x

Tour Confidential Daily: With Koepka up by 7, is the PGA Championship already over?

May 17, 2019

Every night of major weeks, the GOLF.com staff congregates to debate one over-arching question in a daily form of Tour Confidential. Today we ask…

Brooks Koepka has dominated the 101st PGA Championship from start to finish, and at 12 under he’s grabbed the 36-hole lead by a commanding seven strokes. Jordan Spieth and Adam Scott, both at five under, are tied for second. Is this thing over already?

Sean Zak, associate editor (@sean_zak): No. This answer has nothing to do with Brooks. It has everything to do with Bethpage. There are double bogeys lurking on every hole out there. He could easily find two of them on Saturday and another on Sunday, while Spieth chips and putts his a– off to make this close.

Alan Bastable, executive editor (@alan_bastable): [replies for group] Yes, it’s over.

Josh Berhow, senior editor (@Josh_Berhow): No. Day 1 leaderboards rarely hold up and Day 2 leaderboards can crumble just as fast. Jordan Spieth or Adam Scott can make up 3.5 shots a day no problem. Will they? With the way their putting can go south coupled with Brooks’ domination thus far, I highly doubt it. But, hey, I’m not ruling it out yet.

Jonathan Wall, equipment editor (@jonathanrwall): Brooks is up seven at Bethpage. SEVEN. Of course it’s over. He doesn’t have to press and the rest of the field has to somehow find a way to make up ground. Good luck.

Jeff Ritter, digital development editor (@Jeff_Ritter): Second place looks wide open.

Alan Shipnuck, senior writer (@Alan_Shipnuck): Alas, yes.

Bastable: Scintillating debate, colleagues! But this has what Brooks has done to us. It’s stunning. He’s not only winning majors at will, he’s winning them on Friday. Perhaps a better question for this roundtable would have been, Could peak Brooks take down peak Tiger?

Dylan Dethier, associate editor (@Dylan_Dethier): Hold your horses! I don’t think it’s over. Seven shots is quite a few, but there’s some talent on that leaderboard yet. Koepka’s been ridiculously good, but he’s due for a bit of a step back on Saturday. The question is whether DJ or Spieth or Fleetwood or others can hold up their end of the bargain.

Jessica Marksbury, senior editor, (@jess_marksbury): Guys! It ain’t over til it’s over! I’m still holding out hope that this thing could get interesting tomorrow. We know Spieth, Scott and DJ are totally capable of rounds of five or six under. If Brooks just has a so-so day (let’s say, two under), then suddenly, it’s game on on Sunday.

Luke Kerr-Dineen, instruction editor, (@lukekerrdineen): Go home, it’s over. We’re overdue for a big, boring major blowout and Brooks is delivering. The *only* hope we have of an actual golf tournament emerging from this is if Jordan Spieth somehow starts hitting the ball properly and he keeps putting out of his mind along the way. Doubtful. It’s more likely his putting cools off and Brooks wins by even more.

x