NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. (AP) — Justin Thomas made a 16-foot par putt on the final hole Sunday for a 5-under 65 in the PGA Championship, a round that became increasingly better once he stopped playing.
Thomas was one shot out of the lead when he finished. Nearly two hours later, he still was one shot behind and Aronimink Golf Club — with players facing the pressure of trying to win a major — was no longer giving up low scores.
Alex Smalley, who took a two-shot
lead into the final round at 6-under par, was only on the second hole when Thomas finished at 5-under 275. Smalley made a mess of the sixth hole for a double bogey. The leader going to the back nine was Matti Schmid, another long shot who has yet to win on any tour.
Schmid was at 6-under par, with a host of players still very much in the mix. Aaron Rai birdied the 11th to get to 6 under.
Cameron Smith, the British Open champion at St. Andrews who left for LIV Golf at the end of 2022, came to Aronimink having missed the cut in six straight majors. He was 3 under on his round and bogey-free through 15 holes.
He was tied for second with Thomas, Jon Rahm and Nick Taylor. Rahm caught Smalley for the lead with two quick birdies, only to make a pair of bogeys to fall back.
Rory McIlroy, who started three behind in his bid for a second straight major title, birdied his second hole and followed with eight straight pars. He was two shots behind.
Scottie Scheffler never got it going. He missed a 4-foot birdie putt on his third hole, and twice missed 3-foot par putts on the back nine. He shot 69 and was likely to finish out of the top 10 in a major for the first time since a tie for 41st in the 2024 U.S. Open.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
