SAN FRANCISCO • China's Li Haotong walked away from the PGA Championship on Sunday with renewed self-belief that he can triumph on golf's biggest stage soon.
He enjoyed a small slice of history when he became the first Chinese golfer to lead in any round of a Major championship by grabbing the halfway lead at TPC Harding Park on Friday.
While weekend rounds of three-over 73 and 69 for a total of six-under 274 saw him end a memorable week in joint 17th position, he said the experience gained will be crucial as he continues his pursuit for success at the highest level.
"I just need to be more consistent, and physically, as well. I think if I play my best, I can beat them. Just want to try to be in the (same) level," said Li, whose best finish in a Major remains a third-placed finish at the 2017 Open Championship.
He conceded the pressure of leading a Major got to him, but vowed to learn from the experience. "Saturday was very stressful. Since I wake up… since I've never been there before. I just felt super tired, not because of practice, but today I felt like everything is released," Li, 25, said.
"I played really well until 16, missed a short birdie putt, and 18, I just want to go aggressive, try to make a birdie, and went a little bit left (into a penalty area). Yeah, it's great experience."
Separately, Tiger Woods, who carded a final-round 67 to finish one-under 279 and tied 37th overall at the year's first Major, revealed plans to ramp up his playing schedule ahead of next month's US Open at Winged Foot.
He won last year's Masters for his 15th Major and is three short of Jack Nicklaus' record.
The PGA Championship was just his second Tour tournament since February's Genesis Invitational and he acknowledged he needed to get more competitive golf under his belt.
"We knew once I started playing again when I committed to Memorial that this was going to be a heavy workload, and my training sessions, we've been pushing it pretty hard, making sure that I kept my strength and endurance up," he said of his schedule, indicating his next appearance will likely to be at next week's Northern Trust at TPC Boston.
One positive was that his aching back, which has been surgically repaired, held up under pressure.
"Overall the body reacted pretty good," he said.
"The best thing to do is stay out of the rough and not have any of those jarring shots.
The 44-year-old Woods entered the PGA Championship 48th in the FedEx Cup standings and will need a strong showing in Boston and at the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields if he wants to qualify for the Tour Championship at East Lake, which has a field of 30.
PGATOUR.COM, REUTERS
