Best Major Leaderboard Of All Time? Why The PGA Championship Final Round Could Be An All-Time Classic

During my time as a golf fan, I can't recall a more exciting looking leaderboard going into the final round than this week's PGA Championship.

Alex Smalley, who is yet to win as a professional, leads by two strokes, thanks to a stunning four-under-par back nine, but 22 players are within four strokes, and 43 are within six of the American heading into the final round

Not only that, but 11 countries are represented among those 22 individuals, with USA, Germany, Canada, Spain, England, Sweden, Northern Ireland, Norway, Chile, Australia and Japan the countries present.

Smalley was gutsy on Saturday, especially after a poor start that included three early bogeys, but here's why the PGA Championship has been perfectly done, so far.

To begin with this chaotic final round comes after the PGA Championship received some criticism for its lack of identity, especially after the Scottie Scheffler domination in 2025 and the low-scoring nature of Xander Schauffele's win in 2024.

In fact, pre-championship, scores were predicted to be as low as 15-under, which is why it's such a surprise to see the world's best struggle around Aronimink Golf Club.

Let's put it this way, the course has been the star of the show, as has the set-up, which proved a thorough test for the 36 holes, but let its hair down, slightly, for Saturday and Moving Day.

The early wave made the most of the good conditions, which is why an epic leaderboard is in-play that features a mix of decorated individuals and those who don't possess the Major form.

Okay, the players aren't loving it, as seen by Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Shane Lowry, with the former stating "I think a bunched leaderboard like this, I think it's a sign of not a great setup."

I'm a McIlroy fan, but sorry Rory, you couldn't be more wrong.

For the fans, it just builds excitement, knowing that you're just one bad swing away from losing the championship. Birdie fests are impressive, but the real fun lies when the best golfers on the planet are grinding for their scores.

Take the last few US Opens. For me, the 2024 and 2025 editions were the best men's Majors of the year and, in fact, some of the best golf tournaments of the season. They provided drama as low-ish scores were possible, but only through quality play.

That's what we have at the PGA Championship.

It's not just the leaderboard, but the overall feel of the tournament.

As my colleague, Mike Hall, alluded to, the PGA Tour's CEO Brian Rolapp has spoken about expanding the circuit into areas like New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Washington DC and Boston.

These are areas that are golf hungry, but have been starved of top quality events.

In Philadelphia, we've seen passionate, knowledgeable fans that, currently, haven't been over the top. They've watched the golf intently and been rewarded with an incredible leaderboard.

There's a lot of positives to take from this week and, on Sunday, tournament organizers have the choice of whether they provide players with a chance of making birdies, or whether they keep the tough conditions in-place.

Moving Day was the easiest we've seen Aronimink play, so will it follow a similar pattern on Sunday?

Either way, there are so many players in contention that it's set up to be a thriller. It really is the case that one of the big names could make a charge, or one of the unknown names edges in-front and fends off the field.

I can't wait for the PGA Championship finale... Let's hope that my words aren't in vain!

PGA Championship Leaderboard

• -6 Alex Smalley
• -4 Matti Schmid
• -4 Nick Taylor
• -4 Jon Rahm
• -4 Aaron Rai
• -4 Ludvig Aberg
• -3 Rory McIlroy
• -3 Xander Schauffele
• -3 Patrick Reed
• -3 Maverick McNealy
• -3 Kristoffer Reitan
• -3 Chris Kirk
• -3 Justin Rose
• -3 Joaquin Niemann
• -3 Martin Kaymer
• -3 Bud Cauley
• -3 Ben Griffin
• -3 Cameron Smith
• -3 Min Woo Lee
• -3 Max Greyserman
• -3 Hideki Matsuyama
• -3 Chris Gotterup