TULSA, Okla. — Those who made the weekend at the 2022 PGA Championship were welcomed by cold, damp, windy conditions in the third round.
For those finding themselves in one of the grainy, pebbly bunkers at Southern Hills, unpredictability lies ahead.
Which makes what Kramer Hickok did at the par-4 12th hole Saturday all the more amazing.
Hickok’s approach to the 456-yard hole found the left greenside bunker. His ball was plugged pretty deep and from awkward stance, he took a good lash at the ball. But the ball caught the lip, came back towards him, hit him on the foot—which is no longer a rules violation, by the way; that was changed when the New Rules of Golf were implemented at the start of 2019—and came to rest in his foot indentation.
PGA: How to watch | ESPN+ streaming | Leaderboard | Saturday tee times
For swing four, Hickok again hit the edge of the bunker and failed to get out.
But he kept his cool and took a fifth swing at the ball. This time, he got out and sent it rolling towards the flagstick on the far side of the green.
And then a little bit of magic happened as Hickok’s ball found the jar for a bogey 5. It was his fifth bogey of the day but nonetheless earned him a little congratulations from his playing partner Jon Rahm.