Block party on again as club pro qualifies for PGA Championship
MICHAEL Block, the Southern California golf pro who shot into the spotlight at the 2023 PGA Championship with a legendary effort including a slam-dunk ace, has qualified for the 2025 tournament from May 15 to 18 at Quail Hollow olf Club in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Block, 48, beat the odds again this week when he tied for third as 20 of 312 club pros qualified for the major through the PGA Professional Championship, a four-day event at the PGA Golf Club's Wanamaker Course in Port St Lucie, Florida.
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New Straits Times
6 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Scheffler set for 'hardest' test at Oakmont for US Open
OAKMONT, United States: World number one Scottie Scheffler said Wednesday the formidable Oakmont course could provide "the hardest" challenge of his career at the 125th US Open this week. Lightning-fast sloped greens combined with deep, dense rough and bunkers designed to leave balls along the edges had many players calling it the toughest layout they have faced as Oakmont hosts a record 10th US Open. "This is probably the hardest golf course that we'll play, maybe ever," said Scheffler, who won last month's PGA Championship for his third major title, ahead of Thursday's opening round. Second-ranked Rory McIlroy, who won the Masters in April to complete a career Grand Slam, called Oakmont a "big brute" and added: "You're going to have to have your wits about you this week all the way." Not since American Jordan Spieth captured the 2015 Masters and US Open has anyone won consecutive majors, but two-time Masters winner Scheffler is on a hot streak. Scheffler has won three of his past four starts, matching a PGA Tour record for low 72-hole total to take the Byron Nelson and defending his Memorial title 10 days ago in addition to his major triumph. "He's in the middle of every fairway," third-ranked Xander Schauffele said of Scheffler. "It takes a serious amount of discipline to play away from pins and hit really good shots to safe targets, and that's what it takes to play well at US Opens." Three-time major winner Spieth said most players will pitch onto fairways from the thick rough rather than try to blast out short of the green. "It magnifies once you make a mistake if you don't play the right shot," Spieth said. "It may cost you half a shot to get back in the fairway a little further up. "They give you more green here to entice you into doing more than you should. There's some risk-reward on this place. You've got to avoid compounding mistakes for sure." Finding the fairway is crucial, McIlroy said. "Decent lies in the rough are few and far between," McIlroy said. "You don't want to ride your luck on this golf course. "You hit the ball in the rough and you're not going to have any control of your ball going into the green, especially these greens that are pitched away from you. "You have to be able to spin the ball going into these greens if you want it to finish anywhere close to where you want." And sometimes the rough just wins. "I had some lies that were not playable," fourth-ranked Collin Morikawa said of his time in the rough during practice rounds. "There was no loft." Scheffler, who turns 29 the Saturday after the tournament, made his major debut at Oakmont at the 2016 US Open, missing the cut as a 19-year-old amateur with his older sister Callie serving as his caddie. One year later, Scheffler was low amateur at the US Open and five years after that, he was a Masters champion. "I remember coming here and thinking it was really fun, really cool to be able to play in the US Open," Scheffler said. "But what I really remembered was coming back the next year and ... finishing low am." Scheffler also recalled rushing off the course to watch game six of the 2016 NBA Finals, when LeBron James led Cleveland to victory on the way to taking the title over Stephen Curry and Golden State. "This year's finals is probably not going to affect my schedule as much," Scheffler said. "Golden State was playing Cleveland and I really wanted to watch that because you had LeBron playing Steph." The devoted Dallas Mavericks fan has struggled since his team traded star Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Sun
21 hours ago
- The Sun
Scheffler seeks back-to-back major wins at formidable Oakmont
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler tries to become the first back-to-back major winner in a decade by taking this week's 125th US Open, which tees off Thursday at intimidating Oakmont. Not since Jordan Spieth captured the 2015 Masters and US Open has anyone swept consecutive major crowns, but two-time Masters champion Scheffler is on a hot streak. The 28-year-old American has won three of his past four starts, including a third major title at May's PGA Championship and defending his Memorial title two weeks ago. This week, however, offers a severe test with thick high rough, tricky bunkers and sloped greens known for lightning-fast speed. 'This is probably the hardest golf course that we'll play, maybe ever, and that's pretty much all it is,' Scheffler said. 'It's just a different type of test.' Scheffler arrives after a rest week as the oddsmakers' favorite over world number two Rory McIlroy and defending champion Bryson DeChambeau. 'I don't pay attention to the favorite stuff or anything like that,' Scheffler said. 'Starting Thursday morning we're at even par and it's up to me to go out there and play against the golf course and see what I can do.' Fourth-ranked Collin Morikawa, a two-time major winner, expects brutal rough off most every missed fairway. 'Overall you have to hit the ball really well. You know you're going to get penalized even on good shots,' Morikawa said. 