Scottie Scheffler remained the world number one in 2026 and will probably stay at the top for some time, given what a commanding lead he has established. However, this was the first year he missed out at all four majors since back in 2023. Instead it was his rival for top spot in the rankings, Rory McIlroy, who once again wrote the biggest story of the major season.
In 2025 Rory finally ended his lengthy wait for a fifth major and did it in style by winning the one he really wanted, the US Masters. That saw him complete the career Grand Slam, making him the sixth member of a very elite group to achieve that feat. In 2026 the Northern Irishman defended his crown at Augusta, earning him membership of an even smaller group of golfing greats to have managed that.
After his stunning victory many felt he would kick on but it wasn’t to be. Two of the other three majors fell to real outsiders, both claiming their first major title, plus another golfer who claimed his second US Open, and second win in the big four.
| Date | Major | Winner | Course | Purse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9-12 Apr 2026 | US Masters | Rory McIlroy | Augusta | $22.5m |
| 14-17 May 2026 | US PGA Championship | Aaron Rai | Aronimink | $20.5m |
| 18-21 Jun 2026 | US Open | Wyndham Clark | Shinnecock Hills | $22.5m |
| 16-19 Jul 2026 | Open Championship | Ryan Fox | Royal Birkdale | $17.75m |
Masters, Rory McIlroy
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Par Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rory McIlroy | 67 | 65 | 73 | 71 | -12 (276) |
| 2 | Scottie Scheffler | 70 | 74 | 65 | 68 | -11 (277) |
| =3 | Tyrrell Hatton | 74 | 66 | 72 | 66 | -10 (278) |
| =3 | Russell Henley | 73 | 71 | 66 | 68 | -10 (278) |
| =3 | Justin Rose | 70 | 69 | 69 | 70 | -10 (278) |
| =3 | Cameron Young | 73 | 67 | 65 | 73 | -10 (278) |
Rory McIlroy nudged a little higher up the list of players with the most career majors as he defended his US Masters title. That moved him to six in total, level with Nick Faldo, Phil Mickelson and Lee Trevino. The Holywood native is now just one win behind a quintet of true legends who all have seven: Arnold Palmer, Sam Snead, Gene Sarazen, Bobby Jones and Harry Vardon.
The defending champion shot a 276, 12 under aggregate, one better than his winning score from 2025. It was enough to see him hold off Scheffler and win by one shot. Rory took home $4.5m for his troubles but in some regards it was a tournament of two halves.
Combining Rory’s first two rounds and Scottie’s weekend rounds would have given a total of -23. The former charged out of the blocks with rounds of 67 and 65, while the latter could only manage a 70 and then a poor 74. On Saturday the world number one’s 65 was eight shots better than his rival’s round of 73, while on Sunday Scheffler took another three shots out of the eventual champion (68 versus 71).
He had, however, given himself far too much to do and so Rory joined Jack Nicklaus, Nick Faldo and Tiger Woods as the only players to land consecutive Masters titles. Tyrrell Hatton and Justin Rose were among four players tied for third on 10 under.
US PGA Championship, Aaron Rai
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Par Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aaron Rai | 70 | 69 | 67 | 65 | -9 (271) |
| =2 | Jon Rahm | 69 | 70 | 67 | 68 | -6 (274) |
| =2 | Alex Smalley | 67 | 69 | 68 | 70 | -6 (274) |
| =4 | Justin Thomas | 69 | 69 | 72 | 65 | -5 (275) |
| =4 | Ludvig Åberg | 72 | 66 | 68 | 69 | -5 (275) |
| =4 | Matti Schmid | 69 | 72 | 65 | 69 | -5 (275) |
English golfers have now won 37 majors, third behind players from Scotland (55) and USA (291), with the unheralded Aaron Rai the latest Englishman to triumph. He became just the second player from England to taste success at the US PGA Championship and the first in the modern era. Jim Barnes won the first two editions of the tournament way back in 1916 and 1919, so it was rather overdue.
Few punters would have backed Rai, with the Wolverhampton-born 31 year old never having made the top 10 at any major prior to his triumph at Aronimink. He had managed three wins on the European Tour and one on the PGA, so this was a huge leap forward for him.
