2026 PGA Championship Preview: Everything You Need to Know
The 108th PGA Championship arrives at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania from May 14-17, 2026 — and the stage is set for one of the most compelling major championships in recent memory. Scottie Scheffler arrives as the defending champion and world number one. Rory McIlroy arrives as the reigning Masters champion, hungry for more. And Aronimink — Donald Ross's self-declared masterpiece — arrives ready to test every aspect of the game's best players.
The Basics
The 2026 PGA Championship is the second major of the year and the 108th edition of the tournament. It is played at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, a western suburb of Philadelphia. Practice rounds run Monday through Wednesday (May 11-13). The four championship rounds are Thursday through Sunday (May 14-17). The winner receives the Wanamaker Trophy, one of the largest and most iconic trophies in professional sport.
The Course: Aronimink Golf Club
Aronimink was designed by Donald Ross in 1928 and plays as a par 70 at approximately 7,267 yards from the championship tees. With more than 170 bunkers, elevation changes across every hole, and original Donald Ross greens that have been unaltered since 1928, Aronimink rewards precision, patience, and exceptional iron play above all else. Ross himself said of the course: he intended it to be his masterpiece and only upon returning decades later did he realize he built better than he knew. The most recent renovation by architect Gil Hanse between 2016 and 2018 restored Ross's original bunker schemes and expanded the greens back to their original size.
The Defending Champion
Scottie Scheffler won the 2025 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club and arrives at Aronimink as the world number one and the favorite. Scheffler has been extraordinarily consistent in 2026, posting runner-up finishes at the Masters, the RBC Heritage, and the Cadillac Championship — but is still searching for his first victory of the season. A win at Aronimink would be his third major championship title.
The Storylines to Watch
Rory McIlroy won the Masters in April to complete his career Grand Slam, and now arrives at the PGA Championship with the kind of momentum that historically produces major championship runs. McIlroy has finished in the top 10 at the PGA Championship multiple times and played the 2018 BMW Championship at Aronimink — where he shot a course-record 62. He knows this course.
Brooks Koepka is a three-time PGA Championship winner (2018, 2019, 2023) and always elevates at this particular major. Xander Schauffele, who won the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla, will be among the contenders. And Bryson DeChambeau, a two-time US Open champion, brings a power game that could exploit Aronimink's reachable par fives.
Why Aronimink Will Produce a Worthy Champion
Aronimink has hosted only one previous PGA Championship — in 1962, when Gary Player won at two under par. The course's difficulty is genuine and relentless. At par 70, there are only two par fives on the entire layout, meaning birdies are harder to manufacture than at most major venues. The premium on long-iron accuracy, which Ross designed into every corner of the course, will separate the field on every single hole. No player will be able to grind through Aronimink on short game alone. This is a comprehensive test of the complete game.
Full Schedule
- Monday May 11 — Wednesday May 13: Practice rounds
- Thursday May 14: Round 1
- Friday May 15: Round 2 and cut
- Saturday May 16: Round 3 (Moving Day)
- Sunday May 17: Final round
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