PGA Championship speaking factors: Jordan Spieth’s Grand Slam bid, Rory McIlroy’s main drought, LIV golf hopes and world No 1 battle | Golf Information

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Having received the three different majors, Jordan Spieth will bid to finish the profession Grand Slam with victory this week on the PGA Championship

Can Jordan Spieth full the Grand Slam? Will Rory McIlroy finish his main drought? Who will finish the week as world No 1 and will we see a LIV winner? Storylines to comply with on the PGA Championship this week…

Can Spieth make Grand Slam historical past?

Rory McIlroy noticed one other alternative to finish golf’s profession Grand Slam move him at The Masters final month, with Jordan Spieth the subsequent to have the prospect to finish golf’s illustrious membership.

Spieth received The Masters and the US Open in 2015 earlier than securing The Open at Royal Birkdale in 2017, with the American now solely needing a PGA Championship victory to grow to be the sixth participant to attain the Grand Slam.

Jordan Spieth has one other probability to create main historical past this week

Three of the 5 gamers to complete the profession Grand Slam managed it at their first probability to shut it out – Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods – whereas Gary Participant and Jack Nicklaus each did at their third try, whereas Spieth is dealing with his seventh probability to finish the foremost honours.

Spieth has solely posted one top-10 in his previous six PGA Championship appearances, claiming a share of third throughout Brooks Koepka’s wire-to-wire victory in 2019, with the 13-time PGA Tour winner admitting forward of final 12 months’s contest that the Grand Slam bid was the ‘elephant within the room’.

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The second main of the 12 months sees the PGA Championship return to Oak Hill Nation Membership, with prolonged protection dwell on Sky Sports activities

The previous world No 1 adopted a tied-fourth end at Augusta Nationwide final month by ending runner-up to Matt Fitzpatrick on the RBC Heritage every week later, though there are considerations over his health after a wrist harm pressured him out of the AT&T Byron Nelson final week.

Spieth hasn’t been listed on the pre-tournament press convention schedule, elevating additional doubts over his harm standing, however it could be little shock to see him difficult for the Wanamaker Trophy if he’s match to characteristic.

Might we see a LIV winner on the PGA Championship?

There may be one other sturdy LIV contingent in main motion this week at Oak Hill, with 17 of the 48 gamers of their league format making the journey from their newest occasion in Tulsa to compete within the second main of the 12 months.

LIV gamers impressed at The Masters, with Brooks Koepka sharing second spot alongside Phil Mickelson and Patrick Reed ending in tied-fourth, with loads of their gamers exhibiting type that might see them problem this week.

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After not being ultimately 12 months’s event, relive Phil Mickelson’s final look on the PGA Championship in 2021 when he grew to become the oldest main winner at 50

Talor Gooch grew to become the primary back-to-back winner of LIV occasions earlier this marketing campaign, whereas Dustin Johnson arrives in assured temper after beating Open champion Cameron Smith and South Africa’s Branden Grace in a play-off to win the LIV event on Sunday.

Koepka is a two-time recipient of the Wanamaker Trophy and can be becoming a member of Thomas in trying to find a 3rd victory this week, whereas Bryson DeChambeau, Joaquin Niemann and Paul Casey among the many different LIV names concerned.

Will McIlroy bounce again and finish his main drought?

McIlroy completed no worse than eighth in his 4 main appearances final season, a 12 months the place he topped the season-long standings on each the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, though has seen his exceptional consistency slide away in current months.

The Northern Irishman remained a pre-tournament favorite at The Masters, having bounced again from a shock missed reduce at The Gamers to impress on the WGC-Dell Applied sciences Match Play, solely to undergo one other shocked early exit at Augusta after struggling to rounds of 73 and 77.

McIlroy withdrew from the RBC Heritage for a break following an eventful interval on and off the course, throughout which he mentioned he would “like to get again to being a golfer”, then did not drive his method into competition on his return to motion on the Wells Fargo Championship.