Rai shot rounds of 70-69-67-65 to stun the other contenders. He improved his score in every round and his closing 65 made him a very worthy winner. There was some real quality in contention, with 10 players within three shots of the lead after 54 holes and a massive 22 within four. That included Rai, who was two shots back, plus Ludvig Åberg, Jon Rahm, Rory, Patrick Reed, Xander Schauffele, Justin Rose and Hideki Matsuyama, with Scheffler just one further back.
Things remained tightly packed on the final day. Rai started badly, dropping two shots in the first eight holes. However, he produced a stunning finish, with an eagle at nine, plus birdies at 11, 13, 16 and 17. Nobody could keep pace with that and Rai surged up the world rankings thanks to his victory.
US Open, Wyndham Clark
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Par Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wyndham Clark | 64 | 69 | 70 | 73 | -4 (276) |
| 2 | Sam Burns | 71 | 68 | 71 | 67 | -3 (277) |
| 3 | Tom Kim | 70 | 67 | 72 | 70 | -1 (279) |
| =4 | J. T. Poston | 71 | 71 | 71 | 67 | E (280) |
| =4 | Keith Mitchell | 70 | 70 | 70 | 70 | E (280) |
| =4 | Scottie Scheffler | 72 | 68 | 69 | 71 | E (280) |
Wyndham Clark won the second major and second US Open of his career at Shinnecock Hills, the prestigious New York course hosting the US Open for the sixth time. It was a wire-to-wire victory for the American and he took home $4.5m, winning by one shot after a final-day wobble.
Clark, who won his maiden major at the US Open in 2023, at Los Angeles Country Club, was 32 at the time of his latest big success but boasts a modest record at majors aside from his two triumphs. He has missed the cut 10 times in 20 majors and boasts just three top-20 finishes in total.
His success at Shinnecock came in large part due to his stunning opening round. He made the most of calm conditions in the late afternoon. Although he had to finish his round on Friday due to delays earlier in the day, when the dust settled his six under 64 was two better than anyone else.
He again enjoyed good conditions for his second round, compared to many, and a 69 took him to seven under and extended his lead to four. On moving day things got nasty for just about everyone and simply treading water with a level-par round of 70 saw him stretch his lead yet further, to a seemingly unassailable six shots.
Scheffler was one of four players chasing from one under but in the end it was Sam Burns who really tested Clark. Burns shot a 67 to finish three under but despite closing with a 73, Clark did enough to win by a single shot.
Open Championship, Ryan Fox
| Pos. | Player | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | Par Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ryan Fox | 72 | 68 | 62 | 68 | -10 (270) |
| 2 | Cameron Young | 67 | 67 | 73 | 64 | -9 (271) |
| 3 | Sam Burns | 73 | 62 | 65 | 72 | -8 (272) |
| =4 | Scottie Scheffler | 68 | 68 | 70 | 67 | -7 (273) |
| =4 | Tommy Fleetwood | 69 | 67 | 69 | 68 | -7 (273) |
Ryan Fox was another new addition to the roll call of major champions as he landed The Open at Royal Birkdale. He joined Bob Charles and Michael Campbell as the only (male) Kiwis to win one of the sport’s biggest prizes and he did so in memorable fashion too.
Fox is the son of legendary All Black Grant Fox, who won the World Cup with NZ in 1987 and holds the record for the most points scored in a single World Cup (126 in 1987). Ryan’s win in Southport will not have resonated in quite the same way as that success but it will still have made many Kiwis exceptionally proud.
Fox, who had never made the top 10 of a major previously, and at 39 must have felt his best days were behind him, won by a single shot from Cameron Young, with Burns one further back and Tommy Fleetwood and Scheffler tied for fourth another shot behind.
Fox opened with rounds of 72 and 68 but then stormed into contention with a sensational 62. Talk about moving day. Amazingly it was the third round of 62 at the tournament, but Fox may well be most proud of the golf he produced on the 72nd hole.
Cam Young had fired in a 64 to set an early clubhouse lead on nine under and Fox came to the last level with the American. The 18th at Birkdale is a real test. Of the eventual top 10, five bogeyed it on Sunday. It had seen just four birdies all day. Fox must have been aiming for a par and then to hope for the best in the play-off.
Instead, in a position he had never been in before, he drilled his drive down the centre of the fairway, hit a clutch approach to 11 feet and then holed the putt. That took him to 10 under and earnt him $3.2m – plus the small matter of the Claret Jug!