The PGA Championship

The summer is always when the PGA tour really takes off. Suddenly though, the golfing year is entering their big finish. This week is the last major of the year, the PGA Championship. Soon the FedEx Cup Playoffs will be underway too. It’s an exciting time of the year!

Today, we’ll just stick to our normal preview:

Key Holes at Oak Hill

#4/#13 – There are only two par 5’s at Oak Hill and they should be two of the easiest holes. #4 is particularly easy and will be reachable for most players. #13 though can be tricky. For the longer hitters, they need to carry a creek 300 yards from the tee in order to go at it in two. Any layup to the creek makes it a 3-shot hole.

#12/#14 – Coming down the stretch one needs to look for birdies. It can be done at these two short par 4’s. #12 will give the player options, as many will drive it all the way up just short of the green. #14 can actually be reached off the tee if players choose driver. It should be exciting!

#17/#18 – Wow, what a finish this will be. #17 is just brutal and will play as the toughest hole this week. It’s a par 4 measuring over 500 yards. #18 is nearly as long at 497. Both holes have tough drives and approaches, and you also will have massive pressure down the stretch on the weekend to add to the toughness here.

Pick 5 Challenge

For those who are not familiar, for each PGA Tour event we pick 5 players in different categories that we think will do well. Andrew leads the competition so far this year 1529 to 1374. Just like at the other majors. We must pick one player in each of these age ranges: 20’s, 30-34, 35-39, 40+, and a free choice. This week we conducted a draft so we didn’t get any repeats. Here are our picks:

Greg's Picks

20’s: Rory McIlroy (10^th Overall)

30-34: Bubba Watson (6^th Overall)

35-39: Henrik Stenson (7^th Overall)

40+: Lee Westwood (3^rd Overall)

Free Choice: Phil Mickelson (2^nd Overall)

Andrew's Picks

20’s: Keegan Bradley (8^th Overall)

30-34: Brandt Snedeker (5^th Overall)

35-39: Tiger Woods (1^st Overall)

40+: Steve Stricker (9^th Overall)

Free Choice: Jason Dufner (4^th Overall)

Players to Watch

It’s the PGA Championship so I love to watch how the PGA Teaching Pro’s do since they are able to play. Rarely are they around the top of the leaderboard, but it’s cool to see if some make the cut.

Americans vs. Internationals

Americans is the answer here as many different guys are considered the favorites. The real question though is this: Tiger/Phil vs. the field. That’s a tough question to answer. I’d take Tiger/Phil though.

Intriguing Early Pairings

Here are three I love:

Adam Scott/Justin Rose/Phil Mickelson – As always, the three major winners this year get paired together for the first couple days. I love this. There will be fireworks!

Sergio Garcia/Matt Kuchar/Rickie Fowler – Three studs all looking for their first major. They all have different games too so this would be a great pairing to follow.

Tiger Woods/Keegan Bradley/Davis Love III – Tiger and Rory finished 1-2 last week and they could do it again. If you like birdies, watch these guys.

Like always, let us know your thoughts. Feel free to pick five guys yourself and compete against us. Let us know what you are looking forward to. And don't miss the action, particularly on Sunday afternoon. Enjoy!

By: The Sports Guys