Aaron Rai, who won the tropical storm-delayed 2024 Wyndham Championship, won the 108th PGA Championship May 17 at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pa., to capture his first Major Championship and his second PGA TOUR victory while Sedgefield Country Club member Alex Smalley tied Jon Rahm for second.
Rai, 31, used a final-round 65 to become the first Englishman to win the PGA Championship in more than a century. Unlike the bogey-free, final round 64 he shot to win the Wyndham Championship’s 36-hole Sunday marathon two years ago, Rai’s PGA Championship final round included three bogeys – all on the front side – along with two birdies and an eagle at the par-5 ninth hole where he holed a 39-foot chip from right of the green.
He would make four birdies on the back side including an astonishing 68-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole to secure his three-stroke win over Rahm and Smalley. Rai was 6-under par over the final 10 holes.
“Definitely wasn’t trying to hole that putt,” Rai said. “The shadow of the pin gave a really nice line for probably the last 10 feet. So, that definitely helped with the visual of the putt.
“I’m extremely, extremely proud. There’s a lot of incredible and historic English players over those hundred years who have gone on to achieve incredible things and had phenomenal careers, but to win this event and then to be the person that’s the first one to have won it in a long time from England is an amazing thing and something to be extremely proud of.”
Smalley was at or near the top of the leaderboard for most of the tournament. He was among seven players tied for the first-round lead at 3-under par and was tied for first with Maverick McNeally at 4-under after the second round. The two were the final pairing on Saturday, and despite a slow start, Smalley battled back with a third-round 68 to claim a two-stroke lead entering the final round and would again play in the final pairing.
After five-straight pars on Sunday, the Duke University alumnus went three over in three holes but rallied with a birdie at nine. He would eagle 16, bogey 17 and birdie the 72nd hole to climb into the tie for second and earn a spot in the field at next month’s U.S. Open and the Masters Tournament next season.
“This week was special; it was a lot of fun,” Smalley said. “I had a great amount of support out there. I tried not to get caught up in it a whole lot. I tried to just look where my feet were going, but I heard a huge amount of support, and I’m incredibly grateful to state of Pennsylvania, the city of Philadelphia and the surrounding area for rooting me on these last four days.
“As far as this tournament, in terms of my career, who knows? Maybe it’s a springboard. It gives me a lot of confidence coming away from this week to know that I can compete on the PGA TOUR and even some of the major championships. I think this week will do a lot for me.”
“Well, if you’re a fan of the Wyndham Championship, that was a fun major to watch,” Executive Director Mark Brazil said. “I’m very happy for both Aaron and Alex. Aaron beat a lot of major winners yesterday with his incredible play on the last 10 holes. And I was so impressed with the composure Alex showed on the weekend – fighting back after the slow starts. Really proud of both guys!”
