2025 PGA Tour: A Season of Anticipation and Excitement
As the calendar flips to a new year, golf enthusiasts are buzzing with excitement as the PGA Tour’s 2025 schedule kicks off. After a brief 39-day offseason, the action resumes this Thursday at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, held at the picturesque Kapalua Resort in Hawaii. This event is one of eight signature tournaments featuring limited fields and a whopping $20 million purse. It’s a thrilling start to what promises to be an exhilarating season.
While fans eagerly await the return of some of the sport’s biggest names, including Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, they’ll have to exercise a bit of patience. The anticipation is even greater for the potential return of 15-time major champion Tiger Woods to the course.
However, the defending Sentry champion, Chris Kirk, is back in Hawaii, ready to defend his title. Joining him are two-time major champion Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Ludvig Åberg, and a host of other talented golfers.
Scheffler’s Dominance and Setback
Scottie Scheffler, the world’s No. 1 golfer, will miss the season opener due to an unfortunate accident. On Christmas Day, Scheffler cut his right hand on broken glass while cooking dinner. His agent, Blake Smith, confirmed that Scheffler underwent surgery to remove small glass particles from his right palm. The reigning PGA Tour Player of the Year is expected to be sidelined for three to four weeks, with hopes of returning for The American Express in La Quinta, California, from January 16-19.
Scheffler’s absence in the first two tournaments in Hawaii opens the door for other golfers to shine. Last season, Scheffler was a force to be reckoned with, winning seven times on tour and capturing a gold medal at the Paris Olympics. He also finished first in his most recent start at the Hero World Challenge, an unofficial event in the Bahamas.
Tiger Woods: On the Road to Recovery
At the Hero World Challenge last month, Tiger Woods candidly shared that he’s not yet physically ready to compete on tour. The 15-time major champion announced in mid-September that he had undergone what is believed to be his sixth back surgery. Woods’ back injury caused pain down his leg, which worsened during the 2024 season.
Woods made just five starts on tour in 2024, missing three cuts and withdrawing from the Genesis Invitational due to illness. At the Masters, he finished 60th, last among golfers who made the cut. However, Woods and his son, Charlie, competed in last month’s PNC Championship in Orlando, Florida, losing in a playoff to Bernhard Langer and his son, Jason. It was Tiger’s first competition since missing the cut at The Open in July, and he was allowed to use a cart at the PNC.
Tiger is scheduled to make five appearances in TGL, the new tech-infused golf league, on January 14, January 27, February 18, February 25, and March 4. If he’s physically ready, his first appearance on the PGA Tour might come at the Genesis Invitational, a tournament he hosts at Riviera Country Club near Los Angeles. If not, we might not see him until the Masters, the first major of the season in April.
Xander Schauffele’s Ascension
Xander Schauffele’s rise in the golfing world has been nothing short of remarkable. Until last year, he was considered one of the best golfers without a major championship. However, he silenced the critics by winning the PGA Championship and The Open last season, putting him halfway to completing the career Grand Slam.
Schauffele’s game is well-rounded, with no apparent weaknesses. Last season, he ranked second in strokes gained: total (1.941) and tee to green (1.431), sixth in approach (.678), 10th off the tee (.557), and 12th in putting (.510). With the pressure of winning a major off his shoulders, Schauffele is poised to be a formidable contender in the big four tournaments.
Rory McIlroy’s Quest for a Major
Rory McIlroy’s victory at the DP World Tour Championship on November 17 capped off what would be a stellar season for most golfers. McIlroy won twice on the PGA Tour, at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans (with teammate Shane Lowry) and the Wells Fargo Championship, and on the DP World Tour (he also captured the Dubai Desert Classic for the fourth time in January 2024).
However, McIlroy’s 2024 season will be remembered for his collapse in the final round of the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2. He had a two-stroke lead over Bryson DeChambeau with five holes to play and lost by one. It was McIlroy’s best chance to end a 10-year drought without a major championship victory.
McIlroy will be among the favorites again at the Masters, which he needs to win to complete the career Grand Slam, and at the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he has won four times in his career.
Jordan Spieth’s Comeback
Jordan Spieth underwent surgery on his left wrist in late August to repair an ulnar nerve condition that had plagued him since the spring of 2023. The three-time major championship winner recorded a career-low three top-10s and a career-high seven missed cuts in 22 starts last season.
Spieth didn’t compete in any of the PGA Tour fall events and hasn’t yet announced when he’ll compete in 2025. He didn’t qualify for the Sentry, but his caddie, Michael Greller, is filling in for Max Homa’s caddie in Hawaii this week.
Top FedEx Cup Contenders
- Scottie Scheffler: With an improved putting stroke, sublime ballstriking, and soft hands around the greens, Scheffler is again the golfer to beat in 2025.
- Xander Schauffele: Schauffele nearly won three more times in 2023, finishing runner-up at the Players, Wells Fargo Championship, and the FedEx St. Jude Championship. He had 20 top-25s and didn’t miss a cut in 22 starts.
