The 97th PGA Championship takes place this week at Whistling Straits Golf Course in Sheboygan, Wis. GolfChannel.com is tracking the men’s final major of the season through on-site reporting and social media. For additional coverage, click here for full-field scores and click here for our Tiger Tracker. All-times for the PGA Championship tracker are Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).
8:00PM: It’s official! That’s three major championships in a row that Dustin Johnson has led after 18 holes. Could this finally be the one? We’ll have to wait to find out. Thanks for following along with our live blog. Come hang out with us again tomorrow.
7:52PM: That four birdies and four bogeys for Phil Mickelson for an even-par 72 to open the PGA Championship.
7:49PM: B-T-Dub ... ‘Live From’ the PGA Championship is headed your way in 11 minutes, on Golf Channel or you can live stream here: http://www.golfchannel.com/livefromstream
Coming up on LIVE From, highlights and analysis from Day 1 at Whistling Straits, where Dustin Johnson leads. pic.twitter.com/P0itdb3luD
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
7:38PM: Meanwhile, Jordan Spieth makes par at 18 for a 1-under 71, also. There is, however, no confusion as to what color his pants are.
And they're in - after a lot of scrambling. Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy turned in matching 1-under 71s in Round 1. pic.twitter.com/STVTmlUMdU
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
7:37PM: Rory McIlroy finishes with bogey at 18 to shoot 1-under 71 in Round 1, but what’s really important here is ...
Solve this dispute. What color would you say are Rory McIlroy's pants? pic.twitter.com/0UQkKPBzKB
— PGA Amateur Golf (@PGAAmateurGolf) August 13, 2015
7:30PM: Phil being Phil. After a birdie at 16, he found himself in a wee bit of trouble on 17:
Here is the view Mickelson found himself with at the 17th: #PGAChamp http://t.co/50OUWp8yCY pic.twitter.com/dXDT4P3EiV
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) August 13, 2015
7:27PM: DJ is still your outright leader after David Lingmerth posts a 5-under 67 in Round 1.
7:22PM: Looky who’s now 1 under after a birdie at the 16th:
7:18PM: Not as many low scores in the afternoon, but these guys didn’t notice:
Best scores this afternoon:
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) August 13, 2015
-5 Lingmerth (16)
-3 Piercy (13)
-2 McIlroy (16)
-2 Yang (F)
-2 Grillo (F) pic.twitter.com/VqluhIKMOP
7:11PM: Birdies for both Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth at the par-5 16th. McIlroy moves to 2 under; Spieth moves to 1 under. Who wants to see them birdie in?
7:08PM: DJ can’t ‘weight’ to get back out for Round 2! He’s off tomorrow at 2:20 p.m. ET.
Work never stops. #ThisIsMajor week! @CoachJoeyD #ultraboost pic.twitter.com/wTvHfzSbbb
— Dustin Johnson (@DJohnsonPGA) August 13, 2015
6:55PM: Ian Baker-Finch with the line of the day in reference to Jordan Spieth’s admonishment of his tee shot (that found a fairway bunker left): That’s not what a snap-hook is. And I know what a snap hook is.
6:54PM: What he said ... Y.E. Yang (the 2009 PGA champion, you might recall) shot a first-round 70 to Tiger Woods’ opening 73.
Y.E. Yang is still beating Tiger Woods.
— Jason Sobel (@JasonSobelTAN) August 13, 2015
6:50PM: Score update for the Nos. 1 and 2 in the world: Rory McIlroy is 1 under through 15 and Jordan Spieth is even through 15. What’s that? You want to know where the third player in their group is? Our bad - Zach Johnson is 2 over through 15.
6:45PM: Just kidding. David Lingmerth just made bogey at the par-4 sixth to drop back to 5 under and now trails DJ by one.
6:28PM: Dustin Johnson’s got company. David Lingmerth joins DJ at 6-under par. Four holes to play in his first round.
6:24PM: Ladies and gentlemen ... Steve Stricker! Wisconsin native finishes off a 1-under 71 with a loud roar from the crowd.
6:10PM: Mark a fifth straight birdie for Koepka. After going out in 40, he’s now under par on the day.
