PGA Championship: How it's going, how to watch, what's at stake, betting odds

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler is the overwhelming favorite to win the PGA Championship after shooting a 6-under 65 on Saturday to take a three-shot lead over Sweden's Alex Noren.

Scheffler started the day three shots behind second-round leader Jhonattan Vegas, but finished the third round with a flurry playing the final five holes in 5 under.

Barring a uncharacteristic meltdown by the world's No. 1 player or someone making a record-breaking run up the leaderboard, it seems Scheffler is destined to win his third major championship.

Some other big stars jettisoned up the leaderboard on Saturday too, including Jon Rahm, who shot 67 (and hit a fan in the head with approach shot) leaving him five shots back. Bryson DeChambeau briefly led the tournament on Saturday entering the 16th hole, but collapsed late playing the final three holes in 3 over and is now six shots behind.

Masters champion Rory McIlroy, who made the cut on the number, was unable to take advantage of moving day and shot 72. He is 13 shots behind, ending any hopes of winning all four majors in the same calendar year.

Here are some other details about the PGA Championship.

The unflappable Scheffler.

If he wins, this will give him half of golf's career Grand Slam since his other two wins have come at the Masters.

Noren played the final five holes on Saturday to shoot 66, but it was overshadowed by Scheffler's late run.

J.T. Poston and Davis Riley are both four shots behind Scheffler, while Rahm and Si Woo Kim are five shots back. Among the players tied for eighth place and six shots behind are DeChambeau, Matthieu Pavon, Tony Finau, Matt Fitzpatrick and Keegan Bradley.

Coverage of the PGA Championship on Sunday goes from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. on ESPN+, then moves to ESPN until 1 p.m. CBS and Paramount+ take over from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Scheffler is the overwhelming favorite and now listed at -400 by BetMGM Sportsbook, meaning Las Vegas believes everyone else is playing for second place.

Noren is at +1600, while Rahm is at +1800 and DeChambeau is at +2500. Poston is listed at +3300.

The winner gets the Wanamaker Trophy, which at 27 pounds is the heaviest of the four major championship trophies.

Xander Schauffele was trying to become only the third player to win the PGA Championship in consecutive years in stroke play, but he has struggled all week and barely made the cut. He is 13 shots behind Scheffler entering the final round.

Scheffler has everyone's attention with the three-shot lead.

There are some capable players behind him, including Rahm and DeChambeau. The problem is the deficit might be too great as Scheffler doesn't regularly shoot over par, so they'd likely need to fire something in the low 60s to even have a chance.

The lowest round this week is Vegas' 64.

Noren, who is three shots behind, is technically within striking distance. So are Poston are Riley at four back. But those players don't have the experience in big tournaments so it will be interesting to see if they fade in the final round.

There are 16 players from LIV Golf in the field at the PGA Championship, the same number as last year. Half of them made it to the weekend.

Rahm and DeChambeau are in the top 10, but Joaquin Niemann and Tyrrell Hatton have fallen out of contention. The 52-year-old Richard Bland of England shot 76 to fall to 2-over par for the tournament and is no longer a factor either.

Play was suspended early Saturday because of thunderstorms moving through the area and eventually the PGA of America delayed starting times and said players would be grouped in threesomes going off both tees. There is no rain in the forecast for Sunday and temperatures will be in the low 80s.

Masters champion Rory McIlroy was the center of curious questions when it was revealed his driver had been tested and ruled unfit for play by the USGA before the PGA Championship started. He had to use a backup driver for the week and has been a non-factor all week.

McIlroy isn't speaking, refusing to speak to the media for three straight days.

Driver testing is common at the majors. It's rare for a Masters champion at the center of attention.

Schauffele won the PGA Championship last year at Valhalla for his first major, making a 6-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a one-shot victory over DeChambeau. Schauffele made the cut on the number to extend his streak to 64 tournaments, but he's 13 shots back and non-factor.

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, hits his tee shot on the 11th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Jhonattan Vegas, of Venezuela, hits from the bunker on the 18th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Scottie Scheffler watches as Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, putts on the 14th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Friday, May 16, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Scottie Scheffler watches his tee shot on the 14th hole during a practice round for the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

Jordan Spieth speaks during a news conference at the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Tuesday, May 13, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Matt York)

Rory McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, hits from the bunker on the 10th hole during a practice round for the PGA Championship golf tournament at the Quail Hollow Club, Wednesday, May 14, 2025, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

ALEPPO, Syria (AP) — First responders on Sunday entered a contested neighborhood in Syria’ s northern city of Aleppo after days of deadly clashes between government forces and Kurdish-led forces. Syrian state media said the military was deployed in large numbers.

The clashes broke out Tuesday in the predominantly Kurdish neighborhoods of Sheikh Maqsoud, Achrafieh and Bani Zaid after the government and the Syrian Democratic Forces, the main Kurdish-led force in the country, failed to make progress on how to merge the SDF into the national army. Security forces captured Achrafieh and Bani Zaid.

The fighting between the two sides was the most intense since the fall of then-President Bashar Assad to insurgents in December 2024. At least 23 people were killed in five days of clashes and more than 140,000 were displaced amid shelling and drone strikes.

The U.S.-backed SDF, which have played a key role in combating the Islamic State group in large swaths of eastern Syria, are the largest force yet to be absorbed into Syria's national army. Some of the factions that make up the army, however, were previously Turkish-backed insurgent groups that have a long history of clashing with Kurdish forces.

The Kurdish fighters have now evacuated from the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood to northeastern Syria, which is under the control of the SDF. However, they said in a statement they will continue to fight now that the wounded and civilians have been evacuated, in what they called a “partial ceasefire.”

The neighborhood appeared calm Sunday. The United Nations said it was trying to dispatch more convoys to the neighborhoods with food, fuel, blankets and other urgent supplies.

Government security forces brought journalists to tour the devastated area, showing them the damaged Khalid al-Fajer Hospital and a military position belonging to the SDF’s security forces that government forces had targeted.

The SDF statement accused the government of targeting the hospital “dozens of times” before patients were evacuated. Damascus accused the Kurdish-led group of using the hospital and other civilian facilities as military positions.

On one street, Syrian Red Crescent first responders spoke to a resident surrounded by charred cars and badly damaged residential buildings.

Some residents told The Associated Press that SDF forces did not allow their cars through checkpoints to leave.

“We lived a night of horror. I still cannot believe that I am right here standing on my own two feet,” said Ahmad Shaikho. “So far the situation has been calm. There hasn’t been any gunfire.”

Syrian Civil Defense first responders have been disarming improvised mines that they say were left by the Kurdish forces as booby traps.

Residents who fled are not being allowed back into the neighborhood until all the mines are cleared. Some were reminded of the displacement during Syria’s long civil war.

“I want to go back to my home, I beg you,” said Hoda Alnasiri.

Associated Press journalist Kareem Chehayeb in Beirut contributed to this report.

Sandbag barriers used as fighting positions by Kurdish fighters, left inside a destroyed mosque in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Burned vehicles at one of the Kurdish fighters positions at the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

People flee the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

A Syrian military police convoy enters the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)

Burned vehicles and ammunitions left at one of the Kurdish fighters positions at the Sheikh Maqsoud neighborhood, where clashes between government forces and Kurdish fighters have been taking place in the northern city of Aleppo, Syria, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2026. (AP Photo/Ghaith Alsayed)