'Step number one is to hit it in the fairways. I don't think people understand how thick the rough is. It's not wispy like the club is going to go through. This is just thick. Clubs will turn over. 'You're going to see guys trying to hit pitching wedge out and it's going to go 45 degrees left because that's how thick the rough is.' The 7,372-yard, par-70 layout offers a vast array of bunkers and a course where many trees were removed to produce an expansive feel. 'Extreme challenge,' two-time major winner Jon Rahm said. 'Even when you just stand on the putting green, seeing the whole property, you know you're somewhere special. It's quite iconic.' McIlroy, who won the Masters in April to complete a career Grand Slam, has top-10 US Open finishes each of the past six years. He declared Oakmont 'a big brute of a golf course.' 'You're going to have to have your wits about you this week all the way throughout the bag, off the tee, into the greens, around the greens. It's going to be a great test.' Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, a winner last month at LIV Golf Korea, seeks his third US Open after wins in 2020 and 2024. The 31-year-old American is trying to become only the eighth back-to-back US Open winner, the first since compatriot Brooks Koepka in 2017 and 2018. 'Everybody knows this is probably the toughest golf course in the world right now, and you have to hit the fairways, you have to hit greens, and you have to two-putt, worst-case scenario,' DeChambeau said. 'When you've got those putts inside 10 feet, you've got to make them. It's a great test of golf.' - 'All-around challenge' - Phil Mickelson, a six-time major winner who turns 55 on Monday, seeks an elusive title to complete a career Grand Slam after six runner-up US Open finishes, most recently in 2013. 'It's pretty much an all-around challenge,' said 2013 US Open winner Justin Rose. 'You have to put the ball in play off the tee. That's not the biggest challenge. Fairways are somewhat generous, 30-odd yards wide. 'That's because it's all about the greens. The real skilled hitters can get it into those greens, not get on the wrong side of those contours.'
The Sun
21 hours ago
- The Sun
Scheffler seeks back-to-back major wins at Oakmont
Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler tries to become the first back-to-back major winner in a decade by taking this week's 125th US Open, which tees off Thursday at intimidating Oakmont. Not since Jordan Spieth captured the 2015 Masters and US Open has anyone swept consecutive major crowns, but two-time Masters champion Scheffler is on a hot streak. The 28-year-old American has won three of his past four starts, including a third major title at May's PGA Championship and defending his Memorial title two weeks ago. This week, however, offers a severe test with thick high rough, tricky bunkers and sloped greens known for lightning-fast speed. 'This is probably the hardest golf course that we'll play, maybe ever, and that's pretty much all it is,' Scheffler said. 'It's just a different type of test.' Scheffler arrives after a rest week as the oddsmakers' favorite over world number two Rory McIlroy and defending champion Bryson DeChambeau. 'I don't pay attention to the favorite stuff or anything like that,' Scheffler said. 'Starting Thursday morning we're at even par and it's up to me to go out there and play against the golf course and see what I can do.' Fourth-ranked Collin Morikawa, a two-time major winner, expects brutal rough off most every missed fairway. 'Overall you have to hit the ball really well. You know you're going to get penalized even on good shots,' Morikawa said. 'Step number one is to hit it in the fairways. I don't think people understand how thick the rough is. It's not wispy like the club is going to go through. This is just thick. Clubs will turn over. 'You're going to see guys trying to hit pitching wedge out and it's going to go 45 degrees left because that's how thick the rough is.' The 7,372-yard, par-70 layout offers a vast array of bunkers and a course where many trees were removed to produce an expansive feel. 'Extreme challenge,' two-time major winner Jon Rahm said. 'Even when you just stand on the putting green, seeing the whole property, you know you're somewhere special. It's quite iconic.' McIlroy, who won the Masters in April to complete a career Grand Slam, has top-10 US Open finishes each of the past six years. He declared Oakmont 'a big brute of a golf course.' 'You're going to have to have your wits about you this week all the way throughout the bag, off the tee, into the greens, around the greens. It's going to be a great test.' Defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, a winner last month at LIV Golf Korea, seeks his third US Open after wins in 2020 and 2024. The 31-year-old American is trying to become only the eighth back-to-back US Open winner, the first since compatriot Brooks Koepka in 2017 and 2018. 'Everybody knows this is probably the toughest golf course in the world right now, and you have to hit the fairways, you have to hit greens, and you have to two-putt, worst-case scenario,' DeChambeau said. 'When you've got those putts inside 10 feet, you've got to make them. It's a great test of golf.' - 'All-around challenge' - Phil Mickelson, a six-time major winner who turns 55 on Monday, seeks an elusive title to complete a career Grand Slam after six runner-up US Open finishes, most recently in 2013. 'It's pretty much an all-around challenge,' said 2013 US Open winner Justin Rose. 'You have to put the ball in play off the tee. That's not the biggest challenge. Fairways are somewhat generous, 30-odd yards wide. 'That's because it's all about the greens. The real skilled hitters can get it into those greens, not get on the wrong side of those contours.'
