The Top 100 Golfers In The PGA Championship Ranked, With Blurbs And Insider Info On Each Player
Just like that, another major week is upon us. A highly anticipated Masters did not disappoint, with a healthy dose of PGA Tour vs. LIV tension serving as the background for Jon Rahm's coronation. Now it’s the PGA of America’s turn to build on golf's momentum, and they already started some (light) controversy by handing out a bunch of seemingly arbitrary special exemptions.
And that Tiger Woods fellow is not in the field as he begins rehabilitation for a subtalar ankle fusion surgery that will almost certainly keep him out for the rest of the golf season. But no matter—the best players in the world will still be present and accounted for at Oak Hill, a Donald Rosss gem that’s been renovated since it last held the PGA Championship in 2013. Here’s our ranking of the top 100 players in the 156-man field, which includes 20 club professionals from around the country. Use it to inform your bets, DFS lineups or to simply be a more informed viewer as you enjoy the action this weekend. Happy major week, and happy reading.
100. Jason Dufner
Age: 46 World Ranking: 414 PGA Championship appearances: 14
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2013
In that late 40’s purgatory before becoming PGA Tour Champions eligible. He’s made the weekend in just six of his 18 starts on the PGA Tour this season, and he’s missed the weekend in each of his last five PGA Championship starts. But he gets a spot in the highly prestigious Top 100 because he won the last major championship held at Oak Hill, the 2013 PGA, even if the course will look markedly different after Andrew Green’s restoration.
99. Kazuki Higa
Age: 28 World Ranking: 100 PGA Championship appearances: First
There’s always one or two players from the Japan Tour who get into majors based on their play on their home circuit, and more often than not they can’t compete on big-boy courses in the States. Higa’s that guy this year. Has missed the cut in both previous major starts and, concerningly, each of his last five starts worldwide.
98. Nicolai Hojgaard
Age: 22 World Ranking: 107 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: CUT, 2022
The European Ryder Cup ecosystem has had its collective eyes fixed on the young Dane and his twin, Rasmus. Their developing into world-class players would be huge for the future of the team but it’s just not quite there yet. He’s played nicely in Europe and could get a PGA Tour card that way but this is a huge opportunity he’s been granted by the PGA of America.
97. Sadom Kaewkanjana
Age: 24 World Ranking: 92 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: CUT, 2022
The young Thai is interesting case study in world golf: he played a full schedule during LIV’s debut season but got the boot before 2023, so he’s now back on the Asian Tour. He’s playing very well there, it should be noted, and it would seem a return to LIV is his goal as the PGA Tour is likely out of the picture given his choice last year. Took T11 at St. Andrews last year
96. Kevin Kisner
Age: 39 World Ranking: 59 PGA Championship appearances: 8
Best PGA Championship finish: T7, 2017
We wish there was more positive news to report, but he’s working through some swing changes and on the Struggle Bus right now. His driver is on the fritz and he summed up his problems this way at the Masters: “I go hit 8,000 drivers after this round and stripe every one of them, then push-cut it in the bunker right on 1 and get pissed off the rest of the day. That’s prety much how it goes.” Missed the cut at Augusta then withdrew from the RBC Heritage after an opening-round 78 and he hasn’t played a competitive round since.
95. Padraig Harrington
Age: 51 World Ranking: 231 PGA Championship appearances: 23
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2008
Splits his time about equally between senior tour and regular tour events. He’s still plenty long enough to compete with the younger guys but also enjoys beating up on the old men, as he has a chance to win nearly every time he plays a PGA Tour Champions event. Missed the cut in all three major starts last year and also missed the weekend at the 2013 PGA at Oak Hill.
94. Nick Hardy
Age: 27 World Ranking: 177 PGA Championship appearances: First
Big, strong young player from Illinois (and a U of I grad teamed up with Davis Riley to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and earn himself some job security in the process. Now gets his first crack at a major outside of the U.S. Open, which he qualified for four separate times.
93. Scott Stallings
Age: 38 World Ranking: 66 PGA Championship appearances: 5
Best PGA Championship finish: T55, 2013
His last win came over nine years ago but a solo second at last year’s BMW Championship came at the perfect time, getting him into the following week’s Tour Championship and locking up major berths for this year. He has a pretty putrid record in the majors with nine missed cuts in 13 tries. The lone PGA Championship cut he made was at Oak Hill in 2013.
