Tied for most birdies so far at Aronimink? A 41-year-old, tattooed PGA pro from Ohio

Birdies have been arduous to come back by so far at this PGA Championship.

Through 36 holes, Aronimink has not yielded double-digit birdies to a single participant. Four gamers have carded 9 birdies – Chris Gotterup, Aaron Rai, Alex Smally and simply the most stunning of the bunch, Ben Kern.

“That’s wild,” Kern mentioned, shocked himself.

Kern is a 41-year-old, Class A-13 PGA skilled who grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and performed collegiately at Kansas State. He turned pro in 2007, chased pro golf for a handful of years and at the moment works as the overall supervisor of Hickory Hills Golf Club in Grove City, Ohio. This is his third PGA Championship look, his earlier two begins coming in 2023 at Oak Hill (MC) and 2018 at Bellerive (T-42).

Aside from the truth that Kern, 1 over by two rounds at The Mink, is now 2 for 3 in taking part in the weekend at PGAs, it is clear that he is not like many membership professionals. For starters, he is a giant dude, listed at 6 ft, 1 inch, and 275 kilos. He used to have a giant beard, too, however he shaved it. Then there are the tattoos, together with a sleeve on his left arm.

Having spent his childhood within the desert, Kern used to simply “hit the ball to the moon.” Once he acquired to varsity, he knew his model of play wanted to alter.

“I like going low, going high, left, both directions,” Kern mentioned. “I have fun kind of picking apart the wind and hitting golf shots.”

That’s served him properly so far at a blustery Aronimink. Following a gap 74, Kern needed to choose himself again up for Friday’s morning spherical. He was even par by 9 holes, highlighted by a 52-foot birdie over a backbone at the 218-yard seventeenth gap, earlier than rattling off 4 birdies in a five-hole span.

Kern wedged to a couple ft at the par-4 first and tapped within the birdie putt there. He adopted by thinning an 8-iron from a fairway bunker to about 9 ft above the opening at the par-4 second, however managed to roll that one in, too. At the par-4 third, he acquired a train from Russell Henley and canned a 21-footer. Then at the par-3 fifth, he launched one other 8-iron, this time from 187 yards to 10 ft to arrange his sixth and ultimate birdie of the day.

“I think any birdie around this place, I don’t care what hole it is, it’s nice,” Kern mentioned. “But to go on that run, 1, 2, 3, slip up a little bit on 4 (which I bogeyed), and then get right back on track on 5 allowed me to just keep cruising to finish my round…

“I hung my head high yesterday, and I had a goal today and I surpassed it.”

Kern tries to play with Hickory’s members at least as soon as per week, which is why he additionally retains a handicap. Right now, he is a plus-6, he says.

“It’s going to absolutely destroy my handicap,” Kern mentioned of Friday’s 67. “But that’s okay. That’s what it’s for.”