US PGA Set for Super Sunday Showdown

Golf's final major of the season is set for a scintillating final day of action as a host of major players top the standings. 

On a day which saw, at one point, five players holding a share of the lead and a further five just one shot back, Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy emerged clear with a one stroke lead heading into Sunday. McIlroy endured a rocky round with some sloppy short-game errors on the 8th and 12th dragging him back into the rest of the field. At one point eighteen players were within three shots of the lead but the new world number one showed all the steely grit that has earned him three major titles, claiming three birdies over the last four holes to move to -13.

Behind him lie a star-studded line-up of leaderboard-topping veterans but his playing partner on the final day does not yet fall into that category. Austrian Bernt Wiesberger sits just one shot behind McIlroy after a special six under par round today saw him move to well within contention heading into the final day. With only five past major appearances and just one cut made, you would be forgiven for not recognising the Austrian but he has strung together three days of solid golf and will be feeling relaxed in amongst the golfing worlds big boys.

One shot further back is a man we have become all too accustomed to seeing on the final day of majors after two tied second performances and a tied fifth just this year. After an eclectic day of bogeys and birdies on friday, Rickie Fowler will have been pleased to see a squeaky clean scorecard as he finished his round this afternoon. An intelligent round of exploitative golf saw the 25-year-old American birdie all three of the par fives to leave him sitting just two strokes behind McIlroy and with plenty of confidence after seeing the Northern Irishman make a couple of errors today. Set to don his traditional orange attire for the final day, will the future be bright for the American?

These three will have to be on their toes though as lurking on ten under par is the master and the apprentice, Phil Mickelson and Jason Day. 'Lefty' is no stranger to a major title having collected five in his time, and the veteran looks ready to pounce with another US PGA title a very realistic possibility. With a string of four birdies in five holes towards the end of his round yesterday, he put himself well in the hunt for the title. Mickelson has been playing some assured golf around this generous Valhalla course and with the capabilities of his short game, McIlroy, Fowler and Wiesberger will be looking nervously over their shoulder.

Day had a less fruitful day than those around him as he left the course with just a 69 but will be remembered for save-of-the-day after wading, barefoot, through a creek to play his second shot after a wayward drive on the second hole. Remarkably, considering his position, Day parred the hole but will be disappointed with his day on the whole having lost ground to his partner, McIlroy. The Australian certainly has the attributes to challenge though and is another heavyweight on this super Sunday.

There is a mixture of players at -9, just four shots behind the leader. Henrik Stenson is the most recognisable of the four after his fantastic end to last year but Louis Oosthuizen is the sole major winner in this group after his 2010 Open Championship victory. Joining them are American, Ryan Palmer and Finn, Mikko Ilonen who both laboured through Saturday, both shooting 69's, a disappointing score comparable to those around them. At just four behind, they will all think they are still in with a chance and, especially Stenson who is still searching for that maiden major, will pounce on any mistake from the leaders.

Welshman Jamie Donaldson has the Ryder Cup now firmly in his sights after a wonderful 66 seeing him move up to -8 alongside Steve Stricker and Graeme DeLaet but will need an even better round if he is to be in with a chance of claiming his debut major.

It was another day of 'what ifs' for Lee Westwood who shot another four bogeys to go with the two double bogeys he had shot on Thursday and Friday to leave him off the pace at -7. The worst round of the day though went to Jim Furyk among the front runners, who was the sole man in the top 38 not to shoot either even or under par after a one-over-par round, meaning he joins Westwood on -7. Hunter Mahan, Kevin Chappell, Joost Luiten and Adam Scott are also on -7 but will be rank outsiders now at six shots behind.

With Ryder Cup qualification on the mind of many Americans and Europeans, Sunday is set to be a low scoring day for the enture field but all eyes will be on the front runners. McIlroy is in pole position and if recent form is anything to go by, should claim the title. That is far too simple though, and with some wiley old foxes, world-class youngsters and fresh faces all in hot pursuit expect fireworks on the Valhalla course as the major golfing season comes to an explosive finale.

Dufner Claims PGA Championship

American Jason Dufner carded a strong fourth round 68 to claim the 95th PGA Championship as well as setting a 72 hole course record around Oak Hill.

Dufner played fantastically off of the tees.

While the men around him failed to get to grips with the tricky Oak Hill Course, Dufner excelled, carding a three under 32 on the front nine. Despite bogeying the final two holes, his consistent driving and wedge play throughout the day meant that Dufner was able to maintain the two shot lead he had going into the last two. The win will mean more for Dufner after he lost a play-off to close friend Keegan Bradley in the same tournament two years previously.

