The 105th PGA Championship
As the 106th PGA Championship is upon us this week, here is a look back at our time spent at the 105th. We had the incredible experience of getting to attend all four rounds of the 105th PGA Championship hosted at the east course of Oak Hill Country Club in Pittsford, NY, (a suburb of Rochester, NY.) Oak Hill was designed by Donald Ross in 1926 and underwent a major restoration in 2019 by Andrew Green. A prominent member of Oak Hill helped transform the once barren land as he cultivated oak trees from all over the world to plant on the property. He once said he lost count after 75,000 seedlings. As the oaks matured, the masterpiece of Oak Hill really came to life.
Thursday’s round started off with a short frost delay as NY was still warming up to the spring season. Following the delay, the round was underway which we enjoyed in the brisk air. I started out by walking the course in reverse to get a lay of the land and devised a game plan for my viewing strategy for the next three rounds. In addition to scoping out the course, I made my initial (of many) trips to the abundant pro shop.
Round 2 pairings were incredible. I spent most of the day following the 1:25 tee time with Scottie Scheffler, Brooks Koepka, and Gary Woodland where I would watch the tee shots then I would make my way to their approach shot. I would stay there so I could view the green where they would putt out, and then I would watch the 1:36 group come through. In the same fashion. This group was equally as impressive to watch with Rory McIlroy, Justin Thomas, and Collin Morikawa. Talk about 6 ball strikers! I would then jump ahead and repeat this viewing strategy. I saw the course in its entirely, and got to see three of the top ten finishers jockey for position into the weekend.
Saturday’s round required some grit from the field. A total washout of a day, Oak Hill handled the copious amounts of water incredibly. I was first in line for the pro shop to secure a portable chair and more importantly, an umbrella. For Saturday’s round, I made my way to the Chase Reserve lounge behind the tenth green. From here, you could see the entirety of the 10th hole, 11th hole, three shots on the 13th, and the green on 1. This was a very nice home base for refreshments, a break from the rain, and a central meeting place for our crew.
Sunday was an idyllic spring day after the deluge of Saturday. Brooks Koepka outlasted a gauntlet of a course as well as a star studded leaderboard to go on to win his 5th major championship. Scottie Schefflers -5 Sunday was too little too late but good enough for a T2 with Victor Hovland who took a big leap in his major championship performances. We stayed walking distance from the course which was very convenient for our overall experience. Pittsford/Rochester was a gracious host city, read about our non tournament experience here.
