2019 PGA Championship Wrap-Up

He came into the 101st PGA Championship as the favorite, and had the whole golf world watching him. In the end, Brooks Koepka delivered an incredible title defense, winning by two strokes over Dustin Johnson. He started the day with a 7-stroke lead over Johnson, Harold Varner, and Luke List, but a quick two-shot swing on the first hole cut the lead to five. Koepka steadied the ship with a birdie on the par-5 4th, and a string of pars to finish the back 9 gave him a four-stroke lead over DJ. Brooks would birdie the 10th to increase his lead but would stumble with four straight bogeys on 11-14, and when Dustin Johnson birdied the 15th, the lead was trimmed to two. Unfortunately, two bogeys by DJ on 16 and 17 ended his chances, and despite his 3-putt bogey on 17 and a wayward drive on the last, Brooks held it together. When his 6-footer for par found the hole, his 4-over 74 was good enough for his 4th major championship since June 2017 and his sixth career PGA Tour victory. Along with the Wanamaker Trophy, Brooks also set a 36-hole major scoring record after his 63-65 start, and he is the first player to successfully defend his title since Tiger Woods in 2006 and 2007. Lastly, his wire-to-wire victory was the first in the PGA Championship since Hal Sutton in 1983. Speaking of Tiger Woods, the 4-time PGA Championship winner struggled to find fairways, especially in the 2nd round, and missed the cut by one stroke. The next major championship on the schedule is less than a month away: the U.S. Open Championship at Pebble Beach Golf Links, where Brooks Koepka is looking to three-peat. Next week, the European Tour heads to Denmark for the Made in Denmark presented by FREJA, while the PGA Tour is headed to Fort Worth, Texas for the Charles Schwab Challenge.