The 2025 PGA Championship is done, and Scottie Scheffler won his third career major by winning his first PGA Championship in his career. After the roller coaster tournament concluded, there are a lot of thoughts running through my head, and it is time to get them down on digital paper.

There are 18 holes on a golf course, so here are 18 thoughts after the 2025 PGA Championship has concluded, in no particular order:

1 – Players who missed the cut

The players who were in contention was a surprise in a way, but the players who missed the cut and didn’t even make it to the weekend was even more surprising. Players like Justin Thomas, Ludvig Aberg and Brooks Koepka all were left outside the cut line during the second major. While Aberg and Koepka’s game weren’t in a great place heading into Quail Hollow, Thomas missing the cut was a shock. Thomas had already won a signature event this season, and has had several Top 10 finishes. It just goes to show you never know what will happen during a major.

2 – Rory’s driver controversy

There was a lot of controversy which was stirred up when it became public Rory McIlroy’s driver was considered non-conforming to the PGA Tour’s standards. Some drew the conclusion he was cheating, and others thought it was just a coincidence. After Scottie Scheffler admitted his driver was also deemed non-conforming earlier in the week it threw some water on the heat directed at Rory. However, Rory didn’t help himself much in the matter…more on that later.

3 – Fans chirping at Brooks Koepka

There was a video of Brooks Koepka walking from green to tee during a round and a fan was “chirping” the now LIV golfer about his guaranteed money. Koepka didn’t ignore it, and instead turned and told the heckler to come down from the luxury box and say it to his face. The fan chose to not do so, and it was nice to see an athlete shut up a fan who wants to talk trash behind the rope, or screen, without the fear of repercussions.

4 – The “Up vs. Down” debate

Quail Hollow and the Charlotte area got pounded with rain early in the week, and many were wondering if the tournament would do what the Byron Nelson did two weeks prior and let players play it “up” for the early rounds. For those who don’t know, playing it “up” is talking about the lift-clean-and-place rule which allows a player to remove any mud from their ball if it is in the fairway. The PGA chose to have players play it “down”, meaning they had to live with the consequences of mudballs. Scottie Scheffler said it best when he said how he was disappointed in not being able to remove mud from his ball, but also knows it is the same playing field for every golfer out there. To me, it was a decision to be made, it was made, and therefore there is no debate.

5 – McIlroy skips media all four days

Rory didn’t play well at Quail Hollow, a venue he typically owns, and when his driver news hit the media you would think he’d at least speak on it to quiet the noise. McIlroy was asked to speak after every round of the major, and he denied every request. After the media session Wednesday before Round 1 Rory didn’t speak again. He doesn’t owe it to speak, but he didn’t do himself any favors either. It’s just a bad look, in my opinion.

6 – Even the best struggle in this game

The course conditions were tough this past weekend, and even the best golfers in the world struggled. When even Scottie Scheffler can’t find a fairway on the front nine with a Sunday lead, you know things are off with the planet. In all seriousness, it was nice to see the players have to scratch and claw their way to success during the weekend, and it helps solidify the PGA Championship, and Quail Hollow, for at least this year.

7 – Wyndham Clark meltdown

There were several meltdowns on the course over the weekend, but none greater than Wyndham Clark on Sunday where he threw his drive and broke it.

Check it out:

Is it time for the PGA Tour and majors to make fines public?

Wyndham Clark with a super dangerous club throw. Breaks his driver.

They get fined for this, but it’s all kept secret to protect the players. Another problem with a player-run sport.pic.twitter.com/xKPeiVdzcM

— Rick Golfs (@Top100Rick) May 18, 2025

Clark has apologized for his actions, claiming they were very unprofessional, and I couldn’t agree more. Throwing a club is never a good look.

8 – What to think of Bryson DeChambeau

Bryson continues to be a steady force in majors, but there just seems like something is off in his game. For the second straight major his distance control has been lacking to the point where it has done him in. His driver was beyond impressive this weekend, and his putting was more than adequate. But it was his iron game which cost him dearly. If he wants to defense his US Open title, he’ll need to get that fixed quickly.

9 – I didn’t see Jon Rahm coming

When I saw the opening odds for the PGA Championship, Jon Rahm was the 4th best odds to win at +1800. I was shocked he was that high, but he proved me wrong with some stellar play Saturday and even early on Sunday. He was a lip-out away from taking the Championship lead, but then the wheels fell off. I have to be honest, I didn’t see Rahm coming at all, but if he continues to play at this level he’ll be a Bryson-like force in the game’s major championships.