- Rory McIlroy: McIlroy is kicking off his season in the Middle East again. He’ll compete in the Dubai Desert Classic on January 16-19 and probably won’t compete on the PGA Tour until the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on January 30-February 2.
- Ludvig Aberg: Aberg, the No. 5 golfer in the world, played much of last season with pain in his left knee. He underwent surgery in September to repair a torn medial meniscus and was 100% healthy when he tied for 17th at the RSM Classic in November.
- Collin Morikawa: Morikawa didn’t win during the 2024 season, but he finished in the top 16 in each of the four majors, including a tie for third at the Masters and for fourth at the PGA Championship. He also was runner-up at the Memorial Tournament and Tour Championship.
The Majors
Here are the dates, locations, and defending champions of the four major championships:
- Masters
When: April 10-13
Where: Augusta National Golf Club, Augusta, Georgia
Defending champion: Scottie Scheffler - PGA Championship
When: May 15-18
Where: Quail Hollow Club, Charlotte, North Carolina
Defending champion: Xander Schauffele - U.S. Open
When: June 12-15
Where: Oakmont Country Club, Oakmont, Pennsylvania
Defending champion: Bryson DeChambeau - The Open
When: July 17-20
Where: Royal Portrush Golf Club, Portrush, Northern Ireland
Defending champion: Xander Schauffele
Signature Events
Here are the dates and locations of the eight signature events in 2025 that have limited fields, increased prize money ($20 million), and FedExCup points (700 points to the winner).
- The Sentry
When: January 2-5
Where: Kapalua Resort, Kapalua, Hawaii
Defending champion: Chris Kirk - AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
When: January 30-February 2
Where: Spyglass Hills Golf Club/Pebble Beach Golf Links, Pebble Beach, California
Defending champion: Wyndham Clark - Genesis Invitational
When: February 13-16
Where: Riviera Country Club, Pacific Palisades, California
Defending champion: Hideki Matsuyama - Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard
When: March 6-9
Where: Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Orlando, Florida
Defending champion: Scottie Scheffler - RBC Heritage
When: April 17-20
Where: Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina
Defending champion: Scottie Scheffler - Truist Championship
When: May 8-11
Where: The Philadelphia Cricket Club, Philadelphia
Defending champion: Rory McIlroy - The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday
When: May 29-June 1
Where: Muirfield Village Golf Club, Dublin, Ohio
Defending champion: Scottie Scheffler - Travelers Championship
When: June 19-22
Where: TPC River Highlands, Cromwell, Connecticut
Defending champion: Scottie Scheffler
The Ryder Cup
The 45th Ryder Cup will be played at the Bethpage Black Course at Bethpage State Park in Farmingdale, New York, on September 26-28. The home team has captured each of the past five matches; the European team last won on foreign soil in 2012. The Europeans routed the U.S. team 16½-11½ at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club outside Rome in 2023.
The top six finishers in the Ryder Cup standings will qualify for each team. U.S. team captain Keegan Bradley and European captain Luke Donald will then make six captain’s picks.
Schauffele (9,580.96), Scheffler (9,145.56), DeChambeau (6993), Morikawa (2478.13), Brian Harman (2,250.56) and Billy Horschel (2,037.22) lead the U.S. points standings heading into 2025, followed by Clark (1,936.21), Cantlay (1,613.26), Russell Henley (1,600.43) and Tony Finau (1,575.88). Ryder Cup veterans like Thomas (20th, 611.64), Brooks Koepka (33rd, 381.64) and Spieth (41st, 245.89) have work to do.
On the European side, McIlroy (792.07) leads the points standings, followed by Rasmus Højgaard (706.53), Tyrrell Hatton (587.84), Matt Wallace (505.42), Paul Waring (465.13) and Niklas Norgaard (419.73). Tommy Fleetwood is 16th in points (268.73), Jon Rahm is 17th (257.8), Shane Lowry is 18th (229.73), Nicolai Højgaard is 47th (105.41) and Justin Rose is 77th (50.91).
Rookies to Watch
The 2025 season also brings a fresh crop of rookies eager to make their mark on the PGA Tour. Among them is Michael Thorbjornsen, a former Stanford star who joined the tour in June 2024. At just 17, he won the U.S. Junior Amateur and made the cut in the 2019 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He was runner-up in the John Deere Classic and tied for eighth in two other events in 2024.
Another promising talent is Rasmus Højgaard, who will join his twin brother, Nicolai, on the PGA Tour after finishing second in the DP World Tour’s season-long points race. The 23-year-old was a seven-time winner worldwide and the youngest player to collect five DP World Tour victories since José María Olazábal in 1989.
Other rookies to keep an eye on include Matt McCarty, Thriston Lawrence, Aldrich Potgieter, Karl Vilips, and Luke Clanton. Each of these young golfers brings unique skills and potential to the tour, making them exciting prospects for the future of golf.
Originally Written by: Mark Schlabach
