Jon Rahm hopes he can “ride the wave” of his brilliant form this season to more major success.

Rahm has won four times in 11 events in 2023, the most recent seeing him replace Scottie Scheffler as world number one after succeeding the American as Masters champion at Augusta National.

The former US Open champion is now halfway to completing a career grand slam and, with the majors coming thick and fast since the US PGA Championship moved from August to May in 2019, Rahm admits he is relishing the prospect of adding to his tally at Oak Hill this week.

“I’m confident. I feel good,” Rahm said. “It’s been a great year. It’s been an amazing year. I’m just hoping to keep adding more to it. It’s been a lot of fun, and hopefully I can keep riding that wave.

“There’s always little things we all want to improve, but I think at the end of the day it’s all what’s going on between the ears on the golf course more than technique at this point of the season.

“It doesn’t happen often that a player wins more than one major in a year, so it would be amazing to be able to join my name to that list. Latest to do it that I can remember was Brooks (Koepka), was it 2018?

“Before that Jordan (Spieth) in 2015. It just doesn’t happen often so I would love to.”

Spieth needs to win the US PGA to complete a career grand slam, although he is doubtful this week with a wrist injury, while Rory McIlroy’s latest attempt to become the sixth player to have won all four majors ended with a dispiriting missed cut in the Masters.

Asked about his own prospects of joining golf’s most exclusive club, Rahm said: “Obviously if I were to win this week or the Open Championship it really becomes a true reality, but winning two majors is not easy, and picking which ones you win is a little ludicrous to think about.

“I think obviously winning the grand slam would absolutely be amazing, but I think, without sounding too conceited or arrogant, I’d rather focus on the number of majors you win than having the grand slam per se.

“Obviously it would be amazing, but the more you put yourself in the position to be able to win majors, the more likely you might be to get it done.

“But it’s a very small number of players to do it, last one being Tiger (Woods). It’s obviously not an easy thing to accomplish.”

A subdued Rory McIlroy admitted he has been working on lowering his expectations ahead of the 105th US PGA Championship following his miserable Masters experience.

McIlroy spoke confidently of having all the ingredients to win a green jacket and complete the career grand slam ahead of the year’s first major at Augusta National, with Tiger Woods even claiming it was just a matter of time.

Yet while Woods played through the pain barrier to make a record-equalling 23rd consecutive cut before being forced to withdraw, McIlroy made an early exit without speaking to reporters following a second round of 77.

The world number three then withdrew from the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head, meaning he missed his second ‘designated event’ of the year on the PGA Tour and lost 25 per cent of his Player Impact Program bonus (£2.4million).

McIlroy felt the break was necessary for his “mental and emotional wellbeing” after a taxing 12 months in which he juggled on-course competition with his role as an unofficial spokesman for the PGA Tour in its battle against LIV Golf.

And he tellingly revealed that he had allowed himself to think about becoming just the sixth player to have won all four major titles after shooting five under par on the back nine of his Wednesday practice round at Augusta.

It was a complete contrast on Tuesday at Oak Hill, where questions related to LIV Golf received short shrift but he tellingly revealed what he was working on with regards to the mental side of the game.

“Less expectations,” McIlroy said. “Just sort of trying to be in a good spot with taking what comes and not thinking about things too much, not getting ahead of myself.

“Just trying to go out there, play a good first hole of the tournament, and then once I do that, try to play a good second hole and just sort of go from there.

“Golf is golf, and it happens and you’re going to have bad days. It wasn’t really the performance of Augusta that’s hard to get over, it’s just more mental aspect and the deflation of it and sort of trying to get your mind in the right place to start going forward again, I guess.

“I think I’m close. I think I’ve made some good strides even from Quail Hollow a couple weeks ago.

“I’m seeing some better things, better start lines, certainly just some better golf shots. A little more sure of where I’m going to start the ball and sort of a more consistent shot pattern.

“But yeah, we’ll get out there and see and play. If I can execute the way that I feel like I can, then I still believe that I’m one of the best players in the world and I can produce good golf to have a chance of winning this week.”

