Welcome to Earl's Golf Blog
May 26, 2026
Who is Aaron Rai?
Who is Aaron Rai? Aaron Rai is now a major championship winner, having defeated a stellar field on a very demanding golf course. The 108th PGA Championship was played at the Aronimink Golf Course just outside of Philadelphia. The Donald Ross designed course proved to be a worthy test for a major championship. Rai ultimately proved to be the only one that had the right stuff to handle the demanding course, the elite challengers, and the added pressure of a major championship.
Up to Aaron Rai taking command of the tournament, the championship was somewhat of an enigma. The golf course was winning and good players were grumbling. Major championships are supposed to be contested between the top tier of the golfing profession. But going into the last round there were over 20 players within 4 shots of the lead and many of those players were players with weak resumes that realistically shouldn't have a shot to win a tournament like this. Alex Smalley, Matti Schmid, Max Greyserman, David Puig are hardly household names, but they had realistic chances to hold the Wanamaker Trophy. They could have joined other one-time longshot champions like, Rich Been, Shaun Michael, YE Yang, Jason Dufner, and Jimmy Walker. Aaron Rai could be considered a longshot also, but a closer look will reveal a highly skilled player that has been lurking just under the radar of the best players in the world. With his PGA Championship win, Rai moved up to 14th in the World Golf Rankings. Clearly a world class player that few have heard of. Time will tell if this breakthrough will lead to future major victories, but this one was earned.
To me the story of this tournament was the inconsistent and failure of great players to take advantage of their opportunities that were presented to them. Rory McIlroy should have put this one away with ten holes to play. Instead, he played them in even par, with three holes that played right to his strength. Two reachable par fives and a 3 wood drivable par four, which he played in one over par! Jon Rohm also had opportunities and made uncharacteristically poor wedge shots. Yes, he finished second, but was not a factor. Ludvig Aberg, Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas, and Jordan Spieth all were close to the lead during the tournament, but didn't have the consistency or mental staying power to overcome the challenges that Aronimink presented. Scottie Scheffler was another story. Ball striking was again major championship quality, but I've rarely seen someone totally fooled, time and time again, on very makeable putts. In short, the highest rank players in the game did not have it this week with each one showing weaknesses that this course exposed. One player that didn't succumb was the winner, Aaron Rai.
This championship was a thinking mans test. Hit the fairway first. Length was not premium. Hit the greens first and attack the pins when possible. Putting of course was paramount, but defensive first and aggressive second. Maybe others had this game plan, but only Aaron Rai executed it to perfection. Rai will win again and maybe another major, but this win was seized. Six under par the last 10 holes was not luck. He took what was there, when none of the other "great players" had the right stuff.
This year's PGA Championship will be remembered as a dual triumph: the formidable Aronimink course won the daily battles, but a sure and steady Aaron Rai won the war.
