At the Augusta Masters last month, Englishman Aaron Rai had won par-three contest before the tournament began. He made birdies on the last two holes to win the par-three contest and effectively took the curse which, as the folklore goes, barred him from winning the year's first major. He finished 48th at the Masters and proved the curse right which states that 'no par-three contest winner has been able to wear the prestigious green jacket in the same year.' Rai, however, was not worried about it and had said that time: "I'm not sure if it's a good omen or not, but just really nice to play well, enjoy it and share the experience with my family." Nearly a month later, he is the first English golfer to win the PGA Championship in over a century. Rai won year's second major and his first on Sunday (May 17) with a five-under final round score and nine-under in total.<h2>Who is Aaron Rai?</h2>Aaron Rai, 31, is an English golfer, born in Wolverhampton, who went pro at the age of 17 instead of going to the USA for college golf. He joined the PGA Tour in 2022 after being successful on the DP World Tour, previously European tour. Before winning the PGA Championship on Sunday (May 17), Rai, at best, had finished 19th at a golf major - at 2024 U.S. Open and 2025 PGA Championship.Also Watch - <a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/pga-championship-watch-rory-mcilroy-loses-cool-and-says-shut-the-f-up-to-fan-1779082698359">PGA Championship | McIlroy loses cool and says 'shut the f*** up' to fan</a><h2>Does Aaron Rai have Indian ancestry?</h2>Yes, Aaron Rai does have Indian roots and is married to an Indian golfer as well. He was born on May 3, 1995 to Amrik Singh, son of Indian immigrants, and Dalvir Shukla, who had moved to England from Kenya with her parents as teenager. Rai's wife Gaurika Bishnoi is an Indian female golfer and multi-time winner of the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour.<h2>What Rai said about his first golf major?</h2>Rai credited his upbringing in the working-class family for his success and said: Golf was always a very big part of my life from a very young age, but my mom and my siblings were very fast to reinforce the importance of just being a good person and trying to do the right things. My dad instilled the importance of work and dedication and trying to consistently build just good, strong habits around the game. My mom worked extremely hard away from golf. She worked a couple of jobs at one time and she did a lot of work around the house."There was a lot of consistent messaging of hard work. It has been something I've just grown up with and I guess as I've got older, something that I've really valued and tried to continue to move forward with."He also acknowledged his multi-nation roots and said: "I'm very proud to be from England. That's where I grew up. That's where a lot of my family still live. I'm very proud of India and Kenya as well. My mom still spends a lot of time in Kenya. Both of my sets of grandparents from my mom and dad's side were from India. I'm very proud of representing all three really."

Aaron Rai, the golfer with Indian roots, has become the first Englishman to win PGA Championship since Jim Barnes’ triumph in 1919. He won $3.69 million prize money.

At the Augusta Masters last month, Englishman Aaron Rai had won par-three contest before the tournament began. He made birdies on the last two holes to win the par-three contest and effectively took the curse which, as the folklore goes, barred him from winning the year's first major. He finished 48th at the Masters and proved the curse right which states that 'no par-three contest winner has been able to wear the prestigious green jacket in the same year.' Rai, however, was not worried about it and had said that time: "I'm not sure if it's a good omen or not, but just really nice to play well, enjoy it and share the experience with my family." Nearly a month later, he is the first English golfer to win the PGA Championship in over a century. Rai won year's second major and his first on Sunday (May 17) with a five-under final round score and nine-under in total. Who is Aaron Rai? Aaron Rai, 31, is an English golfer, born in Wolverhampton, who went pro at the age of 17 instead of going to the USA for college golf. He joined the PGA Tour in 2022 after being successful on the DP World Tour, previously European tour. Before winning the PGA Championship on Sunday (May 17), Rai, at best, had finished 19th at a golf major - at 2024 U.S. Open and 2025 PGA Championship. Also Watch - PGA Championship | McIlroy loses cool and says 'shut the f*** up' to fan Does Aaron Rai have Indian ancestry? Yes, Aaron Rai does have Indian roots and is married to an Indian golfer as well. He was born on May 3, 1995 to Amrik Singh, son of Indian immigrants, and Dalvir Shukla, who had moved to England from Kenya with her parents as teenager. Rai's wife Gaurika Bishnoi is an Indian female golfer and multi-time winner of the Hero Women’s Pro Golf Tour. What Rai said about his first golf major? Rai credited his upbringing in the working-class family for his success and said: Golf was always a very big part of my life from a very young age, but my mom and my siblings were very fast to reinforce the importance of just being a good person and trying to do the right things. My dad instilled the importance of work and dedication and trying to consistently build just good, strong habits around the game. My mom worked extremely hard away from golf. She worked a couple of jobs at one time and she did a lot of work around the house. "There was a lot of consistent messaging of hard work. It has been something I've just grown up with and I guess as I've got older, something that I've really valued and tried to continue to move forward with." He also acknowledged his multi-nation roots and said: "I'm very proud to be from England. That's where I grew up. That's where a lot of my family still live. I'm very proud of India and Kenya as well. My mom still spends a lot of time in Kenya. Both of my sets of grandparents from my mom and dad's side were from India. I'm very proud of representing all three really."