McIlroy is a two-time US PGA champion and finished eighth in defence of his title at Oak Hill in 2013, since when he married Rochester native Erica Stoll and became a member of the golf club.

The 34-year-old is also a fan of the recent renovation of the East Course and believes discipline will be the key to success as he bids to end a major drought stretching back to the 2014 US PGA at Valhalla.

“You’ve got to keep it out of those fairway bunkers. They’re very, very penal,” McIlroy added.

“It’s a long golf course, and power and length is going to be an advantage. But I think even more of an advantage is making sure that you’re hitting into these greens from the fairways.

“It’s a combination of everything, but I think discipline is going to be a huge factor this week.”

Justin Thomas says he is starting to see “a little bit of light at the end of the tunnel” as he heads into his US PGA title defence.

Both of Thomas’ major victories so far have come at the US PGA – 2017 and 2022 – but he has arrived at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester following a first missed cut in eight Masters appearances last month.

The 30-year-old American’s highest finish anywhere this year was fourth at the Phoenix Open, with the Valspar Championship providing Thomas’ only other top-10 result.

He is a 20-1 shot to land a third US PGA crown, although he was encouraged by his display at the recent Wells Fargo Championship in North Carolina.

“How you learn is failure and negatives, and I feel like I’ve had a great opportunity for a lot of learning the past couple of months this year,” Thomas said.

“I am starting to see a little bit of a light at the end of the tunnel.

“There are going to be days where 70 might be the best that I have that day, but it’s sure better than 71, or 75 might be the best I have that day, but it’s better than 76. That’s just kind of how I have always been taught.

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“How I described it for a couple months is, I’ve never felt so far and so close at the same time.

“That is a very hard thing to explain, and it’s also a very hard way to try to compete and win a golf tournament.

“That’s how you get out of it, just playing your way out of it and hitting the shots when you want to and making those putts when you need to.

“Then your confidence builds back up, and next thing you know you don’t even remember what you were thinking in those times.

“I felt like I showed a lot of really good signs in Charlotte (Wells Fargo).”

Thomas played a practice round on Monday, and his first impressions of Oak Hill backed up what he has been told.

“I came out (on Sunday), just with wedges and putter and walked all 18 holes and just hit chips and putts around the greens,” he said.

“I actually played the golf course (on Monday) in its entirety, and it’s everything that I had heard about. It’s a tough test.”

Curtis Strange believes Jon Rahm and Scottie Scheffler have separated themselves from their rivals and backed an “intense” Rahm to enjoy a stellar career.

Rahm is top of the world rankings after four wins from 11 events in 2023, including succeeding Scheffler as the Masters champion after claiming his second major title at Augusta National.

Scheffler made a successful title defence in the WM Phoenix Open and also won the prestigious Players Championship at Sawgrass, leaving him just behind Rahm in the rankings but a full two points clear of Rory McIlroy in third.

The leading pair are unsurprisingly vying for favouritism ahead of the 105th US PGA Championship at Oak Hill, where Strange won the second of his back-to-back US Open titles in 1989 and will be on commentary duties for ESPN.

“They’re first and second in damn near every category,” Strange said of Rahm and Scheffler.

“Then when you look at wins there’s four and two, and top fives are equal and top 10s are equal. Who’s best? Whoever shoots the lowest score that day.

“How do you split hairs when they’re both so doggone good and both separated themselves from the rest of the field at this point in time.

“With all due respect to Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm to me when he started on the tear earlier this year, I thought to myself he’s a guy that could be one of the few guys in the history of this game that could win eight or nine tournaments in a year.

“The last guy to do that is Tiger Woods and I believe the guy to do that before him was Vijay (Singh).

“How can he win eight or nine tournaments a year? He physically has the strength. He’s a mountain of a man. He’s so strong.

“He mentally has the focus and the intensity to last through that 12-month period and to stay on top of his game. Then he’s got the talent. He’s got the length off the tee. When he gets on a stretch putting, he’s tough to beat.

“Scottie could do that. I just think Jon has a bit more intensity to hang in to do that over the course of 10 to 12 months.”