As well as setting a 72 hole course record ten under par, he also scored the 18 hole course record of 63 on friday, an instrumental factor in his victory. Dufner showed great nerve throughout the whole of his final round, wielding the putter well compared to Saturday where he looked unsteady. It was his consistent driving and fantastic wedge play that set him apart from the rest of the front runners and there is no doubt that Dufner earned his win this weekend.

So close but so far for Furyk.

Although Jim Furyk put up a strong fight he was never able to challenge Dufner after the front nine. Furyk had a poor day off of the tee, meaning he wasn't able to truly test Dufner. Eventually, Furyk finished two behind Dufner, shooting a 71 for the day, suggesting that nerves got the better off him after leading overnight.

Blixt enjoyed being in the picture.

Behind Furyk on seven under par was the the in form Henrik Stenson, the Swede still searching for his first major. His form in recent weeks and at Oak Hill has rightly shot him into the top ten in the World. He was followed by fellow Swede Jonas Blixt, one shot further back. The 29 year old showed he can play on the big stage as he ended the tournament fourth.

The big mover on the day was Scott Piercy who shot a 65, the best round of the day, catapulting him up the leaderboard to fifth place and shooting eight birdies on the day. He was joined there by Masters Champion Adam Scott who was unable to string together a strong enough round to really challenge the leaders. Nevertheless, it's another top 10 finish for one of the hottest prospects in golf.

The wait goes on for Woods' 15th.

Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, the pre-tournament favorites, both slipped away as the week went on. Tiger had a fairly consistent week with the main issue being that he was consistently a few shots over par, finishing the tournament four over. Mickelson shot a disastrous 78 on the Saturday leaving him way off the pace at 12 over par.

Rory gets back on track

What of the Brits playing in the Championship? Well it was great to see Rory McIlroy back towards the top of the Leaderboard, after finishing tied 8th. McIlroy showed signs he was overcoming his psychological issues of recent times as he played some solid golf. His Northern Irish compatriot was a further one shot back on two under par along with Scotsman Marc Warren, who recovered from a four over first round to also end on two under par.

Jason Dufner almost cracks a smile as he wins his first major

The highest Englishman was David Lynn on even par, a good achievement to top off a strong year. Paul Casey showed signs he was continuing his comeback from injury with a three over par for the tournament alongside Justin Rose and Lee Westwood. It was a tournament of what-ifs for Rose and Westwood who were both in the mix at some point but struggled for consistency over the four days.

Tiger Roars to Victory at Firestone

Tiger Woods sent a message of intent to his rivals the week before the final major of the year as he surged to a seven shot victory at the WGC Bridgestone Invitational.

Woods won the title at Firestone for the eighth time in his career, an incredible feat considering the tournament has only been played there fourteen times.

Woods was in control from the first day, carding a four under par 66. Woods played the par fours beautifully, carding six birdies paired with two bogeys. However, it was his Friday score of 61 which gave him an astonishing lead over the rest of the field.

Woods held onto his seven-shot overnight lead.

With an eagle and seven birdies taking him to nine under at the end of the 13th hole, many dared to dream that he could shoot a sub-60 round. He had the opportunities over the last five holes but was sadly only able to par them. Nevertheless, his career-equaling best and course-equaling 61 meant that he had all-but wrapped up the victory by Friday.

This enabled Woods to relax going into the weekend maintaining his seven shot lead through the whole of Saturday with a respectable 68. On the final day Woods played conservatively, shooting an even-par 70 but it was unnecessary for him to take risks with the lead that he had already earned. This meant Woods ended the weekend on an impressive fifteen under par.

Seven shots behind Woods was last years champion Keegan Bradley and in-form Henrik Stenson. Whilst neither were ever close to catching Woods, both will take confidence from their performance heading to Oak Hill on Thursday.

Miguel Angel Jimenez, Jason Dufner and Zach Johnson were a further two shots back with Chris Wood the highest placed Englishman, a further one shot behind on five under par. Rory McIlroy showed signs that he might be returning to some form with a two over par tournament meaning he ended in tied 27th.

However, the limelight belonged entirely to Woods as he rolled back the years to win the 79th Tour victory of his career. He will now be focused on the PGA Championship and homing in on Jack Nichlaus' record of 18 major championships. If Tiger was doubting winning a major the week after winning another tournament he should take solace from the performance of Phil Mickelson a few weeks ago at the Open.

So now we await the start of the PGA Championship on Thursday to see if Tiger can continue his imperious form.