CHARLOTTE, N. C. – Ryan Gerard was a surprise leader at the 107th PGA Championship after shooting 5-under 67. Gerard reeled off four straight birdies starting at No. 10 and chipped in at 15 for eagle. He had it to 7 under but The Green Mile, the three devilish finishing holes at Quail Hollow Club, bit back with bogeys on the last two holes.
Here are 5 things to know about Gerard, a 25-year-old pro in his first full season as a card-carrying member of the PGA Tour and making his PGA Championship debut.
Playing golf since he could walk
“My parents gave me a super-cut-down putter when I was just old enough to walk. I don’t remember this, but I hear stories about I would go into the playground at daycare and swing shovels and rakes and stuff like that. And they kept getting mad at my parents because it was like a safety hazard and I was going to take an eye out.”
Childhood neighbor of Grayson Murray
“In 2005, I moved to the right side of the 15th holes at Wildwood Green Golf Club. I would sneak out without telling my parents I was going to play.
“Grayson Murray was the top golfer. He grew up five houses down the road from me. When I was six years old, he was 12 and went out of his way to be nice to me and made sure that I felt welcome when they were having chipping contests and going out to play.”
Watching Tiger and Vijay at Quail Hollow in 2007
“I just remember going out Saturday, I believe. Watched Tiger and Vijay Singh battle down the stretch for me as a young kid, that really was just starting to get into competitive golf and really loving the game; it was surreal, almost, to see those two guys kind of doing it,” Gerard said.
That day, he sat at the range with a notebook and scribbled down his thoughts on their various swings. Years later, when his parents were packing up to move, his father, Bob, found that notebook. On one page, it said, “Phil Mickelson swing good.” On the next page, it said, “Tiger Woods swing great.”
Tarheel Blue and making par at Quail’s 18th
Gerard turned pro in 2022 after playing collegiately at the University of North Carolina and felt the local support today, wearing some Carolina blue.
“They show out for their guys in light blue. I heard so many ‘Go Heels’ today and just appreciate everyone that’s supporting,” he said.
When asked about Alex Smalley, a fellow Carolina native that he’s known for years, Gerard said, “He’s fantastic. Unfortunately he went to Duke. So you know, I can’t be too nice to him.”
Gerard recalled that he moved into his dorm in Chapel Hill in August 2017, the same week that Justin Thomas won the PGA at Quail Hollow. A few weeks later, his college team played one of its first rounds there and the grandstands were still in place.
“So we thought that was pretty cool,” Gerard said. “In 2018, so six months after the PGA, we came out here as preparation for the NCAA nationals and our coach made all six of us go on 18 tee and everyone had to play the 18th hole until all six made a par and at the same time in the same group…You just didn’t want to be that one guy that had like the 10-footer for par that missed it for everyone to go back. So I mean, it probably took an hour or so but it was fun and we did make it happen eventually. We weren’t going to leave unless we made that happen.”
Unique golf swing
Gerard has a golf swing that is all his own, and he once shared the best description of it: “I’ve been told my swing looks like Daniel Berger and Jon Rahm had an aneurysm.”
Golfweek previously wrote about how he worked with Carl Lohren, a legendary instructor, but for more than a year now, Gerard has been coached by Jason Baile, the 2025 PGA Teacher of the Year.
“I had a really good foundation with Carl Lohren, and Jason has really done a good job building on that,” Gerard said.
“I try to take his swing DNA and let him know more about why it works so he doesn’t go pulling on the wrong strings,” Baile said. “With Ryan, I did hardly anything to his golf swing. We tweaked the setup and I make sure I keep him between the rails.”
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