PGA Tour 24-25 Report
Overview and Rankings of the PGA’s Biggest Stars
PGA Tour TV schedule icon photo; Credit TV Insider
The PGA Tour has been through its ups and downs over the last few years, most notably with the introduction of the Saudi Golf League, LIV Golf. The sport was dominated by the PGA Tour for so long, the quick rise of LIV shocked many golf fans and PGA Tour loyalists, proving money can talk louder than longevity. Notable icons such as Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Jon Rahm took their massive contracts with LIV, ditching the PGA Tour. Rahm’s transfer was extremely shocking, as he publicly stated he was staying with PGA before his Masters win.
The face of the ‘Pro PGA’ movement remains Rory Mcilroy, as he's been one of the only golfers to publicly speak out against LIV Golf and the sportswashing title that comes with a Saudi backed golf league. Rory remains a household name, despite recent bad outings and an absolute disaster back 5 holes in the U.S. Open this year, missing a short putt opening the door for Bryson DeChambeau to win.
Regardless of how the last 3 years look for the PGA Tour they still remain in a good spot. This is partly due to their recent cooperation with LIV Golf, allowing LIV players to play in more and more tournaments but one could argue it's mainly because of Scottie Scheffler. Scheffler is on a historic pace as he leads the PGA Tour rankings at world #1 and continues to just dominate the sport, often viewed as a PGA Tour savior in their biggest time of need.
More on Scheffler, he’s entering rare territory as he is one of the most complete players I’ve ever seen off the tee and with his iron game. The problem lies in his putting, typical with intense major course greens but it's a glaring issue. “Scheffler currently ranks 142nd on tour for the season in strokes gained/putting at -.192, sandwiched between Callum Tarren and Erik van Rooyen (By comparison, he ranked 58th last season at +.202). That means Scheffler averages losing about two-tenths of a stroke on the greens to the field in an average round and about .8 of a stroke over a four-day tournament.” (Golf Digest’s Alex Myers). It's not an exaggeration to say that if Scheffler figured things out with his putter, he would be on an all time great trajectory.
Scheffler’s resume consists of two Masters championships at age 28 (2022 and 2024), a whopping 16 Top 10 finishes in just 2024 alone, an Olympic Gold Medal at the summer games in Paris and 7 wins in 2024. All indications point to this trend continuing into his 30’s. Scheffler has only been on the tour for 4 years, joining in 2020 and he has just dominated the sport since his entrance, continuing his run as he currently sits #1 in Fed Ex Cup rankings as of mid September.
Scheffler says its ‘Silly’ to call Fed Ex Cup a Season Long Race; Credit: Golf Digest
But of course, golfers other than Scottie Scheffler exist, and as great as he is his number 1 world ranking can be challenged by some other rising candidates this season. Xander Schauffle is the ideal candidate to take Scheffler's crown, with his breakout year consisting of winning an Open Championship and the PGA championship in 2024 after seeking his first major win and coming close in years prior. Xander also represented the USA in the 2024 summer olympics taking home a 9th place overall finish.
It should be no shock to anyone how Schauffle got here, as he's been on the cusp of a breakout like this for a few years now. This comes most notably with a 2nd place finish in the 2018 British Open to then follow that up with another 2nd place finish in that year's Masters tournament. His last 13 major finishes are all inside the top 20, helping bolster his case as world #2 according to PGA rankings. A fun fact about Xander Schauffle is that he went to high school in San Diego at Scripps Ranch High School, the high school I also attended just not long ago. The most remarkable aspect of Schauffle’s game to me is his ability to put himself in good to decent positioning on the toughest courses with his irons and off the tee. It’s sort of that, “don’t beat yourself” playstyle which helps Xander since each aspect of his game is incredibly strong and he is a balanced player as he doesn’t make any dumb mistakes. On the other end of the spectrum, his PGA Tour counterpart Rory Mcilroy has a much different approach to success on the links.
Purse payout breakdown, the winners share: Credit Golf Magazine
If I had to say one word to describe Rory Mcrilroy it would be daring. Not only with his play on the course but his approach to media surrounding the LIV Golf and PGA Tour fiasco. Rory remains one of the most iconic names associated with the PGA Tour as his world #3 ranking has been hard earned over his long career. As a veteran on the PGA Tour, it's no secret Rory likes being a role model figure for the younger players which explains his strong defense of the PGA Tour and its players. As for his play, it's amazing how wildly entertaining his golf game can be. Rory attempts shots that other players don’t even think of in the biggest moments, and he can erase a score deficit in the blink of an eye with calculated risks.
The 35 year old remains one of the game's greats with 7 Top 10 finishes in 2024. His highlights consist of a monster 2014 campaign, taking home an Open Championship as well as a PGA Championship, as well as a 2011 US Open to add to his resume. He plays a brand of golf that isn’t very popular nowadays, but it works for Rory’s unique swing pattern and utmost confidence in his game. With this style of play comes its consequences though, as he isn’t anywhere near as consistent as some of the other top players such as Morikawa or Scheffler. There are a few tournaments where Rory is at the middle to lower echelon of the pack where those risks come back to bite him. It’s a risk that I’m sure he’s willing to continue taking as he erased a huge deficit in the most recent US Open, only to come one putt away from going into a potential swing off with 2024 US Open winner Bryson DeChambeau. As long as Rory keeps playing at this level, he will keep this world #3 ranking and is a threat to win any tournament for the coming years.
It’s safe to say the golf world is in good hands with these stars. Not only are they extremely talented, but they are as marketable as ever in an age where being marketbale can set you apart from star and superstar status amongst fans and media. Golf will always have its long permanent traditions and all time greats like Woods and Palmer, but this newer generation of talent will continue to write the next chapter and steer the trajectory of the sport to newer generations that follow.
Sources:
https://www.golfdigest.com/story/fedex-cup-playoffs-pga-tour-scottie-scheffler-collin-morikawa
