Chris Sanger opened the 2026 PGA Professional Championship with a 4-over-par 76 on Sunday at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort in Bandon, Ore., leaving the head pro at Red Hook Golf Club with work to do in a 312-player field built to find the country’s best club professionals.
Sanger was scheduled to tee off again Monday in the second round of the 72-hole championship, which will be trimmed by a 36-hole cut projected to fall around even par. The top 20 finishers will move on to the 2026 PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club just outside Philadelphia from Thursday, May 14, through Sunday, May 17.
For Sanger, the target is familiar. He reached the 2023 PGA Championship after finishing tied for 17th at the national club pro championship in May 2023 at Twin Warriors Golf Club in Santa Ana Pueblo, N.M., then played at Oak Hill Country Club in the suburbs of Rochester. That past run gives him a concrete path back, even if Sunday’s opening round put him behind the mark he likely needs to stay inside the cut line.
The championship has little margin for error. A 36-hole cut in a 72-hole event means the field will shrink quickly, and with the projected number sitting around even par, Sanger’s first-round score leaves him needing a sharp rebound before the tournament reaches its middle stretch. The pressure is especially tight because the only clear prize is a ticket into one of golf’s biggest stages.
That is what makes Monday matter for Sanger. Another round near par would keep him in range; another stumble would make the climb far steeper. The opening score did not end his week, but it put the rest of it on the clock.
