Aronimink Golf Club Is About to Swallow the Best Players in the World, and 174 Bunkers Are Just the Start

It's major championship week, and we're heading to one of the toughest tests in golf. The PGA Championship rolls into Aronimink Golf Club just outside Philadelphia, and unlike some years when these tournaments turn into birdie fests, this week is different. The setup here screams "make them suffer," and frankly, a single digit under par score might be all it takes to win the whole thing.

Last Year's Lesson: Even Dominance Gets Tested

Scottie Scheffler won last year's PGA at Quail Hollow by a convincing 5 strokes, which sounds like he cruised. Wrong. He came into Sunday with only a 3 stroke lead, and on the back nine, he stumbled hard early, bogeying the first hole and playing the front nine in 2 over. Jon Rahm actually caught him briefly at 9 under after birdieing 10 and 11. For a second, we had serious fireworks brewing.

Then Scottie flipped the switch. He birdied 10 to take the lead and never looked back. Rahm fell apart down the stretch, going bogey-double-double at the Green Mile to tumble all the way back to T-10. Scottie birdied 14 and 15 to reopen his 5 shot lead and cruise home stress-free with his first PGA Championship win. Bryson, Harris English, and Davis Riley all finished as co-runners-up.

Welcome to Aronimink: 174 Bunkers of Misery

Aronimink is a classic Donald Ross design playing as a par 70 at 7,394 yards. Built in 1928, it went through a major restoration in 2016-17 by Gil Hanse before hosting the 2018 BMW Championship. But here's the killer: there are 174 bunkers on this property, and they're everywhere. Many line and cross fairways to force tough decisions off the tee.

The rough is thick, the greens are tiered, and if you're not hitting fairways and controlling your approach shots, you're toast. The Par 3 17th at 229 yards is the best hole on the course, a long downhill test where water runs down the entire left side of the green. Pin placements here could make or break someone's championship Sunday.

Format and Field

It's stroke play, 72 holes, with 156 golfers in the field. The PGA Championship cuts to the Top 70 and ties, not the 65-man cut the tour uses elsewhere. The playoff format is 3-hole aggregate with holes 10, 17, and 18, repeating 18 if needed. The field includes world-class players who've qualified on merit, past PGA Championship winners, and 20 PGA professionals. Realistically, only a couple of those club pros make the cut, so the true competitive field sits around 125 golfers.

ESPN and CBS have the coverage this week. You know where you'll be when there's live golf on.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.