Aaron Rai, the golfer with Indian roots, has become the first Englishman to win PGA Championship since Jim Barnes’ triumph in 1919. He won $3.69 million prize money.

From Augusta Curse to History: Aaron Rai, Englishman with Indian roots, is first British golfer to win PGA Championship in a century

Aaron Rai won his first major title on Sunday by capturing the PGA Championship, making birdies on four of the last eight holes to become the first Englishman to win the event in 107 years. Rai sealed a tense back-nine shootout with a spectacular 68-foot birdie putt on the par-three 17th, firing his career-low major round with a five-under-par 65 to finish 72 holes on nine-under 271 at formidable Aronimink."Very surreal," said Rai, who has fought a neck injury this year. "It has been a frustrating season so to be standing here is outside my modest imagination."He defeated two-time major winner Jon Rahm of Spain and American Alex Smalley by three strokes with American Justin Thomas, Germany's Matti Schmid and Sweden's Ludvig Aberg sharing fourth on 275.The 31-year-old from Wombourne in central England took home a $3.69 million top prize from a record purse of $20.5 million and the Wanamaker Trophy after a dramatic final day.Rai became only the second English player to win the PGA after Jim Barnes captured the first two titles in 1916 and 1919."Extremely proud," Rai said. "There's a lot of incredible and historic English players over those hundred years who have gone on to achieve incredible things and had phenomenal careers."To be the person that's the first one to have won it in a long time from England is an amazing thing and something to be extremely proud of."Never better than 19th in 12 prior major starts, Rai won his third DP World Tour title last November in Abu Dhabi and his only PGA Tour title in 2024 at Greensboro.<h2>Cautious finale</h2>Playing cautiously in windy weather on Aronimink's sloped greens, the world's top golfers battled the course and each other in a fight that turned as Rai surged into the lead.Rai answered a bogey at eight with a 40-foot eagle putt at the par-five ninth, then sank birdie putts from four feet at 11 and seven feet at 13, becoming the week's first to reach seven-under.Schmid, seeking his first PGA Tour title in his fifth major start and first PGA Championship, sank a birdie putt from just inside nine feet at 13 to pull within one of the lead.Rai responded by reaching the green in two at the par-five 16th to set up a tap-in birdie.He then delivered a knockout blow by curling in his monster birdie putt over a ridge at 17 to reach nine-under while Schmid made bogey at 15 to leave Rai ahead by four strokes."I definitely wasn't trying to hole that putt," Rai said. "The shadow gave the putt a nice line the last 10 feet so that helped. It was about the speed of the putt. Nice to see it go in."Rahm, the 2021 US Open and 2023 Masters champion, birdied the ninth to reach five-under but made only a bogey and eight pars on the back side."I played really good golf," Rahm said. "Just wish I'd have done better with the speed of the greens. Just couldn't seem to get it to the hole, and that's the reason why I didn't hole any more putts."Even so, what Aaron did today, catching him could have been very difficult. I feel like I was still close on that playing 16 until he made that long putt."World number two Rory McIlroy, who won his sixth major title at last month's Masters, shot 69 to share seventh on 276 with American Xander Schauffele and Australian Cameron Smith.Unheralded Smalley, in only his fifth major, teed off with a one-stroke lead and nine major winners among 22 players within four shots.A double bogey at the sixth and bogey at the par-three eighth plunged Smalley back until his eagle-bogey-birdie finish.American Kurt Kitayama fired a bogey-free, seven-under-par 63 to match the lowest final round in major golf history."I'm ecstatic," Kitayama said.Top-ranked defending champion Scottie Scheffler shot 69 to finish on 278.

The 31-year-old from Wombourne in central England took home a $3.69 million top prize from a record purse of $20.5 million and the Wanamaker Trophy after a dramatic final. Rai became only the second English player to win the PGA after Jim Barnes captured the first two titles in 1916 and 1919.

Aaron Rai won his first major title on Sunday by capturing the PGA Championship, making birdies on four of the last eight holes to become the first Englishman to win the event in 107 years. Rai sealed a tense back-nine shootout with a spectacular 68-foot birdie putt on the par-three 17th, firing his career-low major round with a five-under-par 65 to finish 72 holes on nine-under 271 at formidable Aronimink. "Very surreal," said Rai, who has fought a neck injury this year. "It has been a frustrating season so to be standing here is outside my modest imagination." He defeated two-time major winner Jon Rahm of Spain and American Alex Smalley by three strokes with American Justin Thomas, Germany's Matti Schmid and Sweden's Ludvig Aberg sharing fourth on 275. The 31-year-old from Wombourne in central England took home a $3.69 million top prize from a record purse of $20.5 million and the Wanamaker Trophy after a dramatic final day. Rai became only the second English player to win the PGA after Jim Barnes captured the first two titles in 1916 and 1919. "Extremely proud," Rai said. "There's a lot of incredible and historic English players over those hundred years who have gone on to achieve incredible things and had phenomenal careers. "To be the person that's the first one to have won it in a long time from England is an amazing thing and something to be extremely proud of." Never better than 19th in 12 prior major starts, Rai won his third DP World Tour title last November in Abu Dhabi and his only PGA Tour title in 2024 at Greensboro. Cautious finale Playing cautiously in windy weather on Aronimink's sloped greens, the world's top golfers battled the course and each other in a fight that turned as Rai surged into the lead. Rai answered a bogey at eight with a 40-foot eagle putt at the par-five ninth, then sank birdie putts from four feet at 11 and seven feet at 13, becoming the week's first to reach seven-under. Schmid, seeking his first PGA Tour title in his fifth major start and first PGA Championship, sank a birdie putt from just inside nine feet at 13 to pull within one of the lead. Rai responded by reaching the green in two at the par-five 16th to set up a tap-in birdie. He then delivered a knockout blow by curling in his monster birdie putt over a ridge at 17 to reach nine-under while Schmid made bogey at 15 to leave Rai ahead by four strokes. "I definitely wasn't trying to hole that putt," Rai said. "The shadow gave the putt a nice line the last 10 feet so that helped. It was about the speed of the putt. Nice to see it go in." Rahm, the 2021 US Open and 2023 Masters champion, birdied the ninth to reach five-under but made only a bogey and eight pars on the back side. "I played really good golf," Rahm said. "Just wish I'd have done better with the speed of the greens. Just couldn't seem to get it to the hole, and that's the reason why I didn't hole any more putts. "Even so, what Aaron did today, catching him could have been very difficult. I feel like I was still close on that playing 16 until he made that long putt." World number two Rory McIlroy, who won his sixth major title at last month's Masters, shot 69 to share seventh on 276 with American Xander Schauffele and Australian Cameron Smith. Unheralded Smalley, in only his fifth major, teed off with a one-stroke lead and nine major winners among 22 players within four shots. A double bogey at the sixth and bogey at the par-three eighth plunged Smalley back until his eagle-bogey-birdie finish. American Kurt Kitayama fired a bogey-free, seven-under-par 63 to match the lowest final round in major golf history. "I'm ecstatic," Kitayama said. Top-ranked defending champion Scottie Scheffler shot 69 to finish on 278.

The 31-year-old from Wombourne in central England took home a $3.69 million top prize from a record purse of $20.5 million and the Wanamaker Trophy after a dramatic final. Rai became only the second English player to win the PGA after Jim Barnes captured the first two titles in 1916 and 1919.

PGA Championship | Aaron Rai becomes first Englishman to win title in 107 years

England's Aaron Rai birdied the last two holes to win Wednesday's Masters Par-Three Contest and risk the event's curse for the year's first major tournament. No Par-Three Contest winner has ever captured the green jacket in the same year."I'm not sure if it's a good omen or not, but just really nice to play well, enjoy it and share the experience with my family," Rai said. The 31-year-old from Wolverhampton grabbed the solo lead on five-under with his birdie at the eighth hole.Also Read - <a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/augusta-masters-defending-champ-rory-mcilroy-aims-to-join-elite-company-with-back-to-back-green-jackets-1775615162787">Masters: Rory McIlroy aims to join elite company with consecutive green jackets</a>American Jacob Bridgeman birdied the ninth to match Rai at the top but the Englishman, whose wife Gaurika lined up his putts, sank a six-foot birdie putt at the ninth for the victory and winner's crystal bowl at six-under 21."The experience was phenomenal," Rai said. "Definitely didn't expect to play quite as well as I did. But my wife was incredible. She read my putts for me. She plays herself. So really good teamwork."In stark contrast to the tension-packed challenge of the year's first major at adjacent Augusta National, the Par-Three Contest offers a relaxing outing on a special course with children serving as caddies and often hitting shots to make for a family outing unlike any other."We're out here to have fun, just to enjoy one of the most fun events in golf," said defending champion Rory McIlroy, whose daughter Poppy had her own putter.World number one Scottie Scheffler, who welcomed son Remy on March 27, brought him and two-year-old son Bennett to the event."It's really nice," Scheffler said. "Major championships can be stressful as you prepare for them, and having an afternoon like this where you can come out and relax and have some fun with my family is really nice."The atmosphere was especially touching for Gary Woodland, whose victory at Houston two weeks ago was his first since the 2019 US Open and since undergoing 2023 brain surgery that left him fighting an anxiety disorder just to play."This is what the fight is for," Woodland said. "To share this moment with my kids is everything."<h2>Chance to relax</h2>Two-time US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau played with actor Kevin Hart as caddie."I'm super excited to have Kevin out here to experience everything Augusta has to offer," DeChambeau said.A big benefit is relaxing the minds of Masters contenders."We get so caught up in what we have to do it's nice to get our minds on something else," said five-time major winner Brooks Koepka."This helps a lot for sure, to do something so out of the ordinary, especially in a major," two-time major winner Jon Rahm said. "This lets you forget about things for a couple hours, have fun before the tournament starts."Aces in the Par-Three Contest are rewarded with crystal vases and four this year boosted the total to 115 aces in the event's history, which dates to 1960.Justin Thomas aced the 100-yard second hole, the first ace there since 2019. The American also made a hole-in-one at the fourth hole in 2016.England's Tommy Fleetwood aced the 90-yard fourth hole while American Wyndham Clark made a hole-in-one at the 115-yard seventh and Keegan Bradley, last year's US Ryder Cup captain, aced the 120-yard eighth hole.

