championship – he finished T8 – but that’s barely a bonus given his ability to adapt to any test at any time. With two wins, five seconds and a third among 22 top 10s in the majors alone, he does not discriminate.

9

Rory McIlroy
Rory McIlroy

NIR
NORTHERN IRELAND

The four-time major champion doesn’t need an apologist, but it’s understandable why he failed to cash in his ninth bid for the career grand slam at the Masters a month ago. Back after a much-needed mental break, his default strengths are ideal to ace Oak Hill’s test.

8

Cameron Smith
Cameron Smith

AUS
AUSTRALIA

Resilient and proven, not to mention among the best throughout a bag, the Aussie seeks to piggyback his titles at THE PLAYERS and The Open Championship a year ago. He’s fulfilled the kind of promise that he flashed at Chambers Bay for a T4 at the 2015 U.S. Open.

7

Jason Day
Jason Day

AUS
AUSTRALIA

Speaking of checking all the boxes, the Aussie covered the bingo card with his return to the winner’s circle on Sunday in Texas. While the timely success should feel familiar and good, it shouldn’t be difficult for him to turn the page to pursue a second title in a major (2015 PGA).

6

Patrick Cantlay
Patrick Cantlay

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

There’s only so much more that can be written and supported before he breaks through in a major. This is his 22nd start in a major since returning to competition full-time in 2017. He has three top 10s among seven top 15s, including in each of the last three.

5

Tony Finau
Tony Finau

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

With four wins since The Open last year, he’s risen rapidly among those without one in a major. Not that he hasn’t contended, though, with exactly three top 15s in each of the four. There are all kinds of reasons to love the long ball but his short game is seriously underrated.

4

Xander Schauffele
Xander Schauffele

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

His ridiculous record no matter the tournament and format underscores his fearlessness, especially up against the deepest fields. It’s a narrative that applies to the majors as well. He has 13 top 15s in the series and as worthy a skill set as anyone in the field.

3

Brooks Koepka
Brooks Koepka

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Healthy and having just finished T2 at the Masters where he led or co-led after each of the first three rounds, there’s a target on his back. Of course, with two PGA Championship victories among five top fives in this major alone, he has the shoulders for it.

2

Jon Rahm
Jon Rahm

ESP
SPAIN

This oughta be fun. The Spaniard has put up video-game numbers en route to four victories in 2023 alone, including, and of course, the Masters a month ago. Leads the TOUR in adjusted scoring, converting GIR into par breakers and the all-around ranking, among many others.

1

Scottie Scheffler
Scottie Scheffler

USA
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

There are many different and useful paths to the same destination, but his mindset might be the best when the stakes are the highest. Of course, he’s already prevailed at the Masters and THE PLAYERS, but he’s also the best on TOUR in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green.


Collin Morikawa, Jordan Spieth, Sam Burns and Cameron Young will be among the notables reviewed in Golfbet Insider.

No matter how you dissect Oak Hill’s role as the site of the men’s major hosted by the PGA of America, it’s objectively perfect.

For starters, it’s been here and done this before, time and again. It’s the only course that’s hosted the PGA Championship, the U.S. Open, the Ryder Cup, the U.S. Amateur, the Senior PGA Championship and the U.S. Senior Open. This is its fourth PGA Championship and first since 2013. Furthermore, given that this edition originally was slated for August until the major was moved permanently to May in 2019 (ignoring the one-off rescheduling of the 2020 edition due to the pandemic), it already was poised to adapt, for both Senior PGAs (2008, 2019) were contested in May.

As of Monday, 33 who competed in the 2013 PGA are ready for their return this week, but Oak Hill presents considerably different since the last time they vied for the Wanamaker Trophy. Like so many golf courses, championship-caliber and otherwise, Oak Hill is among the throng to have undergone what’s been a trend of the 21st century – widespread removal of trees. It was a big part of a big year-long project launched in 2019 and headed by architect Andrew Green. The plan restored Ross’ vision of the land he had when he built the course almost 100 years ago, but the coequal objective was to improve the sustainability of the grass previously shadowed. Done and done.

All 18 greens also have been rebuilt. The old blend of bentgrass and Poa now is entirely bent. Weather pending (more on this in a moment), green speeds should flirt with 13 feet on the Stimpmeter.

The targets themselves average just 4,500 square feet, so there is no escaping from the premium on keeping the ball in play from tee to green. Par is a fair score in the PGA Championship, but it’s not going to win the tournament. Not all PGA Championships are alike, but course management will be a smarter weapon than aggression.

On the scorecard, Oak Hill is a stock par 70 that tips at 7,394 yards. The restoration has repositioned the old par-4 fifth hole as the par-4 sixth and added 75 yards to stretch it to 503 yards. No. 5 now is a new par 3 measuring 180 yards. All other holes were upgraded, of course, but they remain in their familiar spots on the walk, albeit with extended sightlines thanks to the roomier confines. The other major modification occurred beside the 155-yard par-3 15th where a pond once swallowed wayward strikes. That’s gone and the green was shifted to the left from the tee perspective.

Both par 5s – Nos. 4 and 13 – can be longer than 600 yards, and the par-4 17th and 18th hole can range beyond 495 yards, so the champion likely will feel more like a survivor while posing for pictures with the 27-pound silver trophy. He’ll collect 600 FedExCup points and $2.7 million of a prize fund of $15 million. He’ll also be fully exempt on the PGA TOUR through 2028, exempt into the PGA Championship for life and exempt for the next five editions of the other three majors.

The experience will include overcoming the elements. The pleasure of a cool, quiet Thursday will be short-lived and even it might open with a delay due to frost. Come Friday, the daytime high could rise into the upper 70s with the influx of potentially strong prevailing breezes from a southwesterly direction. Saturday presents a mild letup from the gusts but it’ll be cooler and the threat of rain enters the equation. It’ll linger into Sunday’s scheduled conclusion and winds are not expected to abate.