PGA Championship Has Drama, Charm, Disappointment and Uff Da!
Sunday at the PGA Championship was everything a golf fan could ask for at a major championship. It even had an Uff Da moment. Stay tuned.
Big, bold Brooks Koepka went up against Norway’s Viktor Hovland, who has found a community in Stillwater, Oklahoma. After Koepka birdied the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th, it was pretty clear who the winner was likely to be. But it’s golf, so nobody left.
Canadian Corey Conners absolutely matched the profile of the last two winners at Oak Hill, Jason Dufner and Shaun Micheel, except that after three days of solid mostly error-free golf, he went on a run of bogeys.
The first Olympic golf champ in the last 100 years, Justin Rose, contended in a major again at age 42, at least until he started the second nine bogey, bogey.
"The PGA had $17 Michelob Ultra and $15 Stella Artois. It had $3 donuts and $9.50 French Toast Sticks."
Rory McIlroy still fought the good fight with three birdies, three bogeys, and three pars on the first nine. He ran out of holes. There’s always the U.S. Open and the British Open.
Club pro Michael Block made an ace on the 15th to solidify his place in PGA Championship history. His on-course comment, “No way.” Yes way, Michael.
And following that, Scottie Scheffler hit the pin on the same hole, but his ball didn’t drop in.
In the end, somehow, the same 16th hole bunker that quashed Corey Conners’ chances on Saturday, did the same thing to Viktor Hovland on Sunday. A double bogey. Uff da! That’s Norwegian for *!#$%*&#%*@.
The PGA Championship also had its share of crazy stuff.
Guys with funny Buffalo Bills hats that had blue hair sticking out of them, a foursome of guys wearing golf shirts with little hot dogs all over them. Speaking of fashion, the joggers are apparently a thing now with young men. It’s not just a Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas deal.
The PGA had $17 Michelob Ultra and $15 Stella Artois. It had $3 donuts and $9.50 French Toast Sticks.
The PGA Championship had amazing weather. Amazing as in all-day-rain on Saturday resulting in all-day mud in a few places on Sunday.
The East Course at Oak Hill has a great feature. Six holes come back to the clubhouse at either the tee or green making it easy to make a snack run (maybe a beer run) several times during the round, especially on the back nine. The holes are No.1 tee, No. 9 green, No. 10 tee, No. 13 green, No. 14 tee and No 18 green.
The East Course, a jewel built by Donald Ross and modernized to flow with the times, was reimagined in the original style of Ross and proved to be every bit as tough as promised.
Those who got to see the inside of the clubhouse viewed architecture dating back to the Golden Age of the 1920s when English Tudor and dark wood paneling was all the rage. Yes, they still have a ballroom, and it sports huge wooden arches that are probably more decorative than necessary. But please, don’t take them down!
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Somehow, it has Claude Harmon’s Masters jacket. It also had Harmon continuity in Craig Harmon (now retired), Butch’s brother, who was the pro for 42 years.
Now it has another champion with a Harmon connection in Brooks Koepka who is taught by Claude Harmon’s grandson.
So it’s congrats to Brooks and all shout Uff da! In Viktor’s honor.