10 – Then there was Rahm’s collapse

Speaking of Rahm’s collapse, it was one for the history books. With the championship hanging in the balance, he finished the green mile (holes 16, 17, 18) with the scores of 5, 5, and 6. That would equate to +5 on those three holes. For everything that went right for Rahm early on Sunday, it all went to hell in a handbasket on those final three holes.

11 – The Max Homa ride continues

Max Homa is a tough nut to crack, but an easy guy to root for. He works his tail off, and is starting to see some of that work come to fruition with some quality finishes in tournaments. He was ascending the leaderboard Friday before the weekend rounds did him in. You can see frustration set in when Homa, who struggled to hit a green in regulation in Rounds 3-4, threw his club after hitting another wayward shot.

Great form here from Homa. Throw it down and to the left. Keeps fans out of danger and ideally the club simply tumbles forward and you can grab it on your way to the green. 9 out of 10 throw pic.twitter.com/ZXCQJVP0wd

— Christopher Powers (@CPowers14) May 18, 2025

The Homa ride continues, and I’m rooting for him to find some sense of equilibrium soon.

12 – Roller Coaster Final Round

The Final Round of the PGA Championship was absolutely a roller coaster ride. Scottie’s horrible front nine combined with Jon Rahm’s stellar play to almost take the lead. Throw in the other players who were falling off, Alex Noren, and climbing the leaderboard made for a dramatic finish. If you thought Scheffler was just going to run away with it, he didn’t, and it made for great theatre.

13 – DeChambeau the contender

You may hate Bryson DeChambeau, but the guy is a contender and big tournament player. Just look at his finishes in the last six major championships:

• 2024 Masters: T6
• 2024 PGA Championship: 2nd
• 2024 US Open: 1st
• 2024 Open Championship: Missed Cut
• 2025 Masters: T5
• 2025 PGA Championship: T2

The guy comes to play, and it doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere anytime soon.

14 – Scottie’s magical Saturday

While everyone will talk about Scottie’s issues on Sunday, and I will too, his Saturday round shouldn’t be forgotten. Scheffler couldn’t miss, and if you love to see dominant golf, it was impressive. The golden mile which did in Rahm on Sunday, Scottie made look like a walk in the park on Saturday. The reason why everyone thought the tournament was over was based on how Scottie finished Saturday’s round. Then Sunday came…

15 – Scottie’s disappointing Front 9 on Sunday

I’ve watched a lot of Scottie Scheffler’s golf since he became a prominent player on the PGA Tour, and I’ve never seen him miss this many shots in the final round of a tournament he is leading. Sure, I’ve seen him play poorly, but never when he enters the final round with a multiple-stroke lead. It was disappointing, to say the last, but it also helped him bounce back in a big way on the back nine Sunday.

16 – Short Game Scottie saves the day

What was it about Scottie’s game which saved him when he was hitting it so poorly on Sunday? It was his short game. Scheffler was able to save par on numerous occasions, and it kept his head above water when the average golfer would have drowned. All in all, Scottie Scheffler’s short game was on point, and he needed it to be. It also justifies my thoughts on how if Scottie is putting and chipping well, it takes him collapsing in other aspects of his game for anyone else to have a chance.

17 – What a major championship run the last two years

Let’s just take a look back at major championship winners we’ve had since the start of 2024:

• Scottie Scheffler
• Xander Schauffele
• Bryson DeChambeau
• Xander Schauffele
• Rory McIlroy
• Scottie Scheffler

Some say golf is trending in the way of tennis, meaning if you aren’t an elite player you don’t have a chance, but we’ve been given quite the gift the last two seasons of seeing some tremendous golf by some of the biggest names in the game.

18 – Next up…

Next up is the US Open at Oakmont Country Club just outside of Pittsburgh, PA. If people complained about Quail Hollow, you won’t have to worry about Oakmont being a tough test. The course will be long and punishing, which is exactly what fans think of when they think of a US Open. Should make for some serious drama over Father’s Day weekend…

Jeff Hartman is the host of the Fairways & Dreams podcast, and the latest show can be heard in the player below: