The third round of the PGA Championship delivered fireworks on Saturday as Michael Kim, Chris Kirk, and Justin Rose surged up the leaderboard, turning Aronimink into a scoring paradise. While Rory McIlroy teed off hoping to make a move, the course suddenly looked vulnerable—and these players took full advantage.
Michael Kim, the 32-year-old Seoul-born standout, caught fire early. He birdied six of his first seven holes, including a scorching start with three straight birdies to open his round. After a brief bogey, he rattled off three more in a row to reach two-under for the tournament. His blistering 30 on the front nine had fans buzzing, though a double-bogey at the 10th hole dropped him back to level par. Kim, who won the 2023 French Open on the DP World Tour and the 2018 John Deere Classic on the PGA Tour, has made the cut in just five of 12 major starts. His best major finish came as low amateur at the 2013 U.S. Open, where he tied for 17th.
Chris Kirk matched Kim's early intensity, birdying five of the first seven holes to card a 31 on the front nine. The American veteran sits at one-under overall, firmly in the mix as the weekend heats up.
Justin Rose, the 45-year-old Englishman and 2013 U.S. Open champion at nearby Merion, showed why experience matters. He birdied four of his first six holes, including a streak from the third through seventh holes that tied his best run in any PGA Championship—the longest birdie streak of the week. Rose also stands at one-under, proving he still has the game to contend on a big stage.
After two days of wind and tricky pin placements kept the field bunched, Saturday offered a breakout opportunity on Aronimink's sloped greens. The 7,934-yard layout was there for the taking, and the early starters made the most of it.
American co-leaders Maverick McNealy and Alex Smalley, both at four-under par 136, were set to tee off later as the targets for a world-class field. But with the course softening and the leaderboard tightening, Sunday promises a thrilling finish.
Off the course, the PGA of America announced a record $20.5 million prize purse—$1.5 million more than last year. The winner will take home $3.69 million, up $270,000 from defending champion Scottie Scheffler's haul in 2024. The runner-up earns $2.214 million.
World No. 2 Rory McIlroy, fresh off his sixth major title at last month's Masters, started the third round five shots back alongside playing partner Brooks Koepka, a five-time major winner. History is not on McIlroy's side: no player has won the first two majors in a year since Jordan Spieth in 2015, and no one has claimed both the Masters and PGA Championship in the same season since Jack Nicklaus in 1975.
But with Aronimink suddenly surrendering low scores, anything is possible. The stage is set for a Sunday showdown that could rewrite the record books.