Asked how many majors he thinks Rahm is capable of winning, Strange added: “It’s impossible to predict (but) there’s certainly huge potential for a guy like that.

“Again, I like to think of his intensity. He doesn’t look like he’s going to win some and back off and get comfortable. He looks like he’s got an inner drive to do the best he can over a 20-year career.

“At the Masters he looked dominant. Strength shows its face so many different ways, and to me it showed it particularly when the weather got really cold and nasty on Friday and Saturday.

“His strength and his ability to hit the golf ball showed well during some of those difficult times.”

Rory McIlroy was right to take a break after his miserable Masters experience in order to avoid a destructive trip down a “rabbit hole”, according to double US Open champion Curtis Strange.

McIlroy did not speak to waiting reporters after a second round of 77 at Augusta National brought a premature end to his latest bid to win a green jacket and complete the career grand slam.

The world number three then withdrew from the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head, meaning he missed his second ‘designated event’ of the year on the PGA Tour and lost 25 per cent of his Player Impact Program bonus (£2.4million).

McIlroy felt the break was necessary for his “mental and emotional wellbeing” after a taxing 12 months in which he juggled on-course competition with his role as an unofficial spokesman for the PGA Tour in its battle against LIV Golf.

Strange, who won the second of his back-to-back US Open titles at Oak Hill, venue for the 105th US PGA Championship, said: “I wouldn’t try to advise him on anything because I’m not privy to what he’s feeling right now, but I can only imagine.

“You put in so much energy to try to peak for a tournament like in April, the Masters, and you don’t play well. Why that is, I don’t know.

“Then frustration sets in, and you want to get away for a week or so, so you withdraw the next week. We’ve all gone through that.

“As much as you might love Harbour Town and Hilton Head, you withdraw because you’ve got to get yourself together and you know you’re starting to go down a rabbit hole that you don’t want to go very far down because it’s tough to climb back out.

“I feel for him because I think this LIV conversation the last year and a half, maybe two years, with him being somewhat of the voice and being involved in the schedule and the meetings and the phone calls, I think it’s taken a lot away from his golf.

“I think exhausted is the wrong word, but it’s fatigued him a bit.

“When you leave this game just a little bit focus-wise, it will affect you. He said after the Masters he’s looking forward to just getting back to playing golf, and hopefully that’s the case.”

McIlroy was defending champion the last time the US PGA was played at Oak Hill in 2013 and finished in a tie for eighth, but has since become a member of the club as his wife Erica grew up in Rochester.

Asked if that could work to his advantage, ESPN analyst Strange added: “Oh, I think you look for anything.

“The entire family will be there in more a comfortable atmosphere. It certainly won’t hurt him, put it that way.”

A third round 63 catapulted rookie Austin Eckroat into a share of the lead heading into the final round of the AT&T Byron Nelson near Dallas as home favourite Scottie Scheffler slipped back.

Eckroat, chasing his first PGA Tour win and a place in the USPGA Championship which begins at Oak Hill on Thursday, heads into the closing round tied with China’s Zecheng Dou and fellow American Ryan Palmer.

They hold a two-stroke cushion over Scheffler, former USPGA champion Jason Day, Si Woo Kim and Sweden’s Vincent Norrman with England’s Tyrrell Hatton among those a shot further back.

Eckroat mixed seven birdies and a double bogey in his front nine and had no doubts about what winning would mean.

“A lot of job security,” he said. “A lot of things come with winning a PGA Tour event and just hoping to get that done.”

Palmer missed an eagle putt on the last to take an outright lead while Dou, playing on his home course TPC Craig Ranch after settling in Dallas, fired a 64 after contrasting opening rounds of 63 and 70.

“There is a whole lot more golf to play, so I’m good in the position like this, creating more chances. That’s all I’m thinking,” he said.

World number two Scheffler had opened with a pair of 64s and missed a short birdie putt to take a two-shot lead on the 12th but squandered chances coming home before needing two goes to get out of a fairway bunker on the 18th.

Hatton, the second-highest ranked player behind Scheffler at 17, moved into contention with three closing birdies to round off a bogey-free 65 that leaves him alongside South Korean Sung Yang and Americans Richy Werenski and Patton Kizzire.