92. Maverick McNealy
Age: 27 World Ranking: 86 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T75, 2022
Still looking for his first PGA Tour championship, and hasn’t quite blossomed into the world-class player his amateur career suggested he might. Had some nice finishes against weaker fields in the fall but it’s been a bit of a struggle since, with no top-30 finishes in his last eight starts.
91. Thorbjorn Olesen
Age: 33 World Ranking: 93 PGA Championship appearances: 7
Best PGA Championship finish: T27, 2012
He’s won twice in Europe since that horrifyingly embarrassing episode on an airplane, though it should be noted he was eventually cleared of all charges by a London court. He’s in good shape to earn a PGA Tour card by finishing as one of the top 10 not-already exempt players on the DP World Tour points list. Swings the club beautifully and there’s some real upside here; he played the last Ryder Cup on European soil and will want desperately to do it again.
90. Mark Hubbard
Age: 32 World Ranking: 123 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: T51, 2020
The artist known on Twitter as “HomelessHubbs” get his first major start since 2020, which means this will be his first one with fans. He might be best known for his “snail” putting grip where he grips the putter with one pinky right at its neck. He only brings it out when he’s far form the cut line. We’re not saying we want him to miss the cut. We just think it’d be funny to see The Snail make an appearance in a major championship.
89. Francesco Molinari
Age: 40 World Ranking: 132 PGA Championship appearances: 12
Best PGA Championship finish: T2, 2017
He’s no longer tumbling down the world rankings like he was—it’s leveled off, but he just hasn’t been able to push higher or sustain any momentum. Been making the cut in about half his starts doesn’t have a top 10 on the PGA Tour since January 2022. With the mass exodus of the LIV guys from the DP World Tour ecosystem, he could be in the conversation for a Ryder Cup captaincy far sooner than he anticipated.
88. J.J. Spaun
Age: 32 World Ranking: 73 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T35, 2018
Tends to play better on easier courses but has struggled on the sterner tests this year, with missed cuts at Torrey Pines, TPC Scottsdale, Bay Hill, TPC Sawgrass and Harbour Town.
87. Brendon Todd
Age: 37 World Ranking: 68 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T17, 2020
Fighting an uphill battle each and every week as he’s one of the very shortest players on the PGA Tour. That puts significant pressure on the rest of his game in order to compete but if it’s warm, firm and a tight golf course he can more than hold his own. Took T8 at Quail Hollow in his last start
86. Robert MacIntyre
Age: 26 World Ranking: 96 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T49, 2021
Wasn’t long ago that he was touted as Scottish Golf’s next great hope, but his career seems to be in no-man’s land. Such is the plight of a player who stayed loyal to the DP World Tour but doesn’t have his PGA Tour card. It’s harder than ever for a guy like him to get points to get into PGA Tour events, which he needs to play in to get a card, and it’s hard to contextualize his good weeks when the competition is so relatively weak.
85. Aaron Wise
Age: 26 World Ranking: 51 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T17, 2021
Took two months off right after the Players Championship, including the Masters, to address his mental health. Surely was some rust in his first start back last week at the Nelson but he finished with a seven-under 64 on Sunday. Most important is that he hopefully feels better.
84. Christiaan Bezuidenhout
Age: 28 World Ranking: 77 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T30, 2021
There’s not much to suggest he’s ready to contend for a big title. His last top 10 on the PGA Tour came at last summer’s John Deere Classic, which is about as far from a major championship as you can get. (Sorry, Trent). And he’s yet to finish better than T30 in a major.
83. Joel Dahmen
Age: 35 World Ranking: 108 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T10, 2020
Even he’s not entirely sure how he got into the field. It could well have been a result of his public profile, which has exploded after he and his caddie Geno Bonnalie starred in an irresistibly charming episode of Netflix’s “Full Swing.” One of the most popular players on Tour and, though he’ll tell you he sucks, has two top-10 finishes in nine career major starts. That certainly ain’t bad.
82. Emiliano Grillo
Age: 30 World Ranking: 79 PGA Championship appearances: 7
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2016
He’s sneakily on a pretty solid run of form—a T7 at the RBC Heritage, a T5 at the Mexico Open and a very solid T23 at Quail Hollow. He hasn’t developed into the player his rookie of the year season suggested he might be, and he’s close to the bang-average PGA Tour player. That’s not a knock, of course. Anyone on the PGA Tour is among the finest golfers in the world. Irons are his strength, and Donald Ross layouts like Oak Hill typically demand precise iron play.
