For three days, and on Saturday in particular, the golf was slow. But on Sunday, there was a race to the line with a back nine of cut and thrust. Unusually the championship was hosted by a track, Quail Hollow, the field knew intimately. Or did they? The change from bent grass to Bermuda threatened the excellent records of many course specialists. Who performed above, and who dipped below, expectations in the final major championship of 2017? It's time for grades.
Grade: C
Earns B+ for helping out Jason Day with a quick sprint to the 18th tee to ensure they completed their second round on Friday night, but C for the golf which has been vexing since he rocked up to Augusta off the back of three straight wins. Never a fan of Quail Hollow (previous record there: MC, T-29, MC) it wasn't a huge surprise that he struggled to contend, but he'll be sore that this week's performance is his best of the 2017 major season, something he'd have found utterly incomprehensible if you'd told him on Monday of Masters week.
World ranking: No. 1
Score: 70-74-73-67 (Even)
Grade: C-
His goal at the start of the week was to win the career Grand Slam, so the reality of finishing his final round shortly after the 54-hole leader teed off will hurt. But one reason he is a superstar at the age of 24 is his remarkable maturity and he knows this was a tough gig. "I feel like my game truly suits the other three majors more than the PGA," he admitted Saturday. Moreover, his only previous visit to the course (T-32 in 2013) had given him enough reason to avoid it until he had no option but to return. He'll have better chances to win this tournament in the future.
World ranking: No. 2
Score: 72-73-71-70 (+2)
Grade: B
The Japanese star's roller-coaster season of major championship golf refused to settle at Quail Hollow, as he soared the heights and plumbed the depths with his scoring. Let's review it again: The Masters (76-70-74-67), the U.S. Open (74-65-71-66), The Open (69-73-67-73) and then this week (70-64-73-72). On the final day it was his back nine that veered one way and then another, as he made five bogeys and three birdies, eventually slipping out of contention and missing out on the opportunity to become Japan's first men's major winner.
World ranking: No. 3
Score: 70-64-73-72 (-5)
Grade: D
A tough grade because expectations were high coming into the week as not only a two-time past winner of the championship, but a two-time course winner as well. His success at Quail Hollow was based on stellar greens in regulation stats: In seven previous visits (six cuts made, all top-10 finishes) he found 73 percent of the greens. This week he found just 56 percent of them through 54 holes (he boosted that to 60 percent on the final day when the pressure was off) and it didn't help that he holed just two putts from outside 10 feet. He has now had three barren years of major glory and the wait until next April must stretch ahead of him like an endless desert of pure frustration.
World ranking: No. 4
Score: 72-72-73-68 (+1)
Grade: D-
High on pre- and post-nuptial bliss, Sergio might easily have floated through the last month of major and WGC golf on a wonderful high. Alas, he didn't, but give the guy a break. In 2017 he has won a green jacket and the heart of a beautiful bride, so he's pretty much earned the right to be distracted. (And history did hint it might happen: He makes four out of every five cuts in the other three majors and just one in every two at the PGA Championship.)
World ranking: No. 5
Score: 75-75 (missed cut)
Grade: D
The first sign that Seve was a talent destined for the major stage was an audacious 72nd-hole chip in 1976 at The Open. In the final round at the 2017 PGA Championship, his compatriot Rahm played a one-handed backward shot on No. 18 that was less skillful but equally daring. It was a reminder of his promise because, despite everything Rahm has achieved in just more than 12 months as a professional, it's tempting to be a little underwhelmed by his early major championship efforts. This was his sixth start in the majors and he's still seeking a top-20 finish. But we need as much patience as he does; we need to remember that although he looks like he has been driving Peterbilt trucks coast-to-coast for the past two decades, he has actually only 22.
World ranking: No. 6
Score: 70-75-71-75 (+7)
Grade: C+
Friday night he was playing fast golf with a smile on his face; rushing to complete a 4-under 66, which had him 2 back of the leaders, before the horn called a halt to play. A day later he was again playing the 18th hole at high speed, but this time with egg on his face. A high tariff escape from the trees with his second shot went wrong, and as he neared the green, he was hitting shots almost the second he got to the ball on his way to a quadruple-bogey 8. It would have been weird for a normal golfer, but for the normally very slow Day, it betrayed how foolish he felt. But realistically he's making progress. He's on the way back.
