Random Thoughts On The 2015 PGA Championship

A few random thoughts on the 2015 PGA Championship.

• Congratulations to Jason Day. He has been on the cusp for some time now and it was great to see him break through.
• Day is not only a terrific player, he also has an amazing back story. I won’t go into the details here — you can read it everywhere right now — but this is a guy who could just as easily be in jail as a major champion.
• I expect Day will win several more Majors going forward.
• In finishing second, Jordan Spieth capped a remarkable season. It was fitting that he rose to number one in the world on the same day.
• Tiger has six career second place finishes in Majors. In just this season, Spieth has two. Nicklaus, of course, had nineteen.
• The USGA should take notice. A golf course does not need to punish players to be a major championship setup. This year’s PGA Championship was lots of fun to watch, and even at 20-under, no one will deny that Day is a major champion.
• Following up on that last thought: What is the key element in a Major Championship? Is it the course, or the quality of players who are in the field. I’m going to go with player quality. USGA tournaments could be just as good with courses that let players play.
• Tiger who?
• Is there anyone who can bounce back like Dustin Johnson? He took an EIGHT on the first hole of the final round, but finished with a 69. In that round, he had six birdies and two eagles. I’m amazed that he keeps getting back into contention after an increasingly long list of near misses. Will Johnson finally get a Major? I am not convinced. He seems snakebit to me.
• Golf’s newest stars strike me as class acts. On the 17th on Sunday, Jordan Spieth gave Jason Day an affirming “thumbs up,” after a long lag putt. When it was over, Rory McIlroy tweeted the following