81. Thomas Pieters
Age: 31 World Ranking: 52 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T6, 2018
Golf is more of a job than a passion for him, which is obviously his right and helps make sense of his decision to join LIV Golf. Unlike many of the other LIVers he fully accepts that this year might be his last playing majors and he’s accepted that. Says he enjoys the predictability of the LIV schedule and that it allows him to spend more time back in Belgium with his young children. He hasn’t played well in LIV events and comes off as a very old 31.
80. Sepp Straka
Age: 30 World Ranking: 38 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T66, 2020
The Honda Classic has been very kind to hjm over the years—it’s where he won his lone PGA Tour event and he’d be in far hotter waters without a T5 there this past February. Made the cut in his two prior PGA Championship appearances but was a non-factor on both weekends. Needs to get on the metaphorical horse if he’s to become the first man with a Southern drawl to play on the European Ryder Cup team. Missed the cut in his last two starts.
79. Ben Griffin
Age: 27 World Ranking: 84 PGA Championship appearances: First
Played pro golf for 2018-21 and had Korn Ferry Tour status in ‘19 but didn’t play well, which resulted in him taking a job as a mortgage loan officer for a hot second. But all the talk/media coverage of his brief foray into real estate has obscured his blue-chip golf background. This isn’t some mid-am who spent a decade in an office before deciding to give pro golf a try; he was a two-time honorable mention All-American at North Carolina and finished second in three Korn Ferry Tour events last year. Credits his turnaround with a shift in mentality—he quit drinking during the season, stopped playing scared and became a vegan, and he’s having a very solid rookie season on the PGA Tour. This will be his first major championship appearance.
78. Paul Casey
Age: 45 World Ranking: 131 PGA Championship appearances: 19
Best PGA Championship finish: T2, 2020
The special exemptions went to players on both sides of the aisle, for there’s no other justification for the British LIV golfer to be in this field. He missed three majors last year with a back injury but has finished in the top five in the last two PGA Championships he’s played in. That said, he’s been pretty poor in his recent LIV starts and is creeping up there in age.
77. Lucas Herbert
Age: 27 World Ranking: 47 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2022
Missed out on playing his first Masters by one stinkin’ ranking spot, and feels he should’ve made last year’s Presidents Cup team, so there’s definitely a chip on the shoulder. The Aussie has had some good results this year, including a solo third in the Saudi International and a win in his last start, at the ISPS Handa Championship on the DP World Tour in Japan. It’s been a different story stateside this year—his best finish in seven stroke-play starts is a T20 in Vegas in the fall. Clearly intent on playing a global schedule, and his win last season has him exempt through 2023-24, but it’s fair to ask if it’s the right strategy to compete week-in and week-out on the PGA Tour.
76. Cam Davis
Age: 28 World Ranking: 70 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T48, 2022
Missed five cuts in a row before a T6 out of nowhere at the Players, then missed the cut at the Valero Texas Open, then took T7 at the RBC Heritage. The Aussie is a boom-or-bust kind of guy with a big game that can hang with the world’s best on his good weeks; he’s just a bit too streaky for my liking. Has made the cut in all four of his major championship appearances.
75. J.T. Poston
Age: 29 World Ranking: 54 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T60, 2019
Fun fact, he finished exactly T21 in three straight starts earlier this year. Just another priceless nugget you won’t find anywhere besides these top 100s. Had his best-career finish in a major with a T34 in the Masters.
74. Alex Smalley
Age: 26 World Ranking: 102 PGA Championship appearances: First
Plenty of his peers took to social media after the first field list dropped. He wasn’t on it despite ranking above a few players who were, both in the world rankings and the PGA of America’s own list. Got into the field when Davis Love III withdrew so all’s well that ends well, I suppose. First major championship start as a professional.
73. Hayden Buckley
Age: 27 World Ranking: 76 PGA Championship appearances: First
Mizzou grad enjoyed a strong fall season before a rough patch from the west coast through Florida. He’s bounced back since, with back-to-back top 10s at the Valero Texas Open and RBC Heritage, and now gets his first start at a major other than the U.S. Open. Ranks a very impressive fourth in strokes gained off the tee for the season and has been hitting his irons well in recent starts. It’s a recipe that should bode well on difficult golf courses.
