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PGA Championship 2020: Predictions, Live Stream and TV Coverage Hub for Saturday

Joe Tansey@JTansey90Featured ColumnistAugust 8, 2020

Brooks Koepka watches his tee shot on the 16th hole during the second round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at TPC Harding Park Friday, Aug. 7, 2020, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Jeff Chiu/Associated Press

Brooks Koepka resides in a familiar position near the top of the leaderboard at the PGA Championship heading into Saturday at TPC Harding Park in San Francisco. 

The two-time defending champion sits in a group of six players two strokes back of 36-hole leader Haotong Li. 

The four-time major winner held a top-three position entering Saturday for both of his PGA Championship victories. In 2018, he was third after 36 holes and he led wire-to-wire in 2019. 

Koepka is far from the only previous major winner hoping to vault into the lead Saturday, as five others head into the weekend in the top 25. 

         

PGA Championship Saturday Information

TV: ESPN (1-4 p.m. ET); CBS (4-10 p.m. ET)

Live Stream: ESPN+ and PGA.com (11 a.m.-10 p.m. ET)

       

Predictions

Brooks Koepka Finishes In Top 2

In each of Koepka's four major wins, he has been positioned in the top three going into the final round. 

A year ago, he maintained his seven-stroke lead at Bethpage Black in New York to set up a coronation of his major tournament success on the Sunday. 

In 2018, Koepka positioned himself in a tie for first at the U.S. Open and two strokes behind Gary Woodland at the PGA Championship.

On the way to his first major victory, Koepka got within one shot of Brian Harman at the 2017 U.S. Open. 

During his first two rounds at TPC Harding Park, Koepka proved that bogeys do not faze him much at major tournaments.

He rebounded from his two first-round bogeys with a par and birdie and he saved two pars after dropping strokes Friday. 

If he keeps that up Saturday and mixes in a few more birdies, he might not just take the lead, but he could create separation at the top of the leaderboard, which is something he is more than familiar with doing over the last three years. 

         

Xander Schauffele Emerges As Koepka's Top Competitor

Xander Schauffele has been one of the most consistent players at major tournaments to not come away with a trophy yet. 

The 26-year-old finished in a tie for second at The Masters and a tie for third at the U.S. Open a year ago to give him four top-five placings at majors. 

In the last eight majors, Schauffele has recorded a third-round score of 70 or better on five occasions. He also has three final rounds of 68 or better in his last five major starts. 

Although his second-round score at TPC Harding Park was four strokes worse than his Thursday total, Schauffele was a model of consistency Friday. 

He finished with 14 pars, two birdies and two bogeys, and if he produces a similar set of scores, or better, Saturday, he could make a push into the top five.

At times, the key to winning a major is being consistent while others deal with the challenging elements and the internal pressure of being high up the leaderboard.

Schauffele has proved he can deal with whatever is thrown at him in the final two rounds of majors, and if he remains consistent, he may be partnered with Koepka in Sunday's final pairing.

        

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90

Statistics obtained from PGATour.com