Aaron Rai made his eagle on the ninth hole and never looked back, shooting six under through his final ten holes to win the US PGA Championship by three shots—a maiden major victory that came against a field so tightly bunched it was the most congested leaderboard in the tournament's history. Twenty-two players crowded within four shots of the lead when Sunday began, including two-time major champion Jon Rahm in second place and serial winners Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele lurking just one shot back. Few expected the 27-year-old Indian golfer, with only one PGA Tour win to his name, to be the one who stepped up. Yet step up he did, and as the reception and warmth poured in after his victory, Rai credited something quietly powerful for keeping him grounded: advice from his wife, whom he met at the 2018 Indian Open and married last summer.
"There was part of me that imagined how many more commitments and areas that would come with [winning]," Rai said from his home four days after clinching his biggest career achievement. "During previous tournaments, I felt it was a lot of change, I was extremely busy and it felt like more to handle." His wife, who waited by the 18th green to embrace him as he won, had anticipated exactly this moment. She offered him reassurance that he could handle the amplified attention and demands that come with being a major champion—advice that, by all accounts, has proven prescient. "She is extremely honest with me—through the good and through the not-so-good," Rai explained. "That particular piece of advice was very reassuring."
What may surprise observers is that Rai has no agent and says he has no plans to hire one, despite climbing to 15th in the world rankings after his victory. Instead, he has been sponsored and mentored by the British golf instruction company Me and My Golf for years and prefers to manage his own affairs. "It was always a conscious effort since the early days of turning professional to try and keep things in a close circle," he said. "I've never felt the need to reach out and change those things."
The victory came with a cheque for $3.7 million, yet Rai's approach to the windfall reflects the same thoughtful restraint. He has no plans for lavish purchases. "I have a really nice house that I absolutely love—I imported my car from the UK and I wouldn't change that for anything," he said. "I would like to get a couple of my family members something but I wanted to be thoughtful rather than just buy something that is worth X amount." His parents' sacrifices in supporting his pursuit of professional golf have been widely noted this week, and Rai seems intent on honouring that quiet investment with equal thoughtfulness.
There is one small hiccup: Rai has not yet received the Wanamaker Trophy, the iconic prize awarded to US PGA Championship winners, because it sustained "a little bit of damage" during its journey. The original trophy spends a year with the champion before a replica is presented to keep; neither has arrived at his home yet. "I'm not sure what exactly happened," Rai said with a laugh. "There's just a little bit of damage towards the top of the trophy, which they wanted to fix before it went anywhere."