The excitement levels have been ratcheted up a notch or two for the second major of the season — the PGA Championship — which takes place this week in Valhalla, Kentucky.
While there had been doubts over Scottie Scheffler’s participation given the impending birth of his first child, the World No.1 has now become a father, and he was spotted at the driving range on Monday.
After a month off, Scheffler will be looking to re-establish his dominance and send a statement of intent to the field after four wins in his five previous starts on the PGA Tour.
But the 106th PGA Championship is brimming with plenty of potential storylines, and that includes whether Jordan Spieth can complete the final leg of the career Grand Slam.
Since the 2014 edition, Valhalla has certainly toughened up in the scoring department with the reigning champion Brooks Koepka clinching the Wanamaker Trophy with a score of -9.
Tight ball control will be crucial as the rough looks rather unforgiving, but the short 351-yard 13th is the signature hole, while you can expect plenty of drama in the closing holes.
But how will things pan out? I have rushed over to the betting markets and I have given you food for thought with the following two selections.
Stars to align for Rory McIlroy
Ahead of any given major, there is always plenty of chatter about Rory McIlroy and when he will next get over the line on golf’s biggest stages.
However, over the past few weeks, McIlroy has harnessed the momentum chalking up back-to-back wins, and at the Wells Fargo Championship last weekend, the Ulsterman came from two shots back to surge to a five-stroke victory.
In 2014, McIlroy was just 25 when he won his fourth major, a feat that was matched only by Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Bobby Jones, and Tom Morris.
Although Scheffler looms large, perhaps the huge change in his life of becoming a father may have diluted his belief slightly, or even the lack of sleep could affect him.
McIlroy, of course, won the PGA Championship when it was last staged at Valhalla, and maybe the stars might just align him.
His odds will certainly have been chomped into over the past week given his form, and I like the look of McIlroy to end his almost insufferable drought to win a major. He can be backed at an attractive 13/2 with Paddy Power.
Justin Thomas to catch the eye in Round 1
Despite his erratic form, Justin Thomas will relish the chance to tee things up in his native Kentucky.
A two-time major champion, Thomas has reached the heights in the PGA Championship with victories in 2017 and 2022.
Of course, three missed cuts from 10 appearances tell their own story, but there were some encouraging signs at the RBC Heritage last month where he finished T5.
Hometown support, nevertheless, is an unquantifiable benefit, and Thomas whose most impressive stat metric is SG: Tee to Green (11th) may well feed off that.
Although I don’t expect him to be in the mix come Sunday, I feel he could explode out of the blocks in the first round. For the purpose of value, I’m intrigued by the longer price of 40/1 available at William Hill for Thomas to lead the pack after Thursday.
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