As we approach the end of summer, the final major of the 2012 PGA season kicks off on Thursday with the PGA Championship being played at the Ocean Course in Kiawah Island, S.C.
It is the first time the PGA Championship will be played at this course, though it did host the classic 1991 Ryder Cup. There should be plenty of fireworks over the weekend, but we have plenty to discuss before we get to the end of the tournament.
Here is a look at all the latest news, notes and information to get you set for the final major championship of the PGA season.
Tiger Woods Has Even More Incentive To Win
Not that he needs a reason to win—no athlete should—but according to Justin Ray of ESPN.com, Tiger Woods can regain the No. 1 ranking if he can conquer the Ocean Course.
And though the achievement would merely be a sidebar this Sunday if Woods wins his fifth PGA Championship, Tiger has a chance to reclaim a title he's held for a record 623 weeks during his career -- the world's No. 1 player.
Woods is just desperate for a victory in a major, much less worried about what will happen with these ridiculous rankings that have Luke Donald as the top-ranked player on tour right now.
Rory McIlroy Needs His Confidence Back
Who is more likely to win the 2012 PGA Championship?
Entering the 2012 season, McIlroy was the player who was going to take over the mantle that Woods used to hold. He has really struggled to find himself, with poor performances at the U.S. Open and British Open.
McIlroy did bounce back with a fifth-place finish at the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational last week, but consistency is the key.
During that event, McIlroy told Zac Jackson of Fox Sports Ohio his game is starting to get back to where it used to be.
"Obviously it would be nice to tee it up every week and be in contention, but it's just not going to happen," McIlroy said. "It was happening there for a while, and it was nice, and my game just sort of went off for a few weeks. The last few weeks I've just been trying to get it back to where it was and feel like I'm definitely getting closer to that."
McIlroy has to find some level of consistency, even if he isn't contending week after week, just to keep his confidence up.
The Rebirth of Ernie Els
After winning the British Open in July, Ernie Els could turn into a premier player again, or it could just be one of those great singular moments in time no one forgets.
Els told Doug Ferguson of the Associated Press (h/t Miami Herald) that he knows how lucky is Open win was and why it was so special.
"'I did play some good golf,' said Els, who had a 32 on the back nine. 'I didn't make any mistakes on the back nine. But Scotty's lipout on 16, that thing should have been in. That 17th hole, there's no way you can hit it left. And the tee shot on 18. I was very fortunate.'"
I don't know what Els is going to do at the PGA Championship. I don't know what he will do the rest of the year. What I do know is it would be foolish to dismiss him. He played as well as anyone on the back nine at the British Open, so why can't he do it again?