Ireland’s Brendan Lawlor edged out England’s Kipp Popert to win the inaugural G4D Open at Woburn.

The two leading players in the World Ranking for Golfers with Disability fought out a three-day battle over the Duchess Course before Lawlor’s final round of 75 gave him a winning total of three over par, two clear of Popert.

The 26-year-old’s victory means he will replace Popert at the top of the world rankings.

Lawlor, who recently highlighted the abuse he had received on social media after competing in a DP World Tour event, said: “It’s just an unbelievable feeling. It hasn’t really sunk in yet.

“I’ve put so much hard work into my game the last few months and it’s been trending really well. I just couldn’t get it over the line last year, so it’s been a while since I’ve been in the winner’s circle.

“I’m proud of myself just to get it done, really happy. I didn’t hit it well all day but I made a lot of clutch putts on the front nine.

“It’s been an incredible week. The volunteers, The R&A, DP World Tour, EDGA, everybody involved has put in so much work to get this championship done.

“Every player here, we felt like royalty this week. Hopefully this is the start and we’re going to have many more of these major events. Disability golf is definitely on the way up.”

Popert, who held a two-shot lead at one stage during the final round before making costly bogeys on the 13th and 15th, said: “It was great fun.

“This is the first-ever G4D Open and to be in contention I played really well. Brendan deserves it and I couldn’t be happier for him. Basically it was just one of those days where Brendan beat me. I’m still very happy.”

A field of 80 male and female players competed at Woburn across sport classes which cover various categories in Standing, Intellectual, Visual and Sitting.

American Kim Moore, who won the US Adaptive Open at Pinehurst last year, was the leading female player, finishing four shots ahead of Ireland’s Fiona Gray.

Former Ryder Cup captain Henrik Stenson has resigned his membership after the DP World Tour imposed further sanctions on players who competed in LIV Golf events without permission.

Suspensions of up to eight events and fines ranging from £12,500 to £100,000 for each breach of the Conflicting Tournament Regulation were handed to a total of 26 players.

Stenson, who was stripped of the Ryder Cup captaincy after joining the Saudi-funded circuit last July, told Golf Digest: “It is sad that it has come to this, but it is what it is and it certainly wasn’t unexpected.

“They left me with no other choice so I have resigned. That’s it. I don’t really feel like it will do any good to dig into this too deeply.

“I’m appreciative of what the tour has done for me over the years. But they have chosen how they want to view the future. And we have obviously done the same. Unfortunately, they don’t go together at this point.”

Stenson joins Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Richard Bland in resigning and they will not be eligible for reinstatement until they pay the fines. Suspensions will apply from that point.

The former Open champion said his fines were “anywhere between £50,000 and £75,000 per LIV event” but was reluctant to go into more detail.

“As was the case when I resigned the Ryder Cup captaincy, I have my views on a lot of things that have gone on,” he said.

“But out of respect for a lot of people and what they do – and even those I don’t totally respect – there is no point in me digging any deeper.

“There is less than half a year until the Ryder Cup so it is best I don’t say much other than to say I’ve resigned.”

In April, the Tour won its legal battle against 12 players who had appealed against being fined £100,000 and suspended from the Scottish Open for playing LIV Golf’s inaugural event in June 2022. Garcia is the only player not to have paid that fine.

Justin Thomas will defend his title when the 105th US PGA Championship takes place at Oak Hill Country Club from May 18-21.

Thomas is bidding to win his third US PGA title at a venue which last staged the event in 2013, when it was won by Jason Dufner.

Here, the PA news agency looks at some of the main contenders for the year’s second major championship.

Jon Rahm

Rahm’s brilliant early-season form had taken a slight dip before the Masters as he finished 39th in the Arnold Palmer Invitational, withdrew from the Players Championship due to a stomach virus and failed to reach the knockout stages in the WGC Dell Match Play.

Rahm then four-putted the first hole at Augusta National but responded superbly to shoot an opening 65 on his way to a four-shot victory and second major title. Has two top 10s in six US PGA appearances with a best of tied fourth at Bellerive in 2018.

