Justin Thomas makes history with PGA Championship victory
The 2017 PGA Champion came from seven-strokes back on Sunday to win his second major title at the PGA Championship. Thomas matched the record for the largest come from behind victory in PGA Championship history, which was set by John Mahaffey at Oakmont Country Club in the 1978 PGA Championship.
“I felt like I probably needed to get it to six or seven, start of the day,” Thomas said about his plan on Sunday. “Although I was so far back, there wasn't that many guys ahead of me, and it's a very tough golf course and anything could happen.”
Thomas tied Will Zalatoris in regulation at 5-under par. The pair went to a three-hole aggregate playoff, playing Nos. 13, 17, and 18. Thomas won with birdies on the first two playoff holes.
A record ends at Southern Hills Country Club
Prior to the 2022 PGA Championship, each of the seven major championships at Southern Hills Country Club held the 36-hole lead en route to victory. That streak ended on Sunday.
Will Zalatoris, who held the 36-hole lead, came incredibly close to make that record a perfect 8 for 8, but lost in a playoff to Justin Thomas to pick up his fifth top 10 finish in a major championship.
Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, and Tiger Woods paired together early
In one of the most anticipated groupings in recent memory, the trio of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Tiger Woods played together during the first two rounds of the PGA Championship.
It was a thrill to see Woods, the last major champion at Southern Hills in 2007, make his return to competitive golf as the trio combined for 22 major titles. Spieth finished T34 for the week, McIlroy solo eighth, and Woods withdrew from the championship after the third round.
Jordan Spieth remains in search of Career Grand Slam
Jordan Spieth came into the week at Southern Hills in search of his fourth different major title at the PGA Championship which would have earned him the Career Grand Slam. Spieth was on the fast track to completing the slam when he won the 2015 Masters Tournament and U.S. Open. He won the 2017 Open Championship which left the PGA Championship as his lone outstanding major title. Spieth’s seventh attempt at completing the Career Grand Slam will come in 2023 when the PGA Championship heads to Oak Hill Country Club.
Tiger Woods withdraws from PGA Championship
The four-time PGA Champion made just his second major start since a rollover car accident in February 2021 when he teed it up at the PGA Championship at Southern Hills. Woods, who continues to recover from the accident which injured both his legs and nearly led to his right leg being amputated, was seen in visible discomfort throughout the week. After battling back from an opening round of 74 to play the weekend at Southern Hills, Woods carded a 9-over par 79 on moving day. He withdrew following the third round. It was the first time he withdrew from a major championship since turning professional.
A pair of PGA Champions.
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 23, 2022
Tiger congratulates @JustinThomas34. 👏#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/Gum359MS86
