An excellent tournament known for its gorgeous course and challenging holes, the 2025 Players Championship kicks off this week at TPC Sawgrass with the best in the world clashing. Entering this event, Scottie Scheffler has a chance to repeat as champion as the current world number one player has been the best player in golf for over 100 weeks. Rory McIlroy is another familiar face in this competition and is coming off a great win at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am event back in February. With 12 professional wins and two major championships last year, Xander Schauffele is another name to watch at Sawgrass as he is one of the best young players on Tour. Finally, Collin Morikawa rounds out the quartet of players and is the dark horse of this bunch in what is a loaded field.
In this article, SBS will be going over what to look for from each of these fantastic golfers, a predicted winner and also some additional notes about the world of golf.
| The Players Championship 2025 |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scottie Scheffler | +360 | +360 | +360 |
| Rory McIlroy | +800 | +800 | +800 |
| Xander Schauffele | +1400 | +1400 | +1400 |
| Collin Morikawa | +1600 | +1600 | +1600 |
Last year was an incredible one for Scheffler with an astonishing seven wins, including a victory at the Masters Tournament, his second time winning the event. He capped the year off with a win at the Tour Championship with a four stroke victory over Morikawa in what was an amazing competition. Additionally, Scheffler was named the 2024 PGA Tour Player of the Year, earning the Jack Nicklaus Award for the third consecutive season, the first to do so since Tiger Woods in 2005-2007. In terms of The Players Championship, the Texan is aiming for a historic threepeat after winning the event by five strokes in 2023 and then one by in 2024.
In his first PGA Tour event of 2025, McIlroy won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, finishing with a score of -21, besting Shane Lowry by two strokes. A fantastic player, the PGA veteran has 27 PGA Tour wins to his credit, including two last season, that being the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and also the Wells Fargo Championship (his fourth time winning the event). He has also had success at The Players Championship before, winning the event in 2019 to go along with three other top ten finishes. However, since winning in 2019, the event has not been the best for McIlory, with his best finish being tied for 19th last year after missing the cut in 2023.
Like the other players on this list, 2024 was a great season for San Diego’s Schauffele. After growing up playing Bernardo Heights Country Club in Southern California, the 31-year-old had a breakthrough last year. In May 2024, he won his first major with a birdie on the final hole in the PGA Championship. For this event, Sachauffele won the tournament with a score of 21 under par, which is a record low for a major championship. Later that year in July, Schauffele won the Open Championship at Royal Troon, the second major of his career. In what would be a fantastic day, the San Diegan became the first golfer to win two majors with a final-round 65.
Rounding out the SBS list, Morikawa is another fantastic rising star in the sport. Per sources, he began his PGA Tour career with 22 consecutive made cuts, second only to Tiger Woods’ 25-cut streak. Additionally, he has six PGA Tour wins – including two major championships, the 2020 PGA Championship and the 2021 Open Championship. With his last victory coming back in 2023 at October’s Zozo Championship, he is definitely aiming for a resounding flourish in Florida. Regarding this particular event, he has not performed his best at The Players, recording a personal best finish of tied for thirteenth back in 2023. Last year he recorded a 45th place finish.
While it would be pretty astonishing for a player to pull off a three-peat at this event, if there was one pro who could do it, it would definitely be Scheffler. The world number one player is touted as the best for a reason and is the one to watch at Sawgrass.
After you are all up to date in relation to the latest news and notes coming from the world of golf and The Players Championship, make sure to check out the excellent array of info only at SBS. Of course, for even more info on the sport at hand, you can see the golf betting sites guide which goes over all of the latest markets and notes coming from the sport. Conversely, for those on the go, the best betting apps breakdown is an excellent resource for qualified customers to learn more about the nuances of mobile betting and how you can stay on top of the action. Finally, if you are looking at diversifying your payment options, look no further than the payment methods rundown, which goes over all kinds of options from crypto to more traditional banking routes and beyond.
About the Author
Chris Boline is a Reno-based business development professional and freelance sports writer with over a decade of experience covering the NBA G League, Los Angeles Chargers, and national football and basketball. His expertise spans the NFL, NBA, UFC, boxing, golf, and motorsports, along with topical news, marketing, and promotional content. A proud University of Nevada graduate, Chris earned both his BS in Management & Economics (2015) and MBA (2023). He is active in the Reno community, serving on boards such as the Nevada Sagebrush Alumni Chapter, NCET, and the College of Business Alumni Association, where he was past president (2022–23). Notable honors include: - Two-time University of Nevada Alumni Chapter of the Year honoree (2017, 2021) - 2021 NCET Professional Services Organization of the Year (with TAC) - 2016–17 Reno Bighorns MVP, awarded by the Sacramento Kings - Nevada Press Association Award for Best Sports Column (2015) - Former Editor-in-Chief of The Nevada Sagebrush Chris blends his passion for sports with a strong background in sales, marketing, and community engagement.
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