How Aaron Rai won 2026 PGA Championship: English golfer pulls away from crowded field to capture first major win

How Aaron Rai won 2026 PGA Championship: English golfer pulls away from crowded field to capture first major win originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

It took some time for Aronimink to produce a clear champion, but Aaron Rai proved down the stretch on Sunday that he was more than worthy of the Wanamaker Trophy.

Rai, a 31-year-old from England who had never finished higher than 19th in a major, pulled away from a leaderboard that looked like it might never sort itself out on Sunday, joining J.J. Spaun as the only player other than Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy to win a major over the last two years.

With the win, Rai became the first Englishman to win the PGA Championship.

The moment was a long time in the making for Rai, who had made the cut in each of his last eight major starts despite never coming particularly close to a win. A three-time winner on the European Tour and one-time winner on the PGA Tour, Rai reached the pinnacle in the greater Philadelphia area.

Here's a look at how Rai won his first major championship.

MORE:Aaron Rai's complete majors timeline

How Aaron Rai won the PGA Championship

Rai was seemingly exchanging birdies and bogeys early in Sunday's fourth round, dropping under a crowded top of the leaderboard, but it was an eagle at No. 9 that turned his day around. The eagle took Rai from 3-under to 5-under and put him in position to go and grab the lead on the back nine.

After a birdie at No. 11, it was a bunker shot at No. 13 and a subsequent birdie putt that finally allowed Rai to create some separation between himself and the rest of the field. This beauty set Rai up with a shot that moved him to 7-under on the day.

Special stuff from Aaron Rai.

He cashes in a sensational bunker shot for birdie to increase the lead. pic.twitter.com/kbtX14T9o5— Golf on CBS ⛳ (@GolfonCBS) May 17, 2026

Matti Schmid would cut Rai's lead back to one, and a missed putt for birdie at No. 15 denied Rai the chance to regain a more comfortable advantage. From there, however, Rai couldn't stop. The 31-year-old had a chance at eagle and settled for a massive birdie to reach 8-under par after this brilliant shot:

What a shot by Aaron Rai to set up a look at eagle! pic.twitter.com/1rwUx43RHt— Golf on CBS ⛳ (@GolfonCBS) May 17, 2026

At No. 17, Rai made the putt of a lifetime from nearly 70 feet out to move to 9-under and put what once looked like a high chance of a playoff completely out of the picture.

WHAT. A. PUTT!

UNBELIEVABLE FROM AARON RAI! pic.twitter.com/JxGSchnie1— Golf on CBS ⛳ (@GolfonCBS) May 17, 2026

Rai's consistency across the board won the day. He ranked top-10 in strokes gained in putting, approach and tee-to-green, finishing second in approach. While other players might have more dominant in one particular area, none were close to as weakness-free as Rai.

Winning also typically requires some fortunate circumstances. Aaron Smalley, felled by a double bogey, couldn't sustain his excellent start to the weekend, while Rory McIlroy struggled to dig out of bad situations he put himself in and Cameron Smith missed some crucial putts that could have allowed him to charge to the top of the leaderboard. 

MORE: Why does Aaron Rai wear two gloves?

Aaron Rai scorecard today

Rai just got better as the PGA Championship went on, shooting a 70 on Thursday, 69 on Friday and 67 on Saturday to enter Sunday tied with four other players in second at 4-under par.

After a volatile first eight holes on Sunday, Rai settled down and shot 6-under par over his final 10 holes. That was more than enough to seal a win.