Went 78-64 at Honda. Went 78-67 at Sawgrass. This is old hat. https://t.co/0c6Vm8ub7E
— Will Gray (@WillGrayGolfbet) August 13, 2015
5:57PM: And within a span of about 30 seconds, Phil nearly holes one from the fairway, Spieth bounces back with a chip-in birdie and Brooks Koepka chips in for his fourth straight circle. The PGA Championship has officially started.
5:52PM: David Lingmerth continues to be the only player amongst those with a late tee time anywhere near the lead. He’s one back through 12.
5:46PM: Zach Johnson makes par. Which is the most Zach Johnson sentence of all time.
5:45PM: Rory McIlroy gets to 1-under par with a birdie on 11. Jordan Spieth makes his first non-par of the day, but unfortunately it’s a bogey, after lipping out his short par putt.
5:38PM: Skinny Jason Dufner makes a birdie on 10 ... Almost blows over in the wind picking the ball out of the cup.
5:30PM: Think the Day family is happy with his opening 68?
Happy to start with a 68. Patience was key. DJ was belting it out there but stayed in touch. 1 down, 3 to go.
— Jason Day (@JDayGolf) August 13, 2015
Good start for this guy @JDayGolf @PGAChampionship 🙌 photo by @MandyCaudill pic.twitter.com/178QsbUtDO
— Ellie Day (@ellielaneday) August 13, 2015
5:25PM: And that’s three more pars for the featured group. McIlroy with the 6-footer in heavy wind.
5:17PM: Rory chipping out of some knee-high grass on 10. And considering he could probably barely see the ball, putting it on the green some 50 feet from the hole isn’t so bad.
5:05PM: And Zach Johnson pours in a birdie. Rory follows with one of his own. Spieth makes another par. All sit at even par as they head to the back nine.
4:55PM: Phil bouncing back from that bogey.
4:49PM: And ... our featured group of Spieth, McIlroy and ZJ at 2-over combined through eight holes. Spieth leading the threesome with 8 straight pars. Electric stuff.
4:39PM: Mickelson standing a solid couple feet above his ball on No. 8 in the bunker ... and he hits it to a five feet. And in Classic Phil fashion he misses the putt. Makes bogey. Back to even.
4:33PM: Dustin Johnson’s take on once again sitting in the driver’s seat at a major:
"All I'm looking for is a chance to get it done on the back nine on Sunday." Hear from DJ after an opening 66: http://t.co/xvBrp43js3
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
4:25PM: All the cool kids are playing out of the water.
Phil makes birdie from same pond on the fifth hole that Rory hit into. So, apparently that’s Position A.
— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) August 13, 2015
4:12PM: While Rory, Jordan and Zach are having their fair share of problems in the wind, David Lingmerth is in solo second thanks to a tap-in birdie at No. 16. He’s 5 under through seven holes.
4:04PM: Because we haven’t had a depressing Tiger update in 34 minutes.
Tiger Woods was 134 under in majors from 1997-2009, and 8 over from 2010-13. He is 33 over the last two seasons. (via @JustinRayGC)
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
4:02PM: Rory McIlroy just put on a clinic in playing from the water, rolling up just one pant leg, and getting up-and-down for par.
Rory from the water, & he has a ten foot putt to come. Welcome to Whistling Straits! #PGAChamp http://t.co/50OUWp8yCY pic.twitter.com/W0qImuc04v
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) August 13, 2015
3:52PM: Separately, after throwing his ball into the water on No. 4, Zach Johnson hit his drive into the water on 5. Two down.
3:50PM: Make that 4 under through six holes for Lingmerth, who’s quickly gotten himself into a tie for second, just two back of the lead.
3:45PM: Your reigning Memorial champ is setting the pace for the afternoon wave as the wind continues to pick up.
3:36PM: Zach Johnson made bogey at the par-4 fourth, and promptly chucked his ball into Lake Michigan.
The frustration of two bogeys in three holes. pic.twitter.com/HxYo9gVf0g
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 13, 2015
3:30PM: Might tomorrow be Tiger’s last round of the season?
It isn’t looking great that Tiger will play the Wyndham Champ. “The season is pretty much over very soon, but the year’s not,” he said.
— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) August 13, 2015
3:20PM: Details for the statistic below. Tiger closed with a 73 at the Masters, missed the weekend with 80-76 at the U.S. Open and left the British early after 76-75.
Tiger’s last 6 major rounds: 27 over par.
