PGA Championship playoff format: Here’s how the winner at Southern Hills will be determined

Will Zalatoris

Will Zalatoris made a clutch putt on No. 18 at Southern Hills on Sunday.

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Though 27-year-old Chilean Mito Periera started the final round with a three-shot lead, the leaderboard tightened down the stretch, with a number of players in the mix to claim the Wanamaker Trophy at Southern Hills.

But how is the PGA Championship winner determined if there is a tie at the end of regulation play?

Each of the four major championships employ different rules when it comes to ties, and at the PGA Championship, ties are decided via a three-hole aggregate playoff.

That means, whoever is tied at the end of regulation play will play three pre-determined holes, and the player with the lowest score will be the winner. If players are still tied after the aggregate holes, the format moves to sudden death until someone wins.

At Southern Hills, the aggregate playoff holes are Nos. 13, 17 and 18, which should provide ample drama. In the event sudden death is needed, the players will play 18 again, then 13, 17 and 18 again if needed, and repeat the cycle until someone emerges victorious.

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As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-birdie everyone on the masthead. She can out-hustle them in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online features, and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Is­sue, which debuted in February 2018. Her origi­nal interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November of 2015, and appeared in both in the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.