All eyes on Tiger’s comeback and Jordan Slam quest at PGA

In Thursday’s opening round of the 104th PGA Championship, Tiger Woods’ miraculous injury comeback and Jordan Spieth’s quest for a career Grand Slam will take centre stage.

For the first two days at Southern Hills, Woods, a 15-time major champion, and three-time major winner Spieth are joined with four-time major winner Rory McIlroy in a headlining trio.

Top-ranked Masters champion Scottie Scheffler, 2021 British Open winner Collin Morikawa, and second-ranked Spaniard Jon Rahm are all in the group, but they may not be able to match the Woods group in terms of attendance.

“Tiger’s here, so nobody really remembers that I’m here,” Scheffler said. “So it’s all good.”

In a car accident in February 2021, Woods had significant leg injuries, spending weeks in the hospital and months unable to walk.

His emotional return to the Masters last month ended in a tie for 47th place and a stamina struggle, but he views walking 72 holes as a significant accomplishment and claims he’s stronger as another endurance test approaches.

“I’ve gotten stronger since then, but still it’s going to be sore and walking is a challenge,” Woods said.

Asked if he can win, Woods said, “I feel like I can, definitely. I just have to go out there and do it.”

Among those trying to stop him will be Rahm, who comes off a victory two weeks ago at the US PGA Mexico Open.

“He’s Tiger. He’s a competitor,” Rahm said. “He’s going to try to win every single time and anytime he tees up, the world wants him to win.

“Yeah, totally expected for the attention to be on him, but it doesn’t really change anything of what I want to be doing this week.”

Spieth, like Rahm, hopes to have his name etched on the Wanamaker Trophy. If Spieth wins, he will join Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan, and Gene Sarazen as the only players in history to win all four major championships.

Spieth won the Heritage tournament last month and finished second in the Byron Nelson tournament in his hometown last week. Southern Hills, he believes, will be a formidable opponent.

“I think it’s going to be one of the higher scoring PGAs that we’ve seen,” Spieth said. “It’s a great test.”

Cameron Smith of Australia, who has finished in the top five at the Masters three times in the last five years, is prepared for the challenge of playing in the group just ahead of Woods.

“There can be a lot of external noise with crowds and just a lot more moving parts,” Smith said. “Just another thing to really think about. Just make sure to spend a little bit more time worrying about what’s happening outside to make sure when you’re inside that shot, everything’s perfect.”

Tricky winds are expected, with the strongest breezes on the first two days.

“The forecast is different every day in this wind,” Woods said. “It’s supposed to be all different directions. We’re going to see a different course almost every day.”

That, warns Rahm, also comes with tee boxes made for adjustable distances, changing the holes each day no matter the weather.

“They can truly make it as difficult as they want to be,” Rahm said. “They can really, truly manipulate the score out here very easily, even if the conditions are benign and we don’t get too much wind.”

Scheffler No.1 swagger

Scheffler, happy to hide in Woods’s shadow, will try to become the first player to win the green jacket and PGA Championship in the same year since Nicklaus in 1975.

“It’s right in front of you. It’s just really hard,” Scheffler said of the course. “You know what to do. It’s just hard to actually do it.”

Four-time major winner Brooks Koepka sees Scheffler as the man to beat.

“He’s number one in the world. That usually has something to do with it,” Koepka said. “I think confidence, too. Number one in the world, you’ve got that swagger when you walk on the range. I know I did.

“I’m pretty sure everybody else that has been number one, you’ve got a little extra strut. You’ve got a little something and I think it’s noticeable.”

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