It’s Friday now which means, when adjusted for attention span inflation, the 2026 PGA Championship ended roughly three and a half years ago.
But I haven’t moved yet.
(In fairness and transparency, I planned to finish and publish this piece on Monday, but long story short, I didn’t. Here we are.)
I wrote about Aaron Ray Sunday night. But here are 10 sights, sounds, stats and feelings from Aronimink that keep rattling around my skull.
1. Padraig’s Dream
When I spoke to Padraig Harrington IN Saturday eveninghe was dreaming of an attack on Sunday, of an improbable victory by T31, a half-dozen shots on a leaderboard full of leaders.
He didn’t get his fairytale ending – but he got something pretty cool nonetheless. After Sunday’s first 15 holes, he went for eagle on No. 16.
Then, after a par on No. 17, he hit a cool bladed wedge on No. 18 for birdie to secure a lower, top-20 finish.
So how impressive was Harrington’s tour?
-His T18 was his best major finish in five years (since his T4 at the 2021 PGA)
-He is just the third player age 54 or older to finish in the top 20 at a PGA Championship, joining Sam Snead and Gene Sarazen. (For the record, Snead finished T4-T9-T3 in 1970-1971-1972 at ages 60-61-62. Crazy.)
-Over the final 54 holes (dropping his opening 74) Harrington shot 69-67-69, five under par, bettered only by Ludvig Aberg (seven under) and Aaron Rai (nine under).
On to the US Open in Shinnecock, where Harrington will continue to dream.
2. Cam Smith’s shot
It was a joy to watch Cam Smith returns to competing in a major – in part just to watch him hit the big goals. After six straight missed cuts in the majors, Smith hired a new swing coach (Claude Harmon III) and immediately put on a streaking show with his irons, which pair well with a putter that has been hot throughout his golf life.
Smith’s drive remains a complete adventure, which somehow adds to the thrill of watching. But he clearly found some magic in Aronimink, and I’m curious to see where he takes this form next.
After the tournament, Smith expressed his excitement — and admitted how bittersweet it was to find success with a new coach.
“I’m proud of the way I showed up this week, with a new mindset and a new drive,” he said. “It was a difficult call to make to my coach grant (field) since I was 9 years old. So I’ve been with him for 23 years, and probably one of the hardest calls I’ve ever had to make.
“And, yeah, it’s still kind of a stretch, but I feel like I made the right call, and I can see it in my golf and just my ball-striking and seeing some different shots. It’s been good.”
3. Sincerity of Rahm
Profit takes care of everything, like Tiger Woods he used to say.
One conclusion: Finishing T2 playing really well only to get beaten by a guy who makes four birdies and an eagle in the last 10 holes takes care of it almost everything. Sign in Jon Rahmwho was delighted after a final round of 68 left him T2, his first major top-five finish since 2023.
I appreciated his golf and his candor on Sunday night as he reflected on the narrative earlier in the week that the scores would be pretty low:
“I spent most of Monday and Tuesday wondering what was wrong with me because everyone was saying we were going to shoot 15-20 under here, and I didn’t see a chance in the world of that happening,” he said. “Nine and six (under par, for first and second place) are still lower than I expected.
“I mean, I definitely performed well last week (T8 at LIV Virginia). I did really well in Mexico (won LIV Mexico). After the Masters (T38) I played well. It’s just — when the pressure is higher in the majors, some of those things that you’re working on, those weak links can hurt the foundation, right? Just happy that all those things that I felt better working on this week I could have done.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/DYiIDlgqS_r
4. Two Masters invites
Alex Smalley was unable to maintain the two-shot lead he held entering Sunday’s final round. But he received a whole package of consolation prizes – including an invitation to next year’s Masters.
Long after the tournament winner was decided, Smalley finished eagle-bogey-birdie to score a T2, while his playing partner Matt Schmidt completed T4. Neither has ever played the Masters, and because every major top-four finish earns you an invitation to Augusta National, that’s about to change.
And it’s clear that was on Smalley’s mind on the final green.
