Jordan Spieth Eyeing Career Slam, Justin Thomas Going For Three Among Top Storylines For PGA Championship

The lead-up to this year's Masters being so massive, coupled with Rory McIlroy finally getting his hands on the green jacket to complete the career Grand Slam, delivered a major championship hangover the golf world hasn't felt in quite some time. It also allowed this week's PGA Championship to sneak up on us, but that doesn't mean there aren't storylines galore heading into the year's second major championship.

For the first time in over a decade, the top storyline for this week's major doesn't involve McIlroy, although his hunt for his second major title of the year at a course he's found tremendous success on is right up there.

The likes of Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau, a slew of other LIV players, and defending champ Xander Schauffele are also favorites to be in the mix come the weekend. 

While every player in the field is looking to create history with a victory, Jordan Spieth is the only man in the field looking to copy what McIlroy did at Augusta in April and hoist the Wanamaker Trophy to complete the career grand slam as well.

As per usual in every major championship, the golf course itself, Quail Hollow club, will be a main character in all of this as well. Time to dive into the most intriguing storylines of the 2025 PGA Championship.

A Trending Jordan Spieth Looks To Complete Slam

The odds of us witnessing Spieth becoming the seventh player to complete the career grand slam just five weeks after McIlroy joined the exclusive club are astounding. Then again, Spieth getting the job done while those odds and historical trends are very much against him would be unbelievably on-brand for the game's greatest entertainer.

It's now been more than three years since Spieth last won on the PGA Tour, and we're fast approaching the eight-year anniversary of his 2017 Open Championship victory, but he does enter this week in better form than recent attempts at getting his hands on the Wanamaker.

Spieth has three Top 10s in 11 starts in 2025, including a T-14 at The Masters and a solo fourth at the CJ Cup just two weeks ago. He's also been driving the ball plenty long enough to give himself a chance at what will be a slow and wet Quail Hollow this week. If the long-irons wake up this week and the putter stays remotely warm, Spieth may have our attention heading into the weekend.

Spieth's first chance at completing the career grand slam came at the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow. He finished T-28 that week, but maybe the second time is the charm.

Rory McIlroy Eyeing A Major Run At One Of His Favorite Tracks

Most saw last month's Masters as McIlroy's best opportunity to win a green jacket, yet this week's PGA Championship setup may be even more perfect.

McIlroy has made 13 starts at Quail Hollow dating back to 2010. Across that stretch, he has won four times, picked up an additional five Top 10 finishes, and has missed the cut only once. 

That type of course history, coupled with his exceptional form, plus the rain in the area making it a bomber's paradise this week, you have the perfect setup for McIlroy to potentially earn his seventh major championship title.

Whether or not the setup is too perfect for him, only time will tell.

Bryson DeChambeau Turning Into Mr. Consistency

Over the first few years of his career, one of the biggest knocks against DeChambeau was his inconsistency at major championships. Before his win at the 2020 U.S. Open, he had just one Top 10 in 16 major championship appearances, but after his win at Winged Foot paired with simply becoming a more mature player, he's been very consistent on the game's biggest stages.

In his nine major starts since the start of the 2023 season, DeChambeau has picked up a second U.S. Open title and four additional Top Six finishes. He's solidified himself as a player who is more often than not there come Sunday afternoon at majors.

Bryson has a pair of Top 10 finishes at Quail Hollow to his name, and won LIV Golf's event in South Korea earlier this month as his game continues to be in very good form.

Justin Thomas For Three

While McIlroy's course history at Quail Hollow is unmatched, Justin Thomas certainly enjoys this track as well, given it is the site of his first PGA Championship victory in 2017.

Now, would Thomas winning at Quail Hollow a second time be asterisk worthy for what would be both his third PGA Championship and third major title? I'd listen to that argument, but at the end of the day, three PGA Championships equals three major championships, and only 29 players in the game's history have won more than three majors in their careers.

Thomas enters the week in phenomenal form, having earned a win at the RBC Heritage the week after the Masters followed by a T-2 finish at last week's Truist Championship in Philadelphia. The putter has been en fuego and he's been able to keep the big misses off the tee at bay for the most part.

JT finding the winner's circle on Sunday would surprise no one.

Scottie Scheffler Looking To Clear The Hurdle

This week will mark Scheffler's 20th major championship appearance since his rookie season on the PGA Tour in 2020. Given that he's been the No. 1 player in the world for well over two years at this point, won two Masters, and put together one of the greatest seasons of all time a year ago, the golf world has had to get creative in finding what's ‘missing' from his resume despite him still only being 28 years old.

The question some are asking in regards to Scottie Scheffler is, can he get it done at a major championship that isn't the Masters? He's earned 11 Top 10 finishes in majors outside of Augusta National since 2020, which makes the question a bit redundant, but given Scheffler's talent, he's held to a higher standard than any other player in the world at this point in time.

Interestingly enough, Scheffler has never played in an individual tournament held at Quail Hollow. He was a member of the U.S. team when it won the Presidents Cup here in 2022, but this will be his first ‘normal’ event at this golf course. 

Sneaky, Sneaky Xander

Xander Schauffele may be the toughest elite player to get a real feel for heading into the week, which puts him in that flying under the radar category, a spot he loves to be in.

All Schauffele did a year ago was win the PGA Championship, The Open, and finish inside the Top 8 in the other two majors, yet he's still being a bit overlooked this week. Oh, and it's also worth mentioning he's finished solo second in each of his last two starts at Quail Hollow.

Schauffele missed time earlier in the year due to a rib injury, but has been rounding into form over the last month or so with four Top 20 finishes in four starts, including a very sneaky T-8 finish at the Masters. He hasn't been accurate with the driver this season, which isn't ideal at Quail Hollow, but if he finds something in that area, look out.

Jon Rahm Needs To Show Up

Jon Rahm has finished inside the Top 10 in all 19 LIV Golf events he's played in, but has been a non-factor in majors since making the jump to the Saudi-backed circuit at the end of 2023. Given that he's a former World No. 1, has two major championships under his belt, and is an all-world talent, he's judged by his performance in majors, and no-showing is a peculiar and noticeable look.

Rahm missed the cut at the 2024 PGA Championship and had to miss out on the U.S. Open a year ago due to an injury. Getting back into the mix and contending in a major on a track that should very much fit his eye feels like a must, even if that sounds a bit unfair.

DeChambeau has firmly grabbed the honor of ‘The Best Player On LIV..’ Rahm is well aware of that, and would undoubtedly like to to reclaim that title.

Low Expectations For Quail Hollow

There isn't any other way to describe Quail Hollow other than to say that it is a golf course. That's it.

Is it a bad golf course? No. Is it a great golf course? Also no. Should we be hosting major championships on a golf course that has hosted a regular PGA Tour event every year since 2003? Hell no.

Now, would we look at Quail Hollow differently if we didn't see it every single year? I don't actually think so, but at least it would feel new-ish in that situation.

That's why it feels like expectations are incredibly low for Quail Hollow showing itself off this week and delivering a major-caliber test for the best players in the world. We're familiar with it, it's nothing special, and we're well aware that the winner will almost certainly be a long-hitter who just so happens to get hot with the putter. That's the prerequisite for most golf courses these guys play, but it would certainly be cooler if we got something new for a PGA Championship.