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Jon Rahm looks ahead to the challenge facing the players at the PGA Championship and what his first impressions are of Kiawah Island's Ocean Course.

One of the main talking points ahead of the PGA Championship has been the length of the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Resort.

At a maximum length of 7,876 yards, the Pete Dye-designed course, which sits on a barrier island in the Atlantic Ocean along the coast of South Carolina, will regain its title as the longest in major championship history.

It is a distinction Kiawah also held - at 7,676 yards - when it hosted the same event in 2012, with US Open venues Chambers Bay (2015) and Erin Hills (2017) then assuming the mantle at 7,695 and 7,741 respectively.

The closing stretch on the Ocean Course this week could prove especially tough if it is played into the wind, as it was in practice on Monday, and forward tees are likely to be used on some holes, which would certainly please world No 3 Jon Rahm.

"Seriously, I hope so, because yesterday from 14 on, I think the shortest iron I hit into a green was a five iron. I'm not usually the shortest hitter," said Spaniard Rahm at his press conference on Tuesday.

"I was playing with Zach Johnson and I think he pulled a head cover on every single hole except the par-five 16th, coming into the green.

"For the sake of our sanity, I believe they're going to use a couple of forward tees.

"On the 17th I smoked a two-iron yesterday to just carry it over the water. [It's] extremely difficult. That's all I can say. Any time you have 230 yards into the wind over water into a narrow target, it's just not easy. I'm hoping we don't play it back there every day, otherwise it's going to be a challenging week."

One man who took on the challenge in practice on Monday was Tony Finau who played the course at its maximum yardage.

Tony Finau tied for fourth place in last year's PGA Championship

The world No 14, who like Rahm is seeking his maiden major victory, said: "I played it [the course] for the first time yesterday. I played 18. I wanted to touch them all early in the week. It seemed more like a US Open golf course to me, I think, if I'm being honest. I tipped it out. I wanted to play it at its max length.

"But I thought there were some long holes. There was enough wind yesterday to cause some problems, so I thought it was quite tough.

"The last five holes were straight into the wind. I'm not used to hitting a lot of long irons, mostly into par-fives, not par-fours, so I think that gave me a little bit of a taste what it could be like this week.

"They did give us a notice in the locker room and an email that they are going to switch up the tee boxes a lot. I'm sure they'll do a great job of kind of switching it up a little bit and giving us a little bit of leniency when it comes to some of the length on some of those holes into the wind.

"But I really like the golf course. I was impressed with it, and it was nice to go around it for the first time."

Finau and Rahm are among the bigger hitters on the PGA Tour, as is Brooks Koepka, but two-time PGA champion Koepka believes the driver will not always be the best option this week, despite the length of the course.

"I like it [the course]," said the 31-year-old, who is now ranked 13th in the world after his injury problems in recent months. "I think there's a lot of options off the tee, where maybe driver isn't exactly the play. But if you can fit it up there and not kind of put it in the rough, it's a big advantage.

Brooks Koepka won back-to-back PGA Championship titles in 2018 and 2019

"You're going to miss quite a few greens, especially if this wind is blowing. You could leave yourself some difficult chips around the greens, so you've got to be real tidy around there.

"But I like this golf course, think it sets up really well for me, and I'm excited."

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