“I’m excited to go to Augusta next year. I knew the top fours and ties going into Augusta, so I knew it was a possibility,” Smalley said. “I wasn’t really thinking about it, honestly, until I hit the green on 18 and I saw where I was. I was just trying to two-putt, just trying to get it late. That 20 feet up the hill on 18, I was just trying to putt in. Lucky it went in.
(It was also worth it, such as one million dollars.)
“As far as this tournament, as far as my career, who knows? Maybe it’s a stepping stone. It gives me a lot of confidence coming into this week to know that I can compete on the PGA Tour and even some of the majors.”
5. PGA return invitations
The top 15 winners and ties are invited back to next year’s PGA Championship, which could mean a massive opportunity. (The 2025 PGA, for example, included several wild card contenders, which meant some players like Davis Riley, Joe Highsmith AND Johnny Vegas returned to the 2026 PGA when they otherwise would not have played.)
This year’s top 15 was mostly populated by top-ranked players, who we’ll expect next year anyway, but it’s a good guarantee for Smalley (No. 42 in the world) and Schmid (No. 65) as well Kurt Kitayama (No. 29) and Max Greyserman (No. 63) knowing they have a prime time of 2027 to count on, even if other things go sideways.
6. World ranking jumps
This is more of a fun fact than anything else, but some of the biggest jumps in the world rankings after the PGA are a reminder of some unexpected members of the supporting cast of the week.
– Pro club Ben Kern made the cut, finished 80th and went from not listed THE No. 1781
-Harrington’s T18 rocketed from No. 894 THE 502
–Martin Kaymer finished T35 to jump from No. 1160 THE 720
– The reigning hero of the Ryder Cup Luke Donald made the cut, finished T70 and jumped from No. 1300 THE No. 1081
-And Cam Smith‘s T7 took it from No. 239 THE 145
7. Scottie, Rory, Xander
Rory McIlroy finished T7, his 15th finish of eighth or better in a major since 2020.
World number 1 Scottie Scheffler finished T14.
How stable has their joint presence been in the degrees? It’s been more than five years – since the 2021 Masters – since we finished a major without McIlroy or Scheffler in the top 10.
And then there is Xander SchauffeleHis T7 was his 16th top 20 in his last 17 major starts. Astounding durability in the game’s biggest events.
It is no coincidence that these three have won seven of the last 10 titles.
8. Aaron Rai’s shot at No. 13
I was posted behind the par-4 13th for a while on Sunday afternoon, watching the action while listening to the rest unfold on the radio. (They give these headphones out at some big events. They’re especially fun to have when things get chaotic.)
McIlroy and Schauffele came out and each made a mess of the hole, struggling just to make par 5. But then Aaron Ray came in and, from the same front bunker where Schauffele had just sailed a hole-in-one past the back corner, hit the perfect putt. When he completed his birdie 3, he took control of the tournament for good.
9. Aaron Rai’s putt on No. 16
If there’s one ball flight I’ll remember from PGA 2026, it’s the sight of Rai’s approach on the par-5 16th, a flying, left-right banana putt that I saw from behind the green. She not only found the green, but landed in the perfect spot to follow through to a precarious right-turned pin, setting it up. If he had made a level there, the door would have been left open. Instead of her really it seemed over.
10. Aaron Rai’s putt on No. 17
I stood on a comfortable patch of grass near the 17th tee as Rai marched to the green on the penultimate hole, a par-3 over water. A sketchy tee shot (his brain’s anti-lefty mechanism taking over) left him with nearly 70 feet for birdie. All week, the amphitheater around the 17th and 18th greens had been the best spot on the property, and I enjoyed the wide-angle view from several hundred yards behind the action. I wondered what a three-shot might mean. In the crash, Rai appeared to me to have suppressed his own shot as well; for a split second I wondered if he could get through the hole and into the water.
Turns out his judgment was a little better than mine. As the ball found the bottom of the cup, I without the crowd’s reaction just a split second before the sound reached me, which somehow made the noise hit even harder when it arrived.
(Look at the eyes and you can see a hunched over guy in a white shirt and navy pants behind the top…)
What an exclamation point.
