All’s Fairway: A Photo Essay of The 2025 PGA Championship
In May, Charlotte hosted the PGA Championship for the second time. The week unfolded within an emerging golf cathedral—and culminated in a shot for redemption
They’ll remember the final putt, of course, that gentle kiss for birdie on the 18th hole. Scottie Scheffler had missed his previous attempt by less than a foot, eliciting groans from the crowd. “No matter,” said Jim Nantz, a Charlotte native, calling the action for CBS. “It’ll just make the final margin five.” Casually, Scheffler sank it.
Groans transformed into a roar, then a chant: “Scottie! Scottie!” One year and a day before, during the previous championship, Scheffler had been arrested for an alleged assault on a police officer in Louisville, Kentucky. He tied for eighth place. (The criminal case was later dropped.)
This year: victory. The world’s top-ranked professional golfer hoisted the Wanamaker Trophy. “I’m proud of how I did this week,” Scheffler said afterward, “just staying in it mentally and hitting the shots when I needed to.”
The whole week felt ceremonial, as golf tournaments often do. There’s a stateliness to its gradual progress over hillocks and between groves of trees. Station by station, the throng’s murmur turns to a hush, then cheers or gasps depending on where the white ball goes. The grounds and crowd create their own kind of ritual. They hit the shots when they need to.
A course offical raises his arms to quiet the crowd before a putt.
Members of the grounds crew mow the fairway on hole 13 as the sun rises on the final day of play of the PGA Championship.
Stacey Lyons of Charlotte hand-enhanced a hat just for the occasion.
Spectators at the 11th hole gaze skyward at the Goodyear Blimp.
A house along the 15th displays a cardboard cutout of PGA Pro Rory McIlroy.
A grounds crew member applies the final mow to a green on Sunday morning.
By the time Scottie Scheffler approached Quail Hollow’s last three holes—the infamous “Green Mile”—on Sunday, it was apparent that he’d win the trophy. As Max Greyserman putted, crowds began to gather at the 18th hole in anticipation.
The congregation cheers as Scheffler clinches the championship.
The coveted Wanamaker Trophy and its 2025 winner pose for photos.
