As we look forward to the 2023 PGA Championship, here are five things you should know about Oak Hill Country Club.
1) It Has Hosted Six Major Championships
Oak Hill has been part of the roots of recent PGA Championship history, serving as the home of the 1980, 2003, and 2013 PGA Championships. It also held the 2008 and 2019 Senior PGA Championships. However, Oak Hill's major past began before the PGA Championship arrived, as the storied course held the U.S. Open in 1956, 1968, and 1989.
READ MORE: Insider's Guide to The Architecture of Oak Hill East
A year after our friends at @the_fried_egg premiered Championship Restoration: Southern Hills and inspired the preparation of two-time PGA Champion Rory McIlroy, they’ve done it again with one of our favorite content offerings to date.#PGAChamp https://t.co/GE5lZO7acg
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 12, 2023
2) Jack Nicklaus' 7-shot Win in 1980 was the Largest Margin of Victory in PGA Championship History for 32 Years
Nicklaus earned his penultimate major title with a seven-stroke victory over Andy Bean 43 years ago. It was not a wire-to-wire victory, as Nicklaus sat three strokes off of Craig Stadler's first-round lead. The Golden Bear held a three-stroke lead going into the final round, with a closing 69, one of four scores in the 60s on Sunday to finish off his 17th major title.
Jack Nicklaus captured his record-tying 5th PGA Championship in 1980 at Oak Hill.
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 14, 2023
Look back in partnership with @ROLEX at the highlights from his dominant 7-shot victory. #PGAChamp | #ROLEX pic.twitter.com/WgfEmZMiC4
3) It's Oak Trees Are From All Around The World
When Donald Ross first came on in 1922 to design the East Course, he charged Dr. John Ralston Williams, the first practitioner to successfully administer penicillin to a patient, as the person to plant trees around the course. Williams delivered a historic effort, contacting arborists around the world.
Trees that dot the course today come from Sherwood Forest, the Cedars of Lebanon, the Kew Gardens of England, and the gardens of Shakespeare and President George Washington.
Once acorn at a time 🌳#PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/Y9A80sYZ5F
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) February 20, 2023
4) This Week Will Be The Fourth Time The Club Has Hosted The PGA Championship.
Holding the 105th PGA Championship puts Oak Hill in second place for the most PGA Championships ever hosted. It trails only Southern Hills five times, most recently in 2022, for the honors of most ever.
After this week, the Rochester, N.Y. course will break away from a seven-way tie for second. Whistling Straits, Valhalla Golf Club, Atlanta Athletic Club, Oakmont Country Club, and Firestone Country Club have hosted three times each.
Each visit brings a new challenge— 2023 will present the longest setup in four PGA Championships at Oak Hill. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/tc5pk0tySD
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) January 7, 2023
5) Jason Dufner Set The Course Record During the 2013 PGA Championship
A seven-under-par scorecard is excellent any day. But a seven-under 63 to take the lead at a major? That's what Jason Dufner did to set Oak Hill's course record at the 95th PGA Championship during the second round. His 63 tied for the lowest score in PGA Championship history, one of 17 ever posted.
Dufner went on to win his first major championship, besting Jim Furyk by two strokes.
An eagle and PGA Championship record 63 in round 2. Jason Dufner took control & never looked back at Oak Hill in 2013. #PGAChamp pic.twitter.com/ubNyqJW4rZ
— PGA Championship (@PGAChampionship) May 12, 2023
