The 1962 PGA Championship at Aronimink: Gary Player's Historic Win

Photo by Ben Weber on Unsplash

When the 2026 PGA Championship begins at Aronimink Golf Club, it will be the first time the Wanamaker Trophy has been contested there since 1962 — when a 26-year-old South African named Gary Player won the championship by four shots to establish himself as one of the game's emerging global stars. Here is the story of Aronimink's first and, until now, only PGA Championship.

Gary Player in 1962

Gary Player arrived at the 1962 PGA Championship as a rising force in professional golf. He had already won the 1959 Open Championship and the 1961 Masters, and was assembling what would become one of the most complete major championship records in history. At 26, he was in the prime of his power and precision, with a competitive intensity that he would maintain for decades to come.

The Championship

Player won the 1962 PGA Championship at Aronimink with a score of 278 — two under par across 72 holes — to win by four shots. That winning total of two under par reflects how demanding Aronimink played even then, before the Gil Hanse restoration added bunkers and expanded greens back to their original Ross dimensions. The 1962 course was a modified version of Ross's design, with changes made ahead of the championship. Today's Aronimink, restored closer to Ross's 1928 original, is in many ways a more demanding test.

Player's Legacy at Aronimink

The 1962 PGA Championship was Gary Player's second major championship and part of what became a career Grand Slam. Player went on to win nine major championships in total, making him one of only five players to complete the career Grand Slam. His victory at Aronimink is part of the course's history — a framed piece of the venue's identity that makes it more than just a Donald Ross masterpiece. It is a proven major championship venue with a proven champion in its history.

What 2026 Adds to That History

After 64 years, the PGA Championship returns to Aronimink with a restored course, a world-class field, and the kind of storylines — Scheffler's defense, McIlroy's Grand Slam momentum, Koepka's pursuit of a fourth Wanamaker — that make major championship golf the most compelling competition in the sport. Gary Player's name will be in the record book at Aronimink permanently. A new champion's name will join it on Sunday evening in May 2026.