— Ryan Lavner (@RyanLavnerGC) August 13, 2015
3:12PM: Phil Mickelson is off and running. This for birdie at No. 1:
3:08PM: Guess who, who and who.
We've seen three triples or worse at No. 3 today. Rory, Jordan and Zach won't be adding to that total. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/8Imn921CcC
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 13, 2015
2:59PM: We should see if Norm wants to run this tracker some time.
Rory ended up tapping in for birdie to get back to even through two after an opening bogey.
2:49PM: Ian Baker-Finch on the telecast explains that the good news after Zach Johnson’s hooked second shot is that his ball actually hit someone in the back, resulting in a favorable kick. So Zach’s got that going for him. Which is ... you know.
2:45PM: You can probably expect another good round from DJ tomorrow. Question is - what happens over the weekend?
Dustin Johnson (66 today) by round, last 6 majors
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
1st Rd: -22
2nd Rd: -15
3rd Rd: +3
Final Rd: +3
2:35PM: Post-round quotes from Big Cat. Right on about the putting - at least.
Tiger: "I hit it great today, but I made absolutely nothing. Probably one of the worst putting rounds I've had in a long time."
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
Tiger: "I just didn't have the feel at all of the speed today."
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
Tiger: "I kept to the game plan, struck it the way I wanted to. I think I made one putt all day."
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
Tiger: "The good news is I have complete control of the golf ball, even in these conditions."
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
That was 33 putts in total, by the way.
2:29PM: As for the other two PGA champs in Tiger’s group, Martin Kaymer posted a 2-under 70 with a double bogey on his final hole, while Keegan Bradley needed to close birdie-birdie just to shoot 4 over. That’s five birdies, seven bogeys and a double for Keegs.
2:26PM: On a far less exciting note, Tiger Woods is in the house with a 3-over 75. That’s currently tied for 94th, with the morning wave coming to its close. And Tiger Tracker is once again on cut watch after Round 1.
Tiger (75) has only opened with a worse score once in his 18 PGA Championship starts. Shot 77 in first round in Atlanta in 2011.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
From 1997-2013, Tiger Woods missed 3 cuts in majors. A missed cut tomorrow would be his 3rd in a row.
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
2:20PM: And here ... we ... go.
Now on the tee: Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Zach Johnson. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/8pf6i3EaQ2
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
2:19PM: It’s unlikely this will ever get old.
Dustin Johnson shoots an opening 66 to lead the #PGAChamp. And, as we all know, he's just chillin'.https://t.co/l70c40Gr4z
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
2:15PM: Dustin Johnson is in the clubhouse with a 6-under 66. Five birdies and an eagle against a single bogey. Playing in the same group, Jason Day is just two off the early pace after a 4-under 68. Cards:
2:09PM: While purists continue to miss “Glory’s Last Shot,” this slogan makes for a better picture.
World no. 1 @McIlroyRory getting ready to defend his #PGAChamp title pic.twitter.com/oCHCS3EaUI
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
2:03PM: Rory shaping it on the range:
1:55PM: If you’ve yet to see it, here’s Anirban Lahiri’s prize for winning the Long Drive on Tuesday. Check the hastags.
Winner winner! Let's hope for long and straight ones all week long @PGAChampionship #currypower #goindia #asiarising pic.twitter.com/nIswFZ3XLA
— Anirban Lahiri (@anirbangolf) August 12, 2015
1:48PM: Dustin Johnson is rarely anything other than low key, but his coach, Butch Harmon, told Steve Sands on Thursday that DJ believes “this place,” Whistling Straits, “owes him something.”
1:40PM: Not only did Billy Horschel pose for this picture, he retweeted it. He must really like that shirt.
Flower power courtesy @BillyHo_Golf. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/oXXQimqdgD
— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) August 13, 2015
1:37PM: Hideki Matsuyama, who at one point held the lead at 5 under, finished with a 2-under 70. What happened? Check out Nos. 6-9, his final four holes of the day.
1:30PM: Fifty minutes to go. These two and the British Open champ off at 2:20.
The #PGAChamp two main attractions (Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy) warming up now on @GolfChannel. pic.twitter.com/05wDf0AbZM
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
1:28PM: Rematch of WGC-Cadillac Championship?
