Jordan Spieth believes his game is ready to challenge for the PGA Championship, but insists the pressure of completing a career Grand Slam is different from what Rory McIlroy faced.
McIlroy achieved a dramatic playoff victory at the Masters last April, becoming the sixth male player to win all four major titles. He won the green jacket in his 17th appearance at Augusta National, and completed the third round of the Grand Slam for the first time in 11 years.
Spieth won the Masters and U.S. Open in 2015 and then the Open in 2017, and this year’s PGA Championship will be broadcast live from Thursday at Aronimink Golf Club. Sky Sports Golf – This is your 10th chance to claim the missed major required to join golf’s Grand Slam club.
“My situation was definitely different than his (McIlroy) situation at Augusta, so I think it was unique to him,” Spieth insisted. “I’ve probably never seen that reaction from other people who have done that.
“It was obviously a very unique final round for Rory, and with his history of leading there (in 2011, when he blew a four-stroke lead on the final day), I don’t think it will feel similar.
Jordan Spieth has 13 wins on the PGA Tour, but he hasn’t won since the 2022 RBC Heritage.
“I kept feeling like I was competing or had a good chance of competing in every major over the years, and then periodically I felt like I could do that again, so I want to give myself a chance.”
Spieth finished runner-up to Jason Day at the 2015 PGA Championship, and while he finished fourth or better in all four majors that year, his third-place finish in 2019 was his only top-10 finish in a tournament since then.
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Jordan Spieth made a quadruple bogey on the par-3 12th hole at the 2016 Masters and lost the lead over the final nine holes.
The former world No. 1 has fallen outside the world’s top 50 after failing to crack the world’s top 10 so far in 2026, and although he arrived in Pennsylvania last week after finishing 52nd at the Truist Championship, he insists he can challenge for his first PGA Tour win since 2022.
“If I could win one more tournament in my life, it would definitely be this one (Grand Slam) for that reason,” Spieth explained. “But the easiest way is not to try strange methods.
“Just go out there, prepare for the first hole, have a good game plan and attack it the way you need to attack it. My game is getting better and better. It’s good enough to have a chance to win.”
If Spieth can’t find a grand slam, will Scheffler be next?
If Spieth fails in his bid to regain the missing major, world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler could become the seventh golfer to join the sport’s most exclusive club by winning the US Open this summer.
Scheffler needs only to win all four majors and complete golf greatness by winning at Shinnecock Hills, where the final round takes place on his 30th birthday, and has already surpassed McIlroy, who topped the men’s category in recent seasons.
Can Scottie Scheffler pull off a career grand slam with Rory McIlroy?
He won his first major title at the 2022 Masters, regained his title two years later, and is poised to become the next Grand Slammer following dominant victories at the PGA Championship and The Open last season.
“Ever since Rory won the Grand Slam, it’s been on everyone’s mind,” Scheffler said after winning The Open at Royal Portrush last July. “It’s definitely a career accomplishment, but I don’t focus too much on that.”
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Watch the moment Scottie Scheffler completes his third match of the Grand Slam by winning The Open at Royal Portrush.
Considering Spieth and McIlroy’s past struggles with the likes of Lee Trevino, Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Sam Snead, Byron Nelson and Raymond Floyd, there is no guarantee that Scheffler will achieve Grand Slam success right away.
Phil Mickelson is another guy who should only be playing at the US Open. He has finished second in this event six times, but missed the cut four years in a row and did not participate in this year’s event.
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When Phil Mickelson appears at the 2021 PGA Championship, he becomes the oldest major winner of all time at age 50.
Can Rahm get one step closer to a Grand Slam?
Rahm won his first major title at the 2021 US Open and the Masters two years later. That means a win in Pennsylvania this week will give him a chance to complete the Grand Slam at The Open later this summer.
The former world No. 1 finished eighth last year, his third top-eight finish at the PGA Championship, and briefly shared the lead in the final round until Rahm played the final three holes at 5 over par.
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Highlights of the final round of the 2025 PGA Championship as Scottie Scheffler wins by five strokes to claim his third major championship.
“I want to win a Grand Slam,” Rahm said ahead of last year’s PGA Championship, “of course it’s not easy.” “I think if I win another third championship like Jordan (Spice) was able to do, I’ll think a lot more about it.
“If I could think of one right now, I would focus more on the number of majors than any major. Let’s say I never achieve that. I’d probably rather be like Sir Nick Faldo (who has six of two of them) than have three different majors, if that makes sense.
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Jon Rahm explains the agreement reached with the DP World Tour to reinstate his membership and maintain his eligibility to play in the Ryder Cup.
“If I get all four and win one of each, I think it will be so important that I might win more than six. But as I am now, I will only think about third place and focus on a possible Grand Slam if it comes to the Open or PGA (Championship).”
Johnson is another player with a chance to move three-quarters of the way to this week’s Grand Slam, having won the 2016 U.S. Open and the 2020 Masters, but he has only had two top-20 finishes in a major since joining the LIV Golf League in the summer of 2022.
The American posted back-to-back runner-up finishes in 2019 and 2020, but has missed the cut in three of his last five PGA Championship appearances, including last year.
Who will be next to join golf’s Grand Slam club?
Colin Morikawa He has tied for 25th or better in his last five U.S. Open appearances, has already won the PGA Championship (2020) and The Open (2021), and has finished in the top 20 at the Masters each of the last six years, including a third-place finish in 2014.
Speaking at the 2025 Masters, Morikawa said, “If the Grand Slam isn’t on your mind, you really don’t care. To me, you want to put yourself in those positions because you care. It doesn’t always work out, but it’s definitely something you want to try and achieve.”
Collin Morikawa withdrew from The Players in March after one hole due to a back injury.
Xander Schauffele He also has the same two major wins as Morikawa, lifting both the 2024 PGA Championship and The Open, and the American already has 13 other career top-10 finishes across the Masters and The Open.
“Before I became a major, a Grand Slam was what I always wanted,” Schauffele said after winning the Claret Jug. “I’m one step closer and there’s still a long way to go, but if you can’t see yourself doing it, you’ll never do it.”
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Watch final round highlights from The Open at Royal Troon 2024 as Xander Schauffele shoots a 65 to win the Claret Jug.
Brooks Koepka Until McIlroy’s back-to-back Masters wins eclipsed his record, he had the most wins in a men’s major over the past 20 years, with the former world No. 1 notching three PGA Championship wins (2018, 2019, 2023) along with back-to-back U.S. Open titles in 2017 and 2018.
Koepka has failed to crack any major top 10 since winning the Wanamaker Trophy for the third time at Oak Hill, but like Johnson and Rahm, he could be within reach of a Grand Slam title if he wins the Open at Royal Birkdale this July.
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Tom Watson has suggested that returning players from LIV Golf, like Brooks Koepka, should compete on the Korn Ferry Tour for a year to qualify for the PGA Tour.
Bryson DeChambeau He is a two-time U.S. Open champion and has consecutive runner-up finishes in the last two PGA Championships. If he can take another step this week, he will jump into the conversation as a potential future Grand Slam contender.
There was a gap of 25 years before McIlroy joined Tiger Woods in the Grand Slam club. Many of the players in the PGA Championship field this week will be trying to avoid the long wait for the seventh member.
Who will win the PGA Championship? Watch live on Sky Sports seven days a week. Live coverage of the opening match will begin on Sky Sports Golf from 12.30pm on Thursday. Access or stream Sky Sports with no contract.
