The Block party was nowhere to be found at Quail Hollow Club.
Literally.
Two years after Michael Block had an all-time Cinderella story at Oak Hill, he shot 75–82 at this year’s PGA Championship and missed the cut at 15 over.
Since his heroics in 2023, Block has gathered attention nearly everywhere he goes. But with his chances of emulating his Oak Hill performance nil, people turned their focus elsewhere at Quail.
And that might have contributed to his lackluster play.
“I love crowds,” Block told Golf.com. “That’s kind of the funny part is I wish there was a huge crowd on every hole because that’s when I hit my shots. I really do. I always do. It’s the weirdest thing. When there’s no one around is when I hit my worst shots.
“That’s something that I need more in my life is a bigger crowd. I just need to play a little better so it could happen. I could only imagine what would have happened if I would have been playing really good this week.”
The 49-year-old, though, will have a few more chances to galvanize the fans in the future. He’s playing next week’s Charles Schwab Challenge and will also try to qualify for next year’s PGA Championship.
This just wasn’t his week. But each year, he knows it will get harder for him to compete against the world’s best players.
“All it is, it comes to hitting the shots you are trying to hit,” said the head teaching professional from Arroyo Trabuco Golf Club in Mission Viejo, Calif. “Honestly, I pretty much did that. But the course obviously wasn’t suited for me at all. Zero roll and firm greens was a very bad combination for a 49-year-old that carries it 270.
“It was a wake-up call that with these new guys, hey, more power to them, but I’m going to be very happy going to play with the seniors here in a year.”
For now, though, it appears the Block party has ended.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Michael Block Upset With Gallery Size As He Misses Cut at PGA Championship.
