PGA Championship Storylines: McIlroy Returns To Valhalla, Koepka Chases Six, Scheffler's New Perspective

If it feels like the PGA Championship has snuck up on us, that's because it has. Just five weeks ago, we were watching Scottie Scheffler put on a green jacket for the second time in his career.  We've also endured two signature events between then and now, but the year's second major championship is here.

The usual suspects are dominating this week's headlines with the three-headed monster of Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka, and Scheffler expected to have something to say about who hoists the Wanamaker Trophy come Sunday. All three enter the week with recently added wrinkles to their games and personal lives as well.

While those three players unquestionably have the brightest spotlights on them heading into the week, there are plenty of other players and storylines to get well-versed in heading into Valhalla.

2024 PGA Championship Storylines

Scottie Scheffler And The Grand Slam Dream

This is the first time since 2015, when Jordan Spieth won the year's first two major championships, that the collective golf world is discussing a potential grand slam run. The fact that Scottie Scheffler is just one-fourth of the way there and the conversation is being taken seriously in golf circles goes to show just how impressive he's been this year.

Scheffler has won four of his last five starts with his lone non-win being a T-2 finish at the Houston Open in March while posting ball-striking numbers we haven't seen since Tiger Woods in the early 2000s.

The only potentially (very, very small) red flag for Scheffler entering this week is that he hasn't played since winning the RBC Heritage on April 21 as he stepped away to focus on the birth of his first child. Baby Scheffler has reportedly arrived and all systems are a go for the new dad, and it'll be interesting to see how he comes out of the gates in his first start since the life-changing moment. 

An In-Form Rory McIlroy Should Be Mighty Comfortable

Rory McIlroy returning to Valhalla, the site of his last major championship victory back in 2014, was always going to be one of the top storylines of the week. Now that you add to the fact that he boat raced the field at Quail Hollow to win the Wells Fargo Championship by five shots this past week, and the vibes seem to be off the charts for the man looking to snap a decade-long major drought.

McIlroy won the week before his 2014 PGA Championship victory as well, which is a note you'll hear over and over again leading up to Thursday's opening round.

Brooks Koepka Eyeing Number Six

Speaking of being in form heading into a tournament he's won (three) times before, Brooks Koepka will be looking to become just the 15th player ever to win at least six major championships this week.

Koepka was a non-factor at the Masters earlier this year and hadn't shown too much life on the LIV circuit, but popped off for a win in Singapore in his most recent start letting the world know that he is, in fact, still a dude. A win at Valhalla would make him the only player since 1980 not named Tiger Woods to win six major championships before his 35th birthday.

(Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Jon Rahm Feels Due

Jon Rahm's first season on LIV Golf hasn't been bad by any means, but most would have assumed he would have at least one win on the Saudi-backed circuit through seven starts. That reality hasn't unfolded despite finishing 14th or better in seven starts including five Top 10 finishes.

Valhalla is a big boy golf course that should fit Rahm's power and preferred left-to-right shot shape, but a different version of the Rahm we saw at Augusta National where he finished T-31 will have to show up if he wants to have a say on the weekend.

A Bryson DeChambeau Course Fit

Valhalla has some Winged Foot vibes to it, which Bryson DeChambeau will love to hear. 

The course this week could play incredibly soft with the amount of rain Lexington, Kentucky is expected to take on in the coming days, which only plays to DeChambeau's advantage. 

Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

The 30-year-old is leading LIV in average driving distance this year and undoubtedly found some confidence at the Masters where he finished T-6, which was by far his best trek around Augusta National in his career. 

This week may not be quite the bomb-and-gauge fest we saw during the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot, but if it resembles it at all, DeChambeau should be incredibly motivated to tee it up.

The Curious Case Of Viktor Hovland

Viktor Hovland has made seven starts on Tour this season and has just one Top 20 to show for it. After a remarkable 2023 campaign, he elected to fire his shortgame coach who revolutionized his game around the greens, and the results have hurt, mightily, since that decision.

Hovland ranks 186th out of 187 players in strokes gained: around the green this season. He ranked 86th in that category a season ago, one in which he picked up three wins and put on a masterclass around the greens at the Ryder Cup.

Many circled Valhalla as a perfect spot for Hovland to earn his first career major championship, but his lack of form is hard to get behind heading into such a stiff test.

Incredible Expectations For Ludvig Aberg

Ludvig Aberg being among the favorites to win the Masters a month ago seemed a bit ludicrous given that it was his first start in a major championship. He blew the expectations out of the water by finishing solo second and traded shot-for-shot with Scheffler for 63 holes.

(Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

Now, five weeks later, Aberg is among the Top Five favorites to hoist the Wanamaker this weekend and it doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility whatsoever. Maybe he comes back to Earth after his incredibly impressive run and a knee issue that forced him to skip out on the Wells Fargo last week, but counting him out doesn't seem like a wise move whatsoever at the moment.

Jordan Spieth And The Career Slam

This week will mark Spieth's eighth swing at completing the career grand slam since winning The Open in 2017 to wrangle three of the game's four major championships. His T-3 finish in the 2019 PGA was his last close call at entering the game's most sacred of circles, and based on form that likely won't change this week.

Spieth has three Top 10 finishes in 12 starts this season, but his game has been all over the place. In typical Spieth fashion, it feels as if he gets one aspect of his game in order, then another takes a hit as a result.

He'll undoubtedly put together a stretch of holes at Valhalla this week that will make you question ‘what if this is the week' before ripping the heart out of his fans in rapidly fast fashion.