US PGA Championship 2024 Preview: All you need to know ahead of the Valhalla showdown

Today's Golfer preview the 2024 US PGA Championship from Valhalla

The strongest field of the season assemble in Valhalla where Brooks Koepka targets a fourth PGA Championship. Can LIV’s finest derail Scheffler and a resurgent Rory in Kentucky?

Not only will the PGA Championship be the most competitive field of the season, but the very best of both tours appear to have found their game just in time. Admittedly, Scottie Scheffler had never lost his, but back-to-back wins on the PGA Tour for Rory McIlroy and an ominous return to LIV’s winning circle for Brooks Koepka has made the Valhalla showdown all the more mouthwatering.

Another talking point has been the inclusion of LIV’s 2023 individual champion – Talor Gooch. The Smash GC player accepted a special invite from the USGA to have a crack at the Wanamaker Trophy and prove the point/asterisk, he’s been understandably vocal about.

It’s not implausible, but probably unlikely with Gooch an unfancied 100/1 to over-deliver on his inclusion in the world-class field. Despite 643 places in the world rankings separating Gooch from Scheffler, the golfing world is not oblivious to the flawed concept behind this reality and is looking forward to the most competitive field of the season assembling at Valhalla Golf Club.

And hoping to prove his competitiveness once again is the man in a different shade of Sun Day Red. Tiger Woods returns to action for the first time since breaking the record for the most consecutive cuts made at the Masters in search of a fifth PGA crown.

The 15-time Major winner won around Valhalla in 2000 in a gripping contest with Bob May that saw Tiger claim victory via a playoff, kicking off a run of four consecutive Major wins through to the 2001 Masters. Only four times in the last 20 editions has the PGA Championship been won by a margin of more than two strokes.

So, for those who appreciate a tight finish where the best players rise to the top, the PGA Championship is the Major most likely to deliver for you. Here’s all you need to know.

Where is the PGA Championship played?

Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky plays host to the PGA Championship for a fourth time, having previously held the Major in 1996, 2000, and 2014. The private members club has also hosted two senior PGA Championships and the 2008 Ryder Cup.

The Jack Nicklaus-designed track is a par 71, expected to play in the region of 7,500-7,600 yards. Ten holes have water at least partially in play, including six on the front half. The greens on 7, 13, and 16 all have water guarding the approach shots. In 2014, Rory almost threw away victory after sending his tee shot towards the stream beside the 18th fairway. His ball finished a couple of yards short of the hazard.

Read our full Valhalla Golf Club course guide.

What format is the PGA Championship?

Since 1958, the standard strokeplay format of 72 holes of 18 holes over four days has been in place. If players are tied after 72 holes, a three-hole aggregate playoff is used to determine the champion followed by a sudden death hole-by-hole match if required.

Who is in the field for the PGA Championship?

As things stand, with Scottie Scheffler’s name firmly on the starting list, the better question for the 2024 PGA Championship is ‘Who is not in the field?’

Sergio Garcia, Graeme McDowell, and Bubba Watson are all notable absentees having not met any of the exemptions or received an invite, unlike 16 of their LIV colleagues including Joaquin Niemann, Talor Gooch, Dean Burmester, Adrian Meronk, Lucas Herbert, David Puig, and Patrick Reed. Louis Oosthuizen also received an invitation but declined the invitation due to “personal commitments”, according to his manager.

LIV’s heavy artillery of Koepka, Bryson, Rahm, DJ, Mickelson, and Cameron Smith will once again relish the chance to battle it out against the PGA Tour’s best and claim a statement victory. In total, 33 Major champions and 16 US PGA champions will take to the tee in Valhalla.

Read our full guide to the 2024 PGA Championship field and how they qualified.

Who will win the PGA Championship?

Read our comprehensive preview of ‘Who will win the 2024 PGA Championship?‘

• Rory shortens to 7/1 after a dominant Wells Fargo Championship win.

Selected odds (correct 15 May, 09.00):

Scottie Scheffler 4/1

Rory McIlroy 7/1

Brooks Koepka 14/1

Xander Schauffele 14/1

Jon Rahm 16/1

Ludvig Aberg 18/1

Max Homa 25/1

Bryson DeChambeau 25/1

Collin Morikawa 28/1

Joaquin Niemann 30/1

Tommy Fleetwood 35/1

Wyndham Clark 40/1

Cameron Smith 45/1

Justin Thomas 50/1

Jordan Spieth 60/1

Matt Fitzpatrick 66/1

Talor Gooch 100/1

How much will the PGA Championship winner receive?

The PGA Championship purse has been swelling handsomely over the past few years with 2023’s record-breaking purse totaling $17.5 million with a healthy $3.15 million winner’s cut for Brooks Koepka.

The 2024 purse has yet to be announced.

Who has won the PGA Championship?

The last 10 editions of the PGA Championship has seen seven different winners. Tiger Woods won the last of his four PGA triumphs in 2007 at Southern Hills.

How to watch the PGA Championship?

Sky Sports is home to the PGA Championship for UK viewers, while ESPN and CBS will broadcast the action live from Valhalla. Read our ‘How to Watch’ guide for further details about extended programming, live streaming, and how to watch for free.