JB Holmes & Dustin Johnson tied for lead at -6. DJ chased down JB at Doral earlier this year, beating him by 1 shot. #PGAChamp
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
1:24PM: So there’s that ...
Hey, what do you know? Tiger holes a 20-footer for birdie at the fifth. Tips his cap to the cheeseheads.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
1:15PM: That’s one heck of a line off the tee ...
Leader Dustin Johnson made par at No. 5, 600-yard par 5 that snakes through the ponds at Whistling Straits. pic.twitter.com/jzxT6tfqXY
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 13, 2015
1:13PM: English, Holmes and Day are one back of DJ. Holmes has birdied four of his last five holes.
1:03PM: Tiger’s slide continues ...
Tiger misses 12-footer for par. Back-to-back bogeys. I shouldn't have had that 2nd plate of cheese curds last night.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
1:01PM: Ouch! Fowler makes a quad on par-3 3rd, follows up with a birdie on 4, but still he’s even par.
Rickie: quadruple bogey on 3, chip in for birdie on 4, lay up into water on 5 and scramble for par. His own version of x games
— Doug Ferguson (@dougferguson405) August 13, 2015
12:55PM: DJ rebounds with a birdie on par-4 4th. He’s at 6 under and leads by two over six players.
12:48PM: Bjorn bogeys par-3 17th, DJ now leads alone again at 5 under. Kuchar makes fourth birdie in last five holes and joins group at 4 under.
12:45PM: Not ideal:
Tiger misses 8-footer, bogeys. Drops to +2. He's slip, sliding down the leaderboard. Now T-56
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
12:40PM: At No. 3, DJ makes his first bogey. Drops back into a share of the lead with Bjorn at 5 under.
12:28PM: Matt Kuchar and J.B. Holmes have both made back-to-back birdies to join a large group at 3 under, three behind DJ.
12:14PM: DJ now has the lead at 6 under. Day two back after an eagle on par-5 2nd, Fowler at 3 under.
Dustin Johnson: -6 thru 11 holes.
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
His best 1st round score in a major: 65, twice... they came in the last 2 majors played.
11:57AM: DJ and Matsuyama join Bjorn at 5 under. Matt Jones is one back.
11:51AM: Tiger bogeys par-4 18th and makes the turn at 1 over par.
Tiger 6 back as he heads to the front side.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
11:41AM: DJ wasting no time getting in contention:
Dustin Johnson makes turn in -4.
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
Last 6 major starts
Rounds 1-2: -35
Rounds 3-4: +6
11:31AM: Bjorn takes the lead with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 11 and 12. He’s at 5 under, one ahead of English, DJ and Matsuyama.
11:22AM: Interesting note below. DJ currently shares the lead while Spieth tees off at 2:20 p.m. ET.
STAT: Dustin Johnson and/or Jordan Spieth have led after 10 of 12 rounds in the Majors so far this year. #Gamers pic.twitter.com/QlfdnrG5L4
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) August 13, 2015
11:18AM: It’s a birdie! Tiger cards his first circle of the round, at the par-5 16th. He’s back to even par, four back.
11:16AM: Let’s make it four at 4 under. Harris English birdies the eighth to tie for the lead.
11:13AM: Thomas Bjorn makes it a trio at the top. He birdies the par-5 11th to reach 4 under.
11:04AM: Dustin Johnson eagles the par-5 16th. He’s at 4 under, tied for the lead.
Dustin Johnson (-4 thru 7) in a share of the lead after eagle at 16. #PGAChamp Scores: http://t.co/GSeqZNImud pic.twitter.com/fr6G2DTylO
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) August 13, 2015
11:04AM: Oh, dear:
Big stick alert on par-5 16th. WAY right. That definitely may have brained somebody.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
11AM: A little over four hours into play, here’s a look at where things stand:
Leaderboard at the #PGAChamp starting to take shape. Watch LIVE From or follow our scoring: http://t.co/Con0J3Ljkj pic.twitter.com/2jll5klXgm
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
10:57AM: Tiger update through six:
Phew, nice par save after he was a biiiiiiit too bold with that birdie attempt. Still +1.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
10:50AM: An Ernie Els sighting on the leaderboard. He’s among a massive group at 2 under, two off the lead.