World ranking: No. 7
Score:70-66-77-70 (-1)
Grade: C
Six previous visits to Quail Hollow had seen the Swede make just two weekends and never better than T-58. In that context, this week was quite a success. It was also the fifth week in a row he has played four rounds, something he hasn't done since March. If those two factors boost his grade, the fact that he has failed to contend in a major this year is a huge disappointment. He's clearly not the golfer of this time last year, but he looks to be improving, perhaps able to concentrate on-the-course after all the off-the-course distractions of being the Open champion in 2016.
World ranking: No. 8
Score: 74-70-70-70 (Even)
Grade: D-
A tale of two PGA Championships for the Swede in 2017. He smashed a magnificent final round 10-under 62 to win the European Tour's BMW PGA Championship in May, his ninth title on that circuit, but his effort this week reiterates his struggles to transfer that form to the world stage. In fact, in 11 starts in the American majors, his best finish is a mere T-34. Don't overlook him, however. Improved WGC performances this season and T-6 in The Open hint that his time will come.
World ranking: No. 9
Score: 74-69-75-77 (+11)
Grade: B
A frustrating end to a frustrating season of major championship golf. He led the Masters after 36 holes and the U.S. Open after 18; he was top two after nine holes of The Open and this week he peaked right at the end. Unfortunately his wonderful final lap of 4-under 67 was too late to impact on the very top of the leaderboard. A good week, no question, but the cruel fate of the golfer who lacks a major title on the résumé is that a good week is never ever good enough.
World ranking: No. 10
Score: 69-70-73-67 (-5)
Grade: A+
Thomas' father Mike was once a starter at the PGA Championship. On Sunday he walked the fairways watching his son prove himself a consummate finisher. Remember the U.S. Open? Thomas smashed a record-tying third-round 63 before fluffing his lines on the final day. Recall the Open Championship just four weeks ago? Thomas made headlines for what he was wearing (a tie and cardigan); this week his golf was the star. He opened with a lap of 73 but thereafter was magnificent and he closed out in style, ridding himself of a series of challengers and negotiating the Green Mile (the final three holes) with skill and nerve, joining his good buddy Jordan Spieth as a major winner.
World ranking: No. 14
Score: 73-66-69-68 (-8)
Grade: A
Three years after declaring himself a world top-five player, during which time he has excelled in the Ryder Cup, the 27-year-old has finally logged a major championship top-10 finish at the 16th time of asking. It was a gap in his résumé that needed attention and, although he'll be irked that he closed out with a bogey when par might have tested Thomas' nerve, Reed will ultimately conclude that this week's result is a fine building block with which to contend for a major in 2018.
World ranking: No. 28
Score: 69-73-69-67 (-6)
Grade: F
Oh Phil. Just more than 12 months ago he produced one of the greatest major championship performances at The Open. Only problem? Henrik Stenson played even better at Royal Troon. Since then his major challenges have been underwhelming in the extreme, culminating in missing the cut by a mile at both Royal Birkdale and then here this week at Quail Hollow. This latter effort is particularly cruel, being his first lost weekend in the PGA since 1995. The shadow of Old Father Time is creeping across his line.
World ranking: No. 30
Score: 79-74 (missed cut)
Grade: D-
Between the U.S. Open of 2008 and the Masters of 2014, the Englishman was banging on the door of a major championship breakthrough like a man caught out in a storm. In that period he racked up 12 top-10 finishes in 23 starts. Since then? Just the one in 15. That was when he and Danny Willett stood on the 16th tee in the 2016 Masters with an unexpected opportunity to win following Jordan Spieth's collapse at the 12th. It's increasingly looking as if that was Westwood's last chance saloon; the final opportunity to avoid Colin Montgomerie's fate of bowing out with no big one to his name.
World ranking: No. 57
Score: 73-72-75-74 (+10)