“People told him it wasn’t realistic”: Michael Block’s inspirational rise to playing against golf’s finest players at 2023 PGA Championship 

Michael Block, a PGA of America professional golfer, is having a sensational outing at the 2023 PGA Championship. He has managed to make the cut and is currently ranked T10 on the leaderboard.

During the second round, Val Block, wife of Michael, was walking on the eighth fairway of the Oak Hill County Club. She pointed at her husband and said:

"This... was never the goal... People told him it wasn’t realistic and he believed it. So he never chased it."

According to Val, people around them felt that Michael Block could never be a PGA Tour golfer. Michael accepted his fate and was at peace with it.

The 46-year-old Michael Block has been married to Val Block for around 20 years and has two children. Michael met Val when he was in his mid-20s at a birthday party in Laguna Beach, California.

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"I just want simple pars" - Michael Block's family and group's reaction after his inspirational performance at the 2023 PGA Championship

On the par-3 fifth, the Oak Hill County Club saw something that the 105-year-old PGA Championship has not seen in its entire history. Michael Block took an 8-iron from about 165 yards and hit one of the worst shots anyone could imagine.

He could have easily cleared the fences of the club if the ball had not hit the trees and reflected back.

Later on, Block went on to post double bogeys, and his Val was like:

"I just want simple pars. Don't even care about birdies. Just finish this."

But her husband, Block, was quite calm and made eye contact with Canadian golfer Taylor Pendrith and shared a laugh. This actually took Pendricth a little time to digest.

Later on, he posted a par on No. 6, followed by a par on No. 7 and on No. 8. Then, after a sand-save par on No. 9, he putt the ball and extended both hands in a gesture of thanks.

Michael Blocks has garnered some attention for himself. His caddie, John Jackson, on the other hand, feels that Block is not affected by any of it.

He said:

"I noticed this morning we walked from the car to the clubhouse at the same exact pace we did yesterday. We got out to the driving range, he hit five balls and then we started swapping stories. He was totally comfortable."

Despite not topping the table, he managed to go as high as No. 2, which saw the media center call him out. Taylor Pendrith, who is paired with Block, shared an instance during the play:

"There were suddenly a lot of people around, basically right when we made the turn. Then I saw the leaderboard at No. 2 and realized he was 3-under and one back. I was like, oh, wow. But it wasn't surprising. The guy was absolutely striping it. He was in total control."

When ESPN announced that Michael Block became only the second club player in the last two decades to finish in the top 20 of the PGA Championship, Block chuckled and said:

"Don't make me cry. This is the last little goal I have for my career."

He spoke about some goals, which were pretty unclear. Was it winning the PGA Championship, or was it proving he is worthy of competing with the Tour pros, or maybe representing club professionals? Nobody knows.

All that is known is that he is playing absolutely inspirational golf, and we wish him luck for the remaining tournament!