Check in each day of this week’s Masters for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors as they break down the hottest topic in the tournament, and join the conversation by tweeting us @golf_com.
The PGA Championship tees off Thursday morning, and a good deal of the talk this week has centered on the track. The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island will play to just under 8,000 yards, making it the longest course in major championship history, and could play even longer due to Atlantic Ocean winds. Toss in a Pete Dye layout, and scores could balloon, much like they did when the event was played here in 2012. (Rory McIlroy won at 13 under, but the runner-up was only five under.) Come Sunday, what will be the winning number, and why?
Sean Zak, senior editor (@sean_zak): Six under! Five under finished in second place last time, 13 under won it. Luckily 23-year-old Rory isn’t showing up this week. Anyone who breaks 70 is gonna be thrilled with the day.
Jessica Marksbury, multimedia editor (@Jess_Marksbury): I’ll go with four under. In 2012, over an inch of rain fell on the course to make it somewhat gettable after the wind was done blowing. With no precipitation in the forecast, it looks like it will be firm and fast throughout the week. I’ll be impressed by any player who manages multiple rounds under par.
Josh Sens, senior writer (@JoshSens): I think too much is being made of that just-under-8,000-yard number. It’s a fun headline, but distance alone isn’t going to stop these guys. In 2012, there was one especially windy day that pushed scoring averages up. Those kinds of winds aren’t in the current forecast. If the meteorologists are right, I look for the winner to be in double digits. Minus 10 or 11.
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Luke Kerr-Dineen, director of game improvement (@LukeKerrDineen): 12 under. You could talk me into high single digits under par, but my guess is that we’re about to fall into the same trap we always do: We’re hyped to see higher scores, players sound the preemptive alarm about the course being too difficult and tournament officials respond by setting up the course easy (this week, they’re expected to move up most of the tees) — only for a handful of players to catch fire. One half of one day will probably be really difficult — probably Saturday afternoon — and the other three will be easier than we expect.
Dylan Dethier, senior writer (@dylan_dethier): I started the week assuming somebody would get to 10-under par. After a few days on the ground, I’m feeling less certain about that — this course is really tough! — but as Josh says, that’s ONLY true if they keep some of the back tees in play into the wind. I hope they keep things tough, test these guys and force the winning score down to five under.
Nick Piastowski, senior editor (@nickpia): Luke’s 12-under number sounds about right to me — three under a day over four days makes sense. The champ (Matthew Fitzpatrick, according to one prognosticator) will manage the difficult, windy holes and take advantage of the scorable ones.
