Gary Kellner
St. LOUIS, MO – MAY 15: The Wanamaker Trophy at Bellerive Country Club, home of the 2018 PGA Championship on May 15, 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Gary Kellner/PGA of America via Getty Images) 

By Christopher Powers
This time a year ago, the short-term future of the PGA Championship was still uncertain, with rumblings about the PGA of America weighing a possible move of its oldest event from its traditional August spot on the calendar to May. While the move seemed likely, it wasn’t clear when it would go into effect, or how it might impact the rest of the PGA Tour schedule, most notably the Players Championship’s place on the calendar.

As we close in on the 2018 PGA Championship, we now have a clear picture not only the PGA Championship’s future, but the 2018-’19 PGA Tour scheduled, which was revealed in early July. The key takeaways: the PGA’s move to May starts in 2019, the Players Championship will be played in March and the FedEx Cup Playoffs have been reduced to three events, ending the tour season in late August.

With all the dominos having fallen, it makes this year’s PGA Championship, the 100th edition of the championship, the final one that the PGA of America will play in August. By all accounts, the move to May has been well-received, and could give the PGA more prominence as the season’s second major after the Masters. But with venues in the Northern part of the country looming—Bethpage Black in 2019, Oak Hill in 2023, specifically—the weather (cold and soggy) could still be a key factor as it has been in August of late (hot and humid).

Here are some other frequently asked questions about the PGA Championship.

When and where is the PGA Championship being held in 2018?
The 100th PGA Championship is being held at Bellerive Country Club in Town and County, Mo., a suburb west of St. Louis, on Aug. 9-12. It will be the second time Bellerive has hosted the PGA Championship, the last coming in 1992 when World Golf Hall-of-Famer Nick Price won the championship, the first of his three career majors, by three strokes.

Has Bellerive ever hosted any other professional golf tournaments / major championships?
Yes. In addition to the 1992 PGA Championship and the 2018 PGA, Bellerive has hosted four other tournaments, including one major and two senior majors. They are as follows:

1965 — U.S. Open won by Gary Player
2004 — U.S. Senior Open won by Peter Jacobsen
2008 — BMW Championship won by Camilo Villegas
2013 — Senior PGA Championship won by Koki Idoki

The course also was scheduled to hold the 2001 WGC-American Express Championship but the event was canceled due to the events of Sept. 11.

Who conducts the PGA Championship?
The Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of America conducts the event.

Are the PGA Tour and the PGA of America different?
Yes, the PGA Tour and the PGA of America have been independent of one another since 1968. The PGA Tour is an elite organization of tournament professionals, while the PGA of America is made up of club and teaching professionals that work at on- and off-course golf facilities around the country (and the world).

When is the PGA Championship traditionally played?
The PGA Championship had held its traditional spot on the schedule in mid-August since 1973. Starting in 2019 at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, N.Y. it will be played in May. During its entire history, however, the PGA has been played in every month except January, March and April.

When and where was the first PGA Championship? And who won?
The first PGA Championship was played in 1916 at Siwanoy Country Club in Bronxville, N.Y. England’s Jim Barnes won, 1 up, over Jock Hutchinson.

When did the PGA Championship use a match-play format?
From 1916 to 1957, the PGA Championship was a match-play event with a stroke-play qualifier, and it was not uncommon for players to play more than 200 holes in seven days. Starting in 1958, the PGA Championship switched to the standard 72-hole, stroke-play format. America’s Dow Finsterwald won the first stroke-play version of the event in 1958 at Llanerch Country Club in Havertown, Pa.

How many players are in the field?
There are 156 players in the field at the PGA Championship, with 20 of those spots reserved for club professionals who are PGA of America members.

How do club professionals earn one of the 20 spots?
The PGA of America fills the 20 spots held for club professionals for the top finishers at the PGA Professional Championship, which is typically held in June prior to the PGA Championship in August. Starting next year, the PGA Professional Championship will be played in April.

Has a club professional ever won the PGA Championship?
Not in the modern era of the PGA Tour. According to PGA.com, the best performance since 1970 by a club professional playing in the PGA Championship was a third place finish in 1971 by Tommy Bolt, a former tour pro who had retired from the tour. The last top 10 also came from a former tour pro—a very famous one—turned club professional: Sam Snead in 1973. Only one club professional has finished inside the top 20 in the last 30 years, Jay Overton in 1988 at Oak Tree. Only two have made the cut in the last six years, Omar Uresti a year ago at Quail Hollow, and Brian Gaffney in 2015 at Whistling Straits.

How are the 136 other spots in the PGA Championship determined?
For a list of ways to qualify for the PGA Championship, click here.

Can amateurs play in the PGA Championship?
The PGA Championship is limited to professionals only, meaning amateurs cannot qualify.

What does the winner of PGA Championship receive?
The PGA champion receives the Wanamaker Trophy, the largest trophy of the four majors. In addition, the winner also receives $1.89 million of the PGA Championship’s $10.5 million purse, automatic invites into all three of the other majors and the Players Championship for the next five years, PGA Tour membership for the next five years and European Tour membership for the next seven years. They also become eligible to compete in the PGA Championship for life.

