PGA Champsionship starts

It’s the eve of the 106 PGA Tournament, the second major tournament of the year.

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Key Narratives

The tournament features many big names, including the defending champion Brooks Koepka and former winners Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, and Scottie Scheffler. They’re all competing for the attractive $20 million purse.

McIlroy has had an eventful couple of weeks leading up to this tournament. On the course, he’s celebrated victories at the Zurich classic and at the Wells Fargo Championship last week. Judging from his recent play, his favorable odds of winning (+600, second highest odds, according to CBS sports) are understandable.

However, the major developments in his personal life on Monday leave room for doubt when it comes to how mentally prepared he is to perform at his best. He filed for divorce from his wife, Erica Stoll, after seven years of marriage. Consequently, many have considered the possibility that the quality of his performance will falter if his composure is shot.

Jordan Spieth has a chance to secure the illustrious career Grand Slam with a PGA victory. This means he would have won all four of Golf’s major championships. He would put himself in elite company if he does succeed, potentially standing alongside Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus, and Tiger Woods.

Speaking of Tiger, he returns to the site of his iconic victory in 2000 to try and add to his superb resume. Twenty-four years later, Tiger has been through many challenges. Ever since his car accident, he hasn’t been the same player, nor has he had a realistic chance to see success in any of his appearances in majors. Despite this, he’s still confident in his ability to be the winner he’s always been.

Former Gators in Attendance

Two former UF golfers, Billy Horschel (+12500) and Camilo Villegas (+35000) are competing in the PGA tournament as well. Horschel is set to tee off at 1:29 pm and Villegas is set to tee off at 2:24 pm. Both have won tournaments previously in their careers (Horschel with eight, Villegas with five), but securing an upset win here would be a tremendously impressive feat.