Jordan Spieth's four-word comment about the PGA Championship says it all

Jordan Spieth once summed up his feelings towards the US PGA Championship by describing his failure to win the tournament as the "elephant in the room". The second major of the year gets underway at Quail Hollow in Charlotte, North Carolina, on Thursday.

will undoubtedly be more eager than any other star in the field to claim victory. The tournament marks a decade since the 31-year-old's stellar breakthrough season on the where he won and the , while also coming close at the Open Championship and the US PGA Championship. The Texan managed to claim the Claret Jug in 2017 but has failed to complete his career Grand Slam .

Yet, three top-10 finishes in 2025 suggest Spieth is hitting some form. And his rival Rory McIlroy finally getting a monkey off his back by winning the Masters last month and completing his career Slam could be just the motivation Spieth needs to end his jinx.

Speaking openly about the pressure he feels to win the tournament back in 2022, Spieth admitted his repeated shortfallings at the US PGA play on his mind. "I don't talk about it much with other people," he said. "But it's certainly at this point an elephant in the room for me. It's a goal of mine. If you just told me I was going to win one tournament the rest of my life, I'd say I want to win this one, given where things are at.

"If you told me that before my career started, I was going to win one tournament ever, I'd say the Masters because that was my favorite tournament growing up. But things change, and long term, it would be really cool to say that you captured the four biggest golf tournaments in the world."

If there's one player who knows how Spieth feels, it's McIlroy. The Northern Irishman had to wait 11 years for an elusive fifth major victory before finally ending his Masters curse last month. He endured several near-misses at Augusta over the years as he crumbled under the intense pressure of each occasion.

But this time around, the 35-year-old overcame his nerves to beat Justin Rose in a nail-biting play-off, cementing his place as only the sixth man to complete the Slam. McIlroy's reaction, having fallen to his knees and shed tears of disbelief, displayed the toll his long wait for the Green Jacket had taken.

He is arguably the greatest obstacle standing in the way of Spieth as he tries to win his first PGA Championship. The Dallas golfer will also be up against the in-form world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who won the recent CJ Cup Byron Nelson by eight shots.