There were some golf fans who looked at the 2025 PGA Championship leaderboard entering Sundays final round and thought Scottie Scheffler was going to run away with the Wanamaker Trophy. Instead, Scheffler came out looking nothing like the masterful shot artist we saw to end his third round, particularly with a left-leaking driver. That allowed Jon Rahm to insert himself in the conversation with the pair of Masters champions tied as Scheffler began the back nine at Quail Hollow.
After seeing Rory McIlroy shockingly end up in a playoff just a month ago at Augusta, golf fans were ready for another tie after 72 holes to be decided with bonus golf. However, whenever we're at a major championship and a playoff is on the table, there's always the question of what the playoff format actually looks like, especially since it differs from the PGA Tour and other majors.
So, what is the PGA Championship playoff format? We're breaking that down while looking at the history of playoffs at this major championship and more.
PGA Championship playoff format: What holes do they play at Quail Hollow to break the tie?
The PGA Championship playoff is a three-hole aggregate format and that means that a tie at Quail Hollow after 72 holes will force the tiebreaker to be played on the 16th, 17th and 18th holes, also known as the famed Green Mile, in order to decide a winner.
For Sunday at the event, the Par-4 16th hole is playing 515 yards with a 4.383 scoring average for the tournament. Meanwhile, the grueling Par-3 17th hole is playing 216 yards but has been brutally difficult with a 3.571 scoring average. Finally, the 504-yard 18th hole, playing as a Par 4, also has an over-par scoring average of 4.352.
When was the last playoff at the PGA Championship?
The last playoff at the PGA Championship came just three years ago in 2022 at Southern Hills when Justin Thomas bested Will Zalatoris in Tulsa to take the Wanamaker Trophy. That tournament is perhaps best remembered for who wasn't in the playoff, though, as Mito Pereira led after 71 holes but put his drive on the 18th hole in the water, then later chipped over the green to shoot double bogey and fall out of the playoff.
Prior to the 2022 PGA Championship tiebreaker, the last playoff in this major was all the way back in 2011 when Keegan Bradley won over Jason Dufner at Atlanta Athletic Club.
Memorable playoff finishes at the PGA Championship
The JT-Zalatoris playoff at the PGA Championship in 2022 was certainly a memorable one. However, the one that might stick out more this century was all the way back in 2000 when, en route to completing the Tiger Slam and winning his third-straight major championship at the time, Tig Woods bested Bob May in a playoff at Valhalla to win what was also his second straight Wanamaker Trophy.
Beyond that, the 2004 PGA Championship playoff with Vijay Signh coming out ahead of Chris DiMarco and Justin Leonard in a heated showdown at Whistling Straits was one of the most entertaining major championship playoffs that you'll ever see as well.