Brooks Koepka

Koepka won back-to-back US PGA titles in 2018 and 2019 in a run of eight major appearances which yielded a total of four victories and a runners-up finish in the 2019 Masters.

The big-hitting American also recorded three top-six finishes in majors in 2021, but was not a factor in 2022 as he struggled with injuries and a loss of form.

Admitted recently his decision to join LIV Golf would have been much harder if he had been fully fit but looked close to his best as he threatened to lead from start to finish in the Masters before being overhauled by Rahm.

Scottie Scheffler

Was unable to join Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods in winning back-to-back Masters titles, although a share of 10th at Augusta ensured his worst result in 2023 remains a tie for 12th in the Genesis Invitational.

Has played just three times in the US PGA, finishing fourth in 2020 and eighth in 2021 before missing the cut at Southern Hills last year.

Currently leads the PGA Tour in strokes gained off the tee and tee to green, as well as greens in regulation, but is ranked just 89th in total putting.

Rory McIlroy

Despite losing his semi-final of the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play from two up with three to play, McIlroy left Austin Country Club feeling “really bullish” about the state of his game and his chances of completing the career grand slam at Augusta.

In reality, rounds of 72 and 77 meant a dispiriting early exit and McIlroy withdrew from the RBC Heritage citing the need for a break following an eventful period on and off the course. McIlroy finished eighth in defence of his title at Oak Hill in 2013, is a member of the club and also a fan of the recent renovation of the East Course.

Matt Fitzpatrick

Began the Masters stressing the need for low expectations after an injury-hit start to the season, but finished 10th at Augusta and seven days later defeated Jordan Spieth in a thrilling play-off for the RBC Heritage.

Had a poor record in the US PGA before finishing fifth last year, missing the play-off by two shots after playing the final round in the last group. A month later found himself in the same position in the US Open at Brookline and produced a brilliant bunker shot on the 72nd hole to seal a first major title.

For the second major in succession, membership of golf’s most elite club is up for grabs as the US PGA Championship returns to Oak Hill Country Club for the first time since 2013.

Yet if any reminders were needed of how difficult it was to complete a career grand slam, the events of the last few weeks have provided plenty.

First was Rory McIlroy’s performance at the Masters as he sought to join Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods in having won all four major titles, the Northern Irishman missing the cut in dispiriting fashion after a second round of 77.

Then there was Jon Rahm’s victory at Augusta National, the Spaniard indicating he could be the man to beat going forward after claiming a second major title by four shots, despite starting the week by four-putting the first hole.

And finally came the news that Jordan Spieth, who needs to win the US PGA to complete the grand slam, is suffering from an untimely wrist injury which forced him to withdraw from the AT&T Byron Nelson.

Spieth’s best result in the US PGA is second behind Jason Day in 2015, the year he won the Masters and US Open and missed out on a play-off in the Open Championship by a single shot, while he was also a somewhat distant third to Brooks Koepka in 2019.

A subsequent loss of form ended with victory in the Valero Texas Open the week before finishing third in the 2021 Masters, with Spieth also battling Collin Morikawa for the Open title at Royal St George’s three months later.

After missing the cut in the Masters for the first time in his career in 2022, Spieth bounced back to win the RBC Heritage the following week and this year finished fourth in the Masters thanks to a closing 66.

Seven days later, Spieth lost to US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick in a play-off for the RBC Heritage and looked to be in ideal shape for the US PGA, but with his participation in serious jeopardy and Tiger Woods also ruled out through injury, attention may once again turn to McIlroy.

McIlroy is a member at Oak Hill – his wife Erica is from the area – and was the defending champion when it last staged the US PGA a decade ago, with Jason Dufner shooting 10 under par to win by two shots from Jim Furyk.

The East Course has been significantly renovated since then to better reflect the original Donald Ross design, with all of the greens and bunkers rebuilt and hundreds of trees removed.

The old sixth hole has been replaced by a shorter par three which now slots in as the fifth, with the fifth becoming the sixth hole on the card and lengthened to 504 yards.

