The year's second major is finally upon us.
While there's nothing better than watching major championship golf, half of my excitement for this week is due to the fact that we have a full-field event with a cut. The Signature Events continue to get less and less signature in my eyes.
While I could vent for hours about the PGA TOUR scheduling, you aren't here for that. You're here to find a winner for the PGA Championship, and I'm here to help you do just that.
I feel oddly confident in this week's betting card, so let's take a look at my 2026 PGA Championship picks and PGA Tour predictions for this week's event.
PGA Championship Course Preview: Aronimink Golf Club
The PGA Championship changes venues each year, so we don't have any course history to work with this week. This year's event will be held at Aronimink Golf Club, which is a par-70 course that measures 7,394 yards.
It has hosted PGA TOUR events in the past, but the last was the BMW Championship in 2018. I don't expect it to play anything like it did in that event.
The course has been lengthened since then, and the rough is going to be thick with this being a major. More importantly, the course was extremely soft in 2018, and that's not expected to be the case this week.
This course was designed by Donald Ross. Like most of his courses, this one was meant to test all aspects of a golfer's game.
It's fairly straightforward off the tee. Golfers will be hitting a lot of drivers off the tee, and the main goal will be to find the fairway.
Distance is always an advantage on long courses like this one, but you can't afford to spray the ball here. There's thick rough and a ton of bunkering. Hitting the right section of the green will be much easier if golfers are hitting their approach shots from the fairway.
Most of the interviews with golfers this week have focused on the green complexes here at Aronimink. The greens are 8,200 square feet on average. These are absolutely massive greens compared to the TOUR average.
However, the greens are going to play a lot smaller than that. They are contoured, so hitting the right section of the green will be critical. Good approach players have an advantage every week, but it will be even more prevalent this week.
We're also going to see plenty of three-putts, so good lag putting will really come in handy.
We typically see U.S. Open-style players win the PGA Championship, but I wouldn't be surprised if some shorter hitters find their way to the top of the leaderboard this week.
Rather than focusing on Driving Distance, I want to target golfers who are good drivers of the ball. Elite approach play and a tidy short game will also be needed to contend this week.
2026 PGA Championship Picks, Predictions
PGA Championship Pick: Ludvig Aberg
Odds: +2100 · bet365
After finishing runner-up in each of his last three events, I was going to make Scottie Scheffler my only outright bet of the week. Ultimately, I had to chase some longer odds.
Aberg has won on TOUR, he has contended in majors, and he has won a Ryder Cup. He has the perfect game for major championships, so it's only a matter of time before he wins his first one.
I'm hoping it happens this week at Aronimink.
After a somewhat slow start to the year, Aberg has finished T8 or better in five of his last six events. Over the last three months, he ranks top-20 in this field in all of the Strokes Gained metrics (Off The Tee, Approach, Around The Green and Putting).
His game seems to be peaking at the perfect time.
PGA Championship Pick: Brooks Koepka
Odds: +4500 · bet365
This is more of a value play than anything else. I'm happy to bet Koepka in a major anytime he's +4500, especially when he's motivated and hitting the ball well.
Since rejoining the PGA TOUR, he has talked at length about wanting to get into the Signature Events and get back to being one of the best in the world.
Golf seems to be his No. 1 priority again.
Over the last three months, Koepka ranks ninth in the field in Strokes Gained: Approach. We know he's a good driver of the ball (especially at majors), and we know he's one of the most clutch putters of all time.
Unlike a lot of golfers in this price range, Koepka isn't going to back down if he finds himself in contention on Sunday.
PGA Championship Pick: Rickie Fowler
Odds: +6600 · DraftKings
Wouldn't this be the golf fairytale story of all golf fairytale stories?
Fowler was once one of the best golfers in the world. It felt like he would win multiple major championships in his career, but all he has to show for it is eight top-five finishes.
His game has been up-and-down over the last five years, but now he's playing the best golf he has played in a long time.
Fowler finished runner-up last week at Quail Hollow and has posted three straight top-10 finishes.
He's positive in all Strokes Gained metrics this year, which should really come in handy on a course that's meant to test all aspects of a player's game.
PGA Championship Pick: Adam Scott
Odds: +7500 · bet365
Scott has quietly made 16 straight cuts worldwide with four top-10 finishes during that stretch.
He's not thought of as a bomber, but he has picked up some serious speed late in his career. He ranks seventh in Driving Distance in this field over the last three months.
During that same stretch, he sits third in Strokes Gained: Approach. This is a golfer who has won a major, a PLAYERS Championship and 29 other events worldwide in his career.
And now, he's bombing the ball and hitting his irons as well as almost anyone in the field? He's certainly worth a look at +7500.
I'm going to supplement this pick with a top-5 and a top-10 bet.
