PGA Championship at Aronimink is largely about the big slopes on big greens
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. (AP) — Justin Thomas had his caddie place hole-sized discs on every corner of the 17th green at Aronimink on Monday, all of them perched on knobs. Whether he was chipping or putting, it was a challenge.
Aronimink is marked by its 180 bunkers that frame the landing areas, except for the longest hitters. The first official day of practice for the PGA Championship brought a reminder that accuracy this week is more about shots into the green than avoiding bunkers or the healthy rough. These are big greens with big slopes.
“Off the tee it's not extremely challenging,” said Keegan Bradley, who won on a soggy Aronimink in 2018 at the BMW Championship. “But the greens get really crazy, and they are really mounded and hilly just like a lot of Northeast courses. So to put the ball in the right spot is really important.
” The course was full, inside and outside the ropes, despite temperatures that struggled to reach 60 degrees Fahrenheit (15 Celsius), which can happen with the PGA Championship moving to May and being held in northern part of the United States. Bethpage Black was even colder in 2019 until it warmed as the week went on, and that's expected to be the case this week. Thomas was among the few who made a scouting trip during one of his weeks off.
It was a chance to get reacquainted with a course that has fewer trees than the last time he played in 2018, and was in perfect condition. The last day for member play was Nov. 2.
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