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Wealthy Beem shares his ideas on why Rory McIlroy withdrew from the RBC Heritage

The four-time main winner was defending champion when the PGA Championship was final staged at Oak Hill in 2013, the place he claimed eighth spot, with McIlroy since turning into a member resulting from it being near the place his spouse Erica and her household are from.

No participant has had such a niche between their fourth and fifth main titles as McIlroy’s can be, with the Ulsterman posting 17 top-10s in majors since his final success on the 2014 PGA Championship, though he’ll care little or no about that file ought to the drought finish this week.

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Rory McIlroy says it has been a ‘fairly taxing 12 months mentally’ after lacking the RBC Heritage as he returns to motion on the Wells Fargo Championship

Who will prevail on this planet No 1 battle?

Scottie Scheffler missed out on the chance to exchange Jon Rahm on the high of the world rankings on the AT&T Byron Nelson, ending tied-fifth, though has one other probability to leapfrog the Spaniard this week.

Rahm is high of the world rankings after 4 wins from 11 begins in 2023 and has held high spot since succeeding Scheffler because the Masters champion final month, the place he claimed a four-shot victory and second main title.

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Jon Rahm is the 2023 Masters champion! Watch his finest moments from the ultimate spherical

Scheffler made a profitable title defence within the WM Phoenix Open and likewise received The Gamers at TPC Sawgrass, his sixth PGA Tour win in 13 months, with the American ending no worse than twelfth in every of his final 13 worldwide begins.

The world’s high two have given themselves a substantial two-point benefit over closest challenger Rory McIlroy in third, with Scheffler the one participant who can problem Rahm’s world No 1 standing this week.

Ought to Rahm go on so as to add to his main tally this week, he would have the prospect to finish the profession Grand Slam at The Open this summer time. Primarily based on his current type, you would not guess towards it.

Can Thomas efficiently defend his title?

Koepka and Woods are the one gamers within the stroke play period to efficiently defend their PGA Championship title, with Justin Thomas the most recent to aim to affix that group.

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The most effective of the motion from the ultimate spherical of the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills, the place Justin Thomas impressed to assert victory

Thomas overturned a seven-stroke deficit through the last day of final 12 months’s contest to defeat Will Zalatoris in a play-off, though the American has failed so as to add to his victory tally since that success at Southern Hills.

The world No 15 has solely registered two top-10s on the PGA Tour up to now in 2023 and missed the reduce at The Masters however arrives seeking to grow to be simply the sixth participant to win the PGA Championship three or extra occasions.

Oak Hill has served as a venue for a significant title defence earlier than, with Curtis Unusual securing his second successive US Open win there in 1989, so Thomas will hope to comply with go well with and revel in extra main success.

An English winner of the PGA Championship?

There hasn’t been an English winner of the PGA Championship within the stroke play period, though a number of of this week’s area arrive in type and seeking to finish that shock file.

Fitzpatrick completed fifth in final 12 months’s contest earlier than successful the US Open a month later, with the 28-year-old successful on the PGA Tour on the RBC Heritage final month, whereas Tyrrell Hatton has additionally threatened victory on American soil in current months.

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Matt Fitzpatrick beat defending champion Jordan Spieth on the third gap of a play-off to win the RBC Heritage

Hatton has loved a tied-fourth end on the Arnold Palmer Invitational, claimed second at The Gamers and arrives on the PGA Championship off the again of successive top-five finishes on the PGA Tour.

Tommy Fleetwood is simply exterior the world’s high 20 after a powerful tied-fifth end on the Wells Fargo Championship and it could be little shock to see him grow to be the fifth participant to make a significant their first PGA Tour victory, having posted six earlier top-five finishes in majors.

Justin Rose received on the PGA Tour on the AT&T Pebble Seaside Professional-Am earlier within the season, with 12 English gamers – together with Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald, LIV member Paul Casey and 2016 Masters champion Danny Willett – all at present within the area this week.

Watch the one hundred and fifth PGA Championship all through the week dwell on Sky Sports activities. Dwell protection begins on Thursday from 1pm on Sky Sports activities Golf.