Martin Kaymer is proving that rumors of his golfing demise have been greatly exaggerated.
The two-time major champion and 2010 PGA winner stormed out of the gates Thursday with a sparkling 3-under 67, landing him in a seven-way tie for the lead at the PGA Championship. It's a statement round that should silence any doubters—including one particularly memorable skeptic.
At the champions dinner two days earlier, an attendee asked Kaymer, who now captains the Cleeks team in LIV Golf, if he still plays professionally. The German didn't miss a beat.
"That's why I'm here," Kaymer shot back. "I'm not flying from Europe to here to have a New York strip steak with you guys. Of course I'm playing." He admitted the exchange only fueled his fire.
And the 41-year-old backed up the bravado. Playing in the afternoon wave that avoided the morning chill, Kaymer carded four birdies, including a clutch 16-footer on the closing par-5 ninth, against just a single bogey. It's the latest sign of a player on the rise after a 12th-place finish in Virginia and a 35th in South Africa on the LIV circuit.
"I've been playing well the last two, three events," Kaymer said. "I didn't have good results, but I was playing well. And I knew I'd find more consistency."
That consistency has been hard to come by since 2021, when health issues began derailing his practice and performance. Now pain-free for the first time in years, Kaymer says he's simply enjoying the game again.
"Everything is going the right direction," he said. "I can practice. It's fun. I have a great passion for the game. Playing tough golf courses and executing the right shots—that is really fun."
With his U.S. Open exemption expiring in 2024, Kaymer views his PGA Championship berth as perhaps his last chance to test himself against the world's elite. And he's making the most of it.
"Competing against the best guys in the world—that's what majors are for," Kaymer said. "That is the ultimate. Winning the PGA in 2010 and the U.S. Open... that is the ultimate feeling. No tournament compares."