The par-three 15th also has an entirely different green that has been repositioned and is no longer guarded by a pond, changes that have met with McIlroy’s approval.

“I think Andrew Green’s done a really good job,” he said. “I think the renovation has hopefully restored the East Course back to its former glory.

“From the last time I was there, or we were all there (in 2013), my connection to Rochester’s got a lot stronger. I’m excited to go and play a major championship in what feels almost like a second home to me.”

Seung-Yul Noh survived a broken driver to shoot an opening 60 and a three-stroke lead after the first round of the AT&T Byron Nelson near Dallas.

The South Korean – who has won once on the PGA Tour – cracked the head of his driver on the 12th tee, but matched his outward nine of 30 on the way home with birdies on three of the last four holes.

That leaves him three clear of Australia’s Adam Scott and Zecheng Dou of China with world number two Scottie Sheffler and Jason Day among those a further stroke back.

Scott’s 63 was his lowest opening round for nine years after tying for fifth at the Wells Fargo Championship last week.

“The game was feeling really good there last week and getting a result is always good for the confidence,” said Scott. “Coming here on a course that’s going to throw a lot of birdies out there, getting in that attack mindset was key.”

Scheffler had struggled with his putting before a three-week break and missed five putts from within 10 feet before a strong finish capped by an eagle on the last.

“I was pretty frustrated mid round,” he said.

“I didn’t feel like I was doing anything wrong, I just kind of got on the wrong end of a few things and the putts definitely weren’t falling middle of the round.”

I’ll remember those putts towards the end and the beginning of the round, I hit a lot of good putts today and was fortunate to shoot a good round.”

England’s Harry Hall had four birdies in five holes to the turn en-route to an opening 67, one better than Tyrell Hatton.

Seung-Yul Noh survived a broken driver to shoot an opening 60 and a three-stroke lead after the first round of the AT&T Byron Nelson near Dallas.

The South Korean – who has won once on the PGA Tour – cracked the head of his driver on the 12th tee, but matched his outward nine of 30 on the way home with birdies on three of the last four holes.

That leaves him three clear of Australia’s Adam Scott and Zecheng Dou of China with world number two Scottie Sheffler and Jason Day among those a further stroke back.

Scott’s 63 was his lowest opening round for nine years after tying for fifth at the Wells Fargo Championship last week.

“The game was feeling really good there last week and getting a result is always good for the confidence,” said Scott. “Coming here on a course that’s going to throw a lot of birdies out there, getting in that attack mindset was key.”

Scheffler had struggled with his putting before a three-week break and missed five putts from within 10 feet before a strong finish capped by an eagle on the last.

“I was pretty frustrated mid round,” he said.

“I didn’t feel like I was doing anything wrong, I just kind of got on the wrong end of a few things and the putts definitely weren’t falling middle of the round.”

I’ll remember those putts towards the end and the beginning of the round, I hit a lot of good putts today and was fortunate to shoot a good round.”

England’s Harry Hall had four birdies in five holes to the turn en-route to an opening 67, one better than Tyrell Hatton.

Players who competed in LIV Golf tournaments without permission have been fined up to £100,000 for each breach of the DP World Tour’s regulations.

Suspensions of up to eight events have also been handed out in the wake of an arbitration hearing which ruled that players had committed “serious breaches” of the DP World Tour’s code of behaviour.

In April, the Tour won its legal battle against 12 players who had appealed against being fined £100,000 and suspended from the Scottish Open for playing LIV Golf’s inaugural event in June 2022 without permission.

Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Richard Bland subsequently resigned their membership of the DP World Tour, with all but Garcia having paid the £100,000 fine.

On Thursday, the DP World Tour announced details of further sanctions imposed for playing in the remainder of LIV events in 2022 and those contested before the arbitration panel’s verdict was reached.

It is understood that the largest fine falls short of the seven-figure sums which had been reported.

A statement from the DP World Tour read: “In total, 26 players were today informed individually of the sanctions applicable to them based on the specific conflicting tournaments they each played in, as a DP World Tour member, without being granted a release.

