3 Quail Questions on the Eve of PGA Week

Welcome to the Two Down Press golf newsletter!

Surprise 24-hour delay this week! I was naive enough to believe I’d have PLENTY of time to assemble a 2DP while on vacation with two kids. Ultimately I chose a date night with my wife over a newsletter all-nighter - feels like I made the right choice.

The big news of the week is, of course, the PGA Championship. We’re less than a week away from Charlotte and Quail Hollow being thrown into the national spotlight, so we’ll share some questions we’re pondering about the course, the contenders, and the TV-viewing experience.

Let’s dive in!

THIS WEEK’S HEADLINE

3 Questions Ahead of Next Week’s PGA Championship

It's hard to imagine a better lead-up to this year’s PGA than what we’ve experienced so far. In less than 4 weeks since Rory’s emotional victory at the Masters, we’ve had JT returning to winning ways at Hilton Head, Bryson and Joaquin Niemann taking home trophies on LIV, and Scottie dominating his hometown event. We even saw a 62 last Sunday from Jordan Spieth, which was enough to get the most delusional fans whipped up into a Career Grand Slam frenzy.

With the final tune-up event underway (the relocated Truist Championship at Philadelphia Cricket Club), here are three questions filling our brain space ahead of the season’s next major.

1. The “Big 4” or the Field?

These monikers often look silly years later, but it feels like we have a lead group separating at the top of the game. Not only are these players week-to-week favorites, they all profile well for Quail Hollow, which typically favors those with above-average distance off the tee (select Quail Hollow on left menu).

1. Rory McIlroy: He’s in the form of his life and has won ~25% of events played at Quail since 2010. High, bombed draws and 330+ yard carries tend to play everywhere. Grand Slam watch?!

2. Xander Schauffele: Though still shaking off some injury rust, he did a career’s worth of work in 2024 with 2 major wins. He also finished 2nd at Quail last season, succumbing to a Sunday charge from McIlroy.

3. Bryson DeChambeau: We’ve seen him dominate at courses like Winged Foot and Pinehurst that give him room to operate off the tee. Penal rough should play into his hands, as prodigious strength and distance give him an edge.

4. Scottie Scheffler: His game is as close to course agnostic as we’ve seen, and he just lapped the field at the Byron Nelson, winning by 8 shots. If Scheffler runs away with this one, no one will be surprised.

I can’t be alone in hoping we get part 3 of the Rory/Bryson trilogy next week. There are a long list of challengers (JT, Collin Morikawa, and Ludvig Åberg spring to mind) in the season's first full-field major, but I’m leaning toward one of the four favorites getting it done.

2. Will we get any course setup wrinkles?

I didn’t get any juicy scoops from Keith Wood and Kerry Haigh isn’t exactly known for getting unconventional, but I still have my fingers crossed for some SOMETHING to differentiate the PGA from Quail’s annual tour stop. With the event being held only one week later than the traditional Charlotte tournament date, things are naturally going to look and feel pretty similar to viewers - not a good thing in my opinion.

Moving the tee up on 14 (as they did in 2017) was a great start, but here’s hoping the PGA has more tricks up its sleeve to challenge players and keep fans engaged - a necessity if we’re going to keep taking major championships to courses that hold frequent professional events.

3. Will it pop on TV?

I expect the in-person viewing experience to be electric if the weather cooperates, but will the TV audience feel the same? I always struggle with this element of Quail Hollow - I love going to the tournament, but many of the holes outside the finishing stretch blend together for me when watching from home.

Fortunately, TV broadcast partner CBS has become a real industry pioneer in recent years and has made significant improvements to its product since the 2017 PGA. I’m optimistic we’ll get some new data, camera angles, and insights from Jim Nance and Trevor Immelman that will show the course in a new light. They’ve become by far the best booth in the game, so we’re lucky to have them on the call when the biggest events come to town.

TOURNAMENTS

Lavenets and Stephenson Take Carolinas Four-Ball

The pair of former ECU golfers got off to a shaky start with a 71 (+1) in the opening round, but rebounded with a 63 (-7) to make match play as the 25 seed before catching fire and making a run to the championship match. In the final against Harrison Rhoades and John Pitt, Lavenets birdied the 18th hole to give the team their only lead of the day and their first CGA title.

Proper venue: Host site Camden Country Club is one of the best annual venues on the CGA schedule. “The course appears inviting, but it lures you to go at pins and play overly aggressive,” said Josh Bryan, who made the Round of 16 with partner Andrew Furr, of the 6,300 yard layout. It’s a testament to great design to hear players consistently rave about a course you’d expect to be overwhelmed by modern technology.

Conditions: The greens at Camden were uncharacteristically soft for the early rounds of the event. While this typically helps scoring, players had a tough time controlling their spin on the severely sloped Donald Ross greens. “You had the ability to go at more pins, but I think it threw some people off,” said Bryan. “Shots that weren’t precise left tough recoveries, which led to higher scores in the first round.”

Hole by hole results?: View full scoring

STORIES TO TRACK

Jeffrey Lankford Runs Away with North Carolina Senior Amateur: The 61-year-old from Mocksville won by 5 shots at this week’s tournament at Country Club of Salisbury. His second round score of 66 was the lowest of the week.

• Hole by hole results?: View full scoring

5 Players Advance Through U.S. Open Local Qualifying at River Landing: William Belair led the way at Wednesday’s qualifier with a 5-under 67. 4 other players made it through with scores of 69 or better, with Joshua Rackley and Davis Richards surviving a 5-for-2 playoff.

No Laying Up Hosting Live Podcast in South End After First Round of PGA: The NLU crew will be setting up shop at Platform Sports Bar for their post-round live show on Thursday, May 15th. Doors will open at 4 PM and admission is free.

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