US viewers (ET):

Friday 17th: 0700-1200 – ESPN+ | 1200-2000 – ESPN

Saturday 18th: 0800-1000 – ESPN+ | 1000-1300 – ESPN+ | 1300-1900 – CBS

Sunday 19th: 0800-1000 – ESPN+ | 1000-1300 – ESPN+ | 1300-1900 – CBS

UK viewers (BST):

Friday 17th: 1300-000 – Sky Sports

Saturday 18th: 1400-0000 – Sky Sports

Sunday 19th: 1400-0000 – Sky Sports

PGA Championship: Tee times and groupings

Round 2 (ET / BST):

Starting No.1

7:15 / 12:15 — Rich Beem, Sebastian Soderberg, Kazuma Kobori

7:26 / 12:26 — Josh Bevell, Aaron Rai, Jordan Smith

7:37 / 12:37 — Andrew Putnam, Jesse Mueller, Charley Hoffman

7:48 / 12:48 — Si Woo Kim, Tom Hoge, Alex Noren

7:59 / 12:59 — Y.E. Yang, Matthieu Pavon, J.T. Poston

8:10 / 13:10 — Jake Knapp, Jason Dufner, Francesco Molinari

8:21 / 13:21 — Thomas Detry, Jimmy Walker, Rasmus Hojgaard

8:32 / 13:32 — Austin Eckroat, Luke List, Mackenzie Hughes

8:43 / 13:43 — Sungjae Im, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Beau Hossler

8:54 / 13:54 — Thorbjorn Olesen, Brendon Todd, Keith Mitchell

9:05 / 14:05 — John Somers, Brice Garnett, Jesper Svensson

9:16 / 14:16 — Emiliano Grillo, Evan Bowser, Alejandro Tosti

9:27 / 14:27 — Vincent Norrman, Wyatt Worthington II, Chris Gotterup

12:45 / 17:45 — Doug Ghim, Tyler Collet, Adrian Meronk

12:56 / 17:56 — Larkin Gross, Lucas Herbert, Grayson Murray

13:07 / 18:07 — Lucas Glover, Stephen Jaeger, Russell Henley

13:18 / 18:18 — Ludvig Aberg, Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas

13:29 / 18:29 — Tiger Woods, Adam Scott, Keegan Bradley

13:40 / 18:40 — Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Justin Rose

13:51 / 18:51 — Cameron Smith, Hideki Matsuyama, Viktor Hovland

14:02 / 19:02 — Brooks Koepka, Max Homa, Jordan Spieth

14:13 / 19:13 — Tony Finau, Tyrrell Hatton, Sahith Theegala

14:24 / 19:24 — Akshay Bhatia, Bryson DeChambeau, Tommy Fleetwood

14:35 / 19:35 — Sepp Straka, Takumi Kanaya, Nick Taylor

14:46 / 19:46 — Andy Svoboda, Ben Griffin, Dean Burmester

14:57 / 19:57 — Preston Cole, Tim Widing, Adrian Otaegui

Starting No.10

7:20 / 12:20 — David Puig, Thriston Lawrence, Matt Dobyns

7:31 / 12:31 — Tracey Phillips, Denny McCarthy, Keita Nakajima

7:42 / 12:42 — Tracey Phillips, Denny McCarthy, Keita Nakajima

7:53 / 12:53 — Jason Day, Shane Lowry, Nicolai Hojgaard

8:04 / 13:04 — Min Woo Lee, Chris Kirk, Billy Horschel

8:15 / 13:15 — Gary Woodland, Tom Kim, Joaquin Niemann

8:26 / 13:26 — Collin Morikawa, Phil Mickelson, Matt Fitzpatrick

8:37 / 13:37 — Rickie Fowler, Jon Rahm, Cameron Young

8:48 / 13:48 — Wyndham Clark, Brian Harman, Scottie Scheffler

8:59 / 13:59 — Patrick Cantlay, Camilo Villegas, Will Zalatoris

9:10 / 14:10 — Patrick Reed, Sam Burns, Padraig Harrington

9:21 / 14:21 — Brad Marek, Mark Hubbard, Maverick McNealy

9:32 / 14:32 — Braden Shuttuck, Taylor Montgomery, S.H. Kim

12:40 / 17:40 — Michael Block, Luke Donald, Shaun Micheel

12:51 / 17:51 — Jeff Kellen, Alex Smalley, Ben Kohles

13:02 / 18:02 — Ryan Fox, Josh Speight, Matt Wallace

13:13 / 18:13 —  Zac Oakley, Adam Svensson, Ryo Hisatsune

13:24 / 18:24 — Adam Hadwin, Martin Kaymer, Taylor Pendrith

13:35 / 18:35 — Byeong-Hun An, Alexander Bjork, Eric Cole

13:46 / 18:46 — Adam Schenk, Corey Conners, Nick Dunlap

13:57 / 18:57 — John Daly, Lee Hodges, Robert MacIntyre

14:08 / 19:08 — Peter Malnati, Kurt Kitayama, Victor Perez

14:19 / 19:19 — Ben Polland, Zac Blair, Ryan van Velzen

14:30 / 19:30 — Jeremy Wells, Sami Valimaki, K.H. Lee

14:41 / 19:41 — Jared Jones, Taylor Moore, Patrick Rodgers

14:52 / 19:52 — Kyle Mendoza, Andy Ogletree, Erik van Rooyen

SUBSCRIBE TO TODAY’S GOLFER: Print and Digital access, discounts and rewards!

About the author

Ross Tugwood

Senior Digital Writer

Ross Tugwood is a golf equipment writer for todays-golfer.com, specializing in data, analytics, science, and innovation.

Ross is passionate about optimizing sports performance and has a decade of experience working with professional athletes and coaches for British Athletics, the UK Sports Institute, and Team GB.

He has post-graduate degrees in Performance Analysis and Sports Journalism, enabling him to critically analyze and review the latest golf equipment and technology to help you make better-informed buying decisions.