Good start for Ernie Els. -2 thru 7. Matsuyama -4 thru 10. So far 32 players under par
— Bob Harig (@BobHarig) August 13, 2015
10:42AM: Tyrrell Hatton, yes, Tyrrell Hatton is one off the lead with three birdies over his first four holes. And, no, he’s not a club pro. He’s 23-year-old Englishman ranked 93rd in the world.
10:39AM: Three-putt bogey for Woods at the par-4 14th. He’s now 1 over through five holes, five off the lead.
10:32AM: Look who’s back in major contention: Louis Oosthuizen, who has finished T-2 in each of his last two majors, is at 2 under, two back. That’s a lot of twos.
10:22AM: Hideki Matsuyama claims the outright lead with a birdie at 18, his ninth hole of the day.
Hideki Matsuyama makes the turn in -4. No player from Japan has ever won a major, Players or individual WGC title. #PGAChamp
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) August 13, 2015
10:18AM: Harris English birdies Nos. 2-4 to tie for the lead at 3 under.
10:14AM: Among those currently over par: Jim Furyk, Justin Rose, Lee Westwood, Bill Haas and 2004 Whistling winner Vijay Singh.
10:11AM: Sixty of the 78 players on the course right now are at even par or better.
9:57AM: Tiger update: From off the green in two at the par-5 11th, Woods uses putter three times for par.
And he burns the edge, because of course. Missed opportunity.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
9:50AM: Make it a four-way tie for the lead. Hideki Matsuyama and Robert Streb have reached 3 under. Meanwhile, club pro Brian Gaffney is at 2 under through eight.
9:40AM: Ryan Moore pulled a Paul Casey. He’s gone birdie-birdie-birdie - but on the opposite nine - to reach 3 under.
9:36AM: Check it out:
On LIVE From, Notah Begay says Tiger Woods knows his driving needs improvement. WATCH: http://t.co/SCh4ZvmQVu pic.twitter.com/g3RRo62XUm
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
9:32AM: Paul Casey starts his day birdie-birdie-birdie to break from the pack. And it was almost an even better beginning
Paul Casey just came within 2ft of a birdie, birdie, hole in one start. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/CBEBfGwHVV
— DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) August 13, 2015
9:27AM: Carl Pettersson is about to begin his round. He got in the field Thursday morning when Gary Woodland withdrew.
9:25AM: Dustin Johnson and Rickie Fowler birdied their opening hole, the par-4 10th. Tiger, playing in the group behind, did not.
9:16AM: Tiger Woods hits the fairway with his opening tee shot. That seems notable, nowadays.
MY GOD –– a fairway off the first tee (No. 10)! Let's do this.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
9:14AM: Six players now tied at 2 under, including: Sabbatini, Matsuyama, Hadley, Streb, Kuchar and Moore.
9:04AM: Looks good for the early groups, as we are seeing some red numbers out of the gates.
15 players already under par at the @PGAChampionship led by @RorySabs at 3 under thru 4. Great scoring so far.
— Damon Hack (@damonhackGC) August 13, 2015
9AM: Hideki Matsuyama was a popular pick this week. He’s on the board early with a birdie at No. 2.
8:48AM: Rory leads the PGA! Sabbatini, that is. The South African is 3 under through four holes.
8:38AM: Hopefully, Tiger gets off to a better start than Tracker.
@GCTigerTracker And, yes, I meant 9:15 a.m. ET. Remember, that hungover thing.
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
8:30AM: And right behind that group are Tiger Woods, Martin Kaymer and Keegan Bradley.
T-minus 1 hour until our man begins the PGA (8:15 a.m. ET). I'm incredibly hungover, feisty and ready to watch some golf. Who's with me?!?!?
— Tiger Tracker (@GCTigerTracker) August 13, 2015
8:15AM: Rickie’s ready. Fowler goes out with Jason Day and Dustin Johnson at 9:05 a.m. ET
Good morning! pic.twitter.com/ul9p30nkTh
— Rickie Fowler (@RickieFowler) August 13, 2015
8AM: Here’s a look at the hole locations for Day 1 at Whistling Straits.
Hole locations for the first round of the 97th #PGAChamp at Whistling Straits. pic.twitter.com/xfjKFrfhHm
— Golf Central (@GolfCentral) August 13, 2015
7:45AM: We’re live in Round 1 of the 97th PGA Championship!