No Par-Three Contest winner has ever captured the green jacket in the same year. The 31-year-old from Wolverhampton grabbed the solo lead on five-under with his birdie at the eighth hole.

England's Aaron Rai birdied the last two holes to win Wednesday's Masters Par-Three Contest and risk the event's curse for the year's first major tournament. No Par-Three Contest winner has ever captured the green jacket in the same year. "I'm not sure if it's a good omen or not, but just really nice to play well, enjoy it and share the experience with my family," Rai said. The 31-year-old from Wolverhampton grabbed the solo lead on five-under with his birdie at the eighth hole. Also Read - Masters: Rory McIlroy aims to join elite company with consecutive green jackets American Jacob Bridgeman birdied the ninth to match Rai at the top but the Englishman, whose wife Gaurika lined up his putts, sank a six-foot birdie putt at the ninth for the victory and winner's crystal bowl at six-under 21. "The experience was phenomenal," Rai said. "Definitely didn't expect to play quite as well as I did. But my wife was incredible. She read my putts for me. She plays herself. So really good teamwork." In stark contrast to the tension-packed challenge of the year's first major at adjacent Augusta National, the Par-Three Contest offers a relaxing outing on a special course with children serving as caddies and often hitting shots to make for a family outing unlike any other. "We're out here to have fun, just to enjoy one of the most fun events in golf," said defending champion Rory McIlroy, whose daughter Poppy had her own putter. World number one Scottie Scheffler, who welcomed son Remy on March 27, brought him and two-year-old son Bennett to the event. "It's really nice," Scheffler said. "Major championships can be stressful as you prepare for them, and having an afternoon like this where you can come out and relax and have some fun with my family is really nice." The atmosphere was especially touching for Gary Woodland, whose victory at Houston two weeks ago was his first since the 2019 US Open and since undergoing 2023 brain surgery that left him fighting an anxiety disorder just to play. "This is what the fight is for," Woodland said. "To share this moment with my kids is everything." Chance to relax Two-time US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau played with actor Kevin Hart as caddie. "I'm super excited to have Kevin out here to experience everything Augusta has to offer," DeChambeau said. A big benefit is relaxing the minds of Masters contenders. "We get so caught up in what we have to do it's nice to get our minds on something else," said five-time major winner Brooks Koepka. "This helps a lot for sure, to do something so out of the ordinary, especially in a major," two-time major winner Jon Rahm said. "This lets you forget about things for a couple hours, have fun before the tournament starts." Aces in the Par-Three Contest are rewarded with crystal vases and four this year boosted the total to 115 aces in the event's history, which dates to 1960. Justin Thomas aced the 100-yard second hole, the first ace there since 2019. The American also made a hole-in-one at the fourth hole in 2016. England's Tommy Fleetwood aced the 90-yard fourth hole while American Wyndham Clark made a hole-in-one at the 115-yard seventh and Keegan Bradley, last year's US Ryder Cup captain, aced the 120-yard eighth hole.

No Par-Three Contest winner has ever captured the green jacket in the same year. The 31-year-old from Wolverhampton grabbed the solo lead on five-under with his birdie at the eighth hole.

Augusta Masters: Englishman Aaron Rai puts green jacket under curse as Par-Three contest winner

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From Augusta Curse to History: Aaron Rai, Englishman with Indian roots, is first British golfer to win PGA Championship in a century

PGA Championship | Aaron Rai becomes first Englishman to win title in 107 years

Masters: Englishman Rai puts green jacket under curse as Par-3 contest winner