In truth, the only one of Walker’s rivals who retained belief until the bitter end was Aussie Day whose last hole eagle briefly gave him hope of celebrating back-to-back US PGA titles. “Sometimes a par is tough”, Walker said. It was a battle all day. He addressed the ball again and drained his birdie putt for a three-stroke lead. “I know how it feels”, Day said. They screamed from the bleachers behind the 18th green of the Lower Course. Walker, who shot a 68 in the morning for a one-shot lead over Day, didn’t make a bogey over the last 28 holes.
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Walker shot a bogey-free 3-under 67 to win the PGA Championship, becoming the fourth first-time major champion this year.
Daniel Summerhays finished in third position after accelerating with six birdies in the final ten holes of his fourth round to enter the clubhouse at ten-under par.
“Walker was the last man standing on this marathon Sunday which saw the pacesetters play 36 holes”, says James Corrigan of the Daily Telegraph.
They also ruled that final-round play would be conducted with preferred lies given the saturated state of the Baltusrol course and more rain expected.
Jimmy Walker kisses the trophy after winning the PGA Championship golf tournament at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, N.J., Sunday, July 31, 2016.
Thunderstorms that prevented leaders from starting the third round of the PGA Championship on Saturday set the stage for a freaky finish at rain-swamped Baltusrol.
That’s what we want to see at major championships: the best player in the world doing things only two or three players in the world can do.
It was more of the same this weekend at the PGA Championship at Baltusrol, with Jimmy Walker parring the 72nd hole of the weekend to beat Jason Day by one stroke. The outcome was still in doubt until Walker missed the green to the right, pitched out of deep rough to 35 feet and rolled his first putt about 3 feet past the cup. Then Walker responded with a birdie of his own from 30 feet at the 11th to reach 13 under, moving two clear of Day with Stenson three adrift. Walker, addressing his birdie putt at 17, heard the roar of he crowd and backed off.
“That would have been nice”, Day said.
“He really put it on me to make a par”, Walker said. Nothing in golf comes easy. At the venue itself, Jason Day hung around in narrow defeat to make a point of congratulating the 37-year-old.
On Friday, the cup on No. 10 was put on the wrong side of the green but the PGA Rules Committee didn’t notice it until the first group off that tee had already hit their second shots so the cup was left on the right side for the remainder of the round.
“I’m a little disappointed, but you know what?”
“I really honestly didn’t think we were going to get it in today”, Day said, figuring that the tournament would have to be concluded on Monday. “He’s a top bloke and a deserving victor”. Mickelson also said he would win multiple majors, and that one at Baltusrol sent him on his way, as he won the Masters the following spring and almost the U.S. Open after that.
He finished tied with Martin Kaymer as the top European after the German eagled the par-five 18th to close with a four-under-par 66 and eight under total.
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Walker said he and his long time caddie Andy Sanders, who he met at Baltusrol when both were playing in the 2000 U.S. Amateur, chose to go for the green as dictated by the distance and the good lie.