“These sanctions include fines and, where appropriate, tournament suspensions.

“The sanctions imposed were determined on a case-by-case basis, acknowledging differences between the events in terms of the impact on the DP World Tour’s broadcast partners, sponsors and stakeholders.

“Where fines were issued to players they ranged from £12,500 to £100,000 for each individual breach of the Conflicting Tournament Regulation.

“The total cumulative suspension imposed on any single player for breaches in the period June 22, 2022, to April 2, 2023 is a maximum of eight DP World Tour tournaments, comprising a combination of one or two-week suspensions.

“The suspensions imposed relate to regular season DP World Tour events (i.e. excluding Major Championships) and will run consecutively, effective from the Porsche European Open from June 1-4, 2023 – the first tournament chronologically on the DP World Tour schedule whose entry list remains open as of today.

“Players who have resigned their membership will not be eligible for reinstatement unless and until they pay their fines and their suspensions will apply from then onwards.

“Further sanctions for breaches of the Conflicting Tournament Regulation in events which occurred subsequent to April 2, 2023, will be considered in due course.”

Scottie Scheffler has been working hard on the one weak link in his game as he bids to win a third PGA Tour title this season.

Scheffler, who can reclaim the world number one ranking from Jon Rahm with victory in the AT&T Byron Nelson, defended his title in February’s WM Phoenix Open and also claimed the prestigious Players Championship at Sawgrass.

And the former Masters champion did so despite ranking just 89th in total putting on the PGA Tour, a stark contrast to leading the categories for strokes gained off the tee and tee to green, as well as greens in regulation.

“I just feel like I’ve seen a lot of putts that I’ve really thought were going to go in that haven’t,” Scheffler told a pre-tournament press conference at TPC Craig Ranch.

“I’m usually pretty dangerous when my putter gets hot, so I’ve been working on it pretty good. Yeah, just hoping to see some putts go in. Instead of lipping out, maybe lipping in.”

Scheffler made his PGA Tour debut in what was then called the HP Byron Nelson Championship as a 17-year-old amateur in 2014, recording a hole-in-one during the third round and eventually finishing in a tie for 22nd.

Nine years later he is the star attraction and the only member of the world’s top 15 in the field following the injury withdrawal of Jordan Spieth.

“It’s definitely a bit different than when I came here in high school,” Scheffler added. “I feel like I’m a little bit more a part of this thing than I was then, but I was just fortunate to get a spot and come out and play.

“Now I guess coming full circle out here is a little different scenario and it’s a lot of fun being able to play in front of the home crowd.

“Now that I’ve had some success out here on Tour, there’s a lot more people that will show up to watch me, which is great.

“I’m fortunate to be able to come out here and support an event that supported me from a young age, and I’m looking forward to going out there and playing in front of the home crowd and hopefully making some birdies.”

Tiger Woods will miss the US PGA Championship as expected after undergoing ankle surgery last month.

Woods was not included in the 155-strong field issued by the PGA of America on Wednesday for next week’s event at Oak Hill Country Club.

The final spot will be filled by the winner of the AT&T Byron Nelson in Texas.

Jordan Spieth was included in the field despite withdrawing from this week’s PGA Tour event with a wrist injury.

Woods pulled out of the Masters during the third round in April, saying at the time it was due to plantar fasciitis.

However, the 47-year-old then had a subtalar fusion procedure in New York to address the problem caused by a previous fracture of his talus, a bone in the ankle joint.

Woods feared his leg would have to be amputated due to the serious injuries he suffered in a car accident in Los Angeles in February 2021.

He made a remarkable return to action 14 months later and finished 47th in the Masters, but withdrew from the US PGA following a third-round 79 and did not contest the US Open before missing the cut in the 150th Open Championship at St Andrews.

Woods has accepted that he can only play a handful of times a year going forward and is targeting majors and events with which he has a personal connection.

The US Open takes place at Los Angeles Country Club in June and Woods will hope to defy the odds and be able to compete in July’s Open at Royal Liverpool, where he won a third Open title in 2006 in his first tournament since the death of his father Earl two months earlier.