Who won the 2017 PGA Championship?
Justin Thomas won the 2017 PGA Championship by two strokes at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, N.C. It was his first career major championship victory and one of five victories in a season that saw him win the FedEx Cup and the PGA Tour Player of the Year award.

Who has won the most PGA Championships?
Jack Nicklaus and Walter Hagen hold the record for most PGA Championship victories with five. Nicklaus also holds the record for most runner-up finishes in the PGA Championship with four.

How many PGA Championships has Tiger Woods won?
Tiger Woods has won four PGA Championships, the last coming in 2007 at Southern Hills. Woods looks to tie Hagen and Nicklaus with a fifth victory this year as he makes his first start in the event since 2015, when he missed the cut at Whistling Straits.

*Who are the most famous golfers not to have won the PGA Championship?
There are three men in golf history who have won each of the other three major championships (the Masters, the U.S. Open and the British Open) but have not completed the career Grand Slam by winning the PGA. They are Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson and Jordan Spieth. Spieth is only 25 so he has plenty of time to try and complete the Slam. This is the second year he will be playing the PGA with the chance to do so.

Who is the youngest winner of the PGA Championship?
Gene Sarazen is the youngest winner, claiming the title at Oakmont Country Club in 1922 at 20 years and 174 days old. He defended his title the following year at Pelham Country Club and went on to win his third and final PGA at Blue Mound Golf & Country Club in 1933.

Who is the oldest winner?
Julius Boros is the oldest winner, claiming the title at Pecan Valley Golf Club in 1968 at 48 years and 142 days old.

What is the PGA Championship scoring record?
The record for lowest 72-hole score in a PGA Championship is held by David Toms, who shot total of 15-under 265 at Atlanta Athletic Club in Duluth, Ga., in 2001.

What is the PGA Championship scoring record in relation to par?
Jason Day holds the record for scoring in relation to par not only in PGA Championship history, but in major championship history. The Australian was 20-under-par (268) when he won at Whistling Straits in Haven, Wis., in 2015.

What is the highest winning score of a PGA Championship? In relation to par?
The highest total score of a PGA champion is one-under 287, shot by Larry Nelson in 1987 at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. The highest winning score in relation to par was one-over 281, shot four times: Jay Hebert, 1960; Julius Boros, 1968; Gary Player, 1972; and Dave Stockton, 1976.

What is the largest margin of victory in the PGA Championship?
The largest margin of victory in the PGA Championship belongs to Rory McIlroy, who won by eight strokes in 2012 at Kiawah Island. The Northern Irishman won the event again in 2014 at Valhalla Golf Club. That remains his last major championship victory.

If players are tied after 72 holes, how is a winner determined?
In the event of a tie, the PGA of America employs a three-hole aggregate format for the championship’s playoff. If players are tied after three holes it becomes a sudden-death playoff.

How many playoffs have there been in PGA Championship history?
Since 1958 and the move to stroke play, there have been 13 playoffs in the PGA Championship, the last coming in 2011 at Atlanta Athletic Club, where Keegan Bradley defeated Jason Dufner in the three-hole aggregate playoff.

Are there any special events that go on during the week of the PGA Championship, like the Par-3 Contest at the Masters?
Revived in 2014 after previously being held in 1984, the PGA of America hosts Long Drive Competition on the Tuesday of PGA week for players in the field. At the Bellerive, the Competition will take place on the 10th hole, with players during the course of their practice round encouraged to participate. The winner receives a replica of a money clip given to Jack Nicklaus when he was the Long Drive event at the PGA in 1963. The winner also will be granted a charitable donation of $25,000 to a designated charity, with the second- and third-place finishers getting $15,000 and $10,000.

What site has hosted the most PGA Championships?
Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Okla., has hosted the most PGA Championships—four—the most recent in 2007, when Tiger Woods won.

What state has hosted the most PGA Championships?
New York has hosted the most PGA Championships with 12, including three at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, N.Y., which hosted the 2013 PGA Championship and is scheduled to host again in 2023.

What are the future venues for the PGA Championship?
Future venues for the PGA Championship have been announced through 2024, as well as between 2027 and 2029. They are as follows:

2019 — Bethpage State Park (Black Course), Farmingdale, N.Y.
2020 — TPC Harding Park, San Francisco, Calif.
2021 — Kiawah Island Golf Resort (Ocean Course), Kiawah Island, S.C.
2022 — Trump National Golf Club, Bedminster, N.J.
2023 — Oak Hill Country Club, Rochester, N.Y.
2024 — Valhalla Golf Club, Louisville, Ky.
2027 — Aronimink Golf Club, Newtown Square, Pa.
2028 — Olympic Club, San Francisco, Calif.
2029 — Baltusrol Golf Club, Springfield, N.J.

Southern Hills has also been awarded the PGA Championship, to be held no later than 2030.

Who is the favourite to win the 2018 PGA Championship?
The current favourite to win the PGA Championship is Dustin Johnson, with oddsmakers listing the 19-time PGA Tour winner at 10/1. Here is a list of other picks (with current Vegas odds) to win at Bellerive.

Who broadcasts the PGA Championship?
Starting in 1991, CBS has broadcast the PGA Championship, and its current deal runs through the end of next year’s championship. TNT airs early round coverage and morning coverage on the weekend.