72. Thomas Detry
Age: 30 World Ranking: 90 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: CUT, 2021
Playing his first full season on the PGA Tour after getting his card by being one of the top players on the DP World Tour. It’s a new development in world golf, and he’s emblematic of a path that’ll become more common: the best European players coming over to America without second thought. A solo second in Bermuda in the fall all but locked up his card for next year and he’s currently in position to qualify for next year’s designated events despite not doing much damage in the stronger-field events. Playing the Soudal Open in his native Belgium the week before the PGA Championship, which doesn’t seem ideal from a preparation perspective, but you gotta admire his commitment to Belgian golf.
71. Adam Schenk
Age: 31 World Ranking: 91 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: T41, 2022
If nothing else he deserves serious credit for pursuing a career in golf given his last name. A solo second at the Valspar all but locked up his card for another year.
70. Webb Simpson
Age: 37 World Ranking: 150 PGA Championship appearances: 12
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2016
Wasn’t all that long ago he was a fringe top-5 player. Fast forward to now and he needed a special invitation from the PGA of America to get into the field. Admitted that he chased distance in the last few years with little success. He’s played the other three majors better than the PGA in his career, as the beefy layouts typically haven’t fit his plotting style.
69. Brandon Wu
Age: 26 World Ranking: 83 PGA Championship appearances: First
He’s a bit feast or famine with just two top 10s this year, but one was a solo third and the other a runner-up. You’d much rather have the extremes than a bunch of middling finishes. Stanford graduate.
68. Alex Noren
Age: 40 World Ranking: 56 PGA Championship appearances: 10
Best PGA Championship finish: T22, 2020
Now north of 40, if only just, he remains a stable on the driving range and stays rehearsing that hard-left move like it’s no one’s business. It’s a Ryder Cup year, which should provide some extra incentive for him to kick on this summer as this could well be the last chance he has to make the European team. Missed the cut in his last four major starts.
67. Brian Harman
Age: 36 World Ranking: 33 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2017
Took runner-up in back-to-back fall events to skyrocket up the world rankings, but it feels a touch inflated—he has just one finish better than T42 in nine stroke-play starts in 2023 and it came via a T7 at Hilton Head, a course that fits his accuracy-first game to a T. Hasn’t played big, beefy courses well this year, with a missed cut at Riviera, Bay Hill, Augusta and Quail Hollow. I’d stay away.
66. Patrick Rodgers
Age: 30 World Ranking: 105 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: CUT, 2017
The raw tools are all there; he shares Stanford’s all-time win record with Tiger Woods and Rose Zhang, even if the other two accomplished it in far less starts, and he’s played his way near the lead with 18 holes to go plenty of times. He hasn’t been able to pick up that elusive first victory, but after having to go to KFT finals to secure his card for this year he’s having arguably his finest season on tour this far with four top 10s.
65. Mackenzie Hughes
Age: 32 World Ranking: 61 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T58, 2020
Won his second PGA Tour event in October at the Sanderson Farms. Both of his wins came in the fall, both came in playoffs, and the winning score for both was 17 under. These are the fun tidbits you uncover during the research process for this article. In more salient news, he’s got three missed cuts and a T58 in four career PGA Championship starts.
64. Justin Suh
Age: 25 World Ranking: 80 PGA Championship appearances: First
He’s 25 years old with a PGA Tour card and 15 consecutive cuts made on the best tour in the world. And yet, the narrative around the USC grad until recently has focused on who he ’s not. That’s what happens when you do your introductory press conference as a professional golfer alongside Collin Morikawa, Matt Wolff and Viktor Hovland, all of whom have had significantly more success as a professional. But they’re all still young, and Suh has indeed played his way up to the pinnacle of the sport even if it took a few years longer than the others. Gets his first major start outside of the U.S. Open.
63. Adam Hadwin
Age: 35 World Ranking: 74 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T29, 2019
Picked up his first top-20 finish in 20 career major starts at last year’s U.S. Open, where he hung tough all week and finished T7. Statistically above average in the key strokes gained categories but has just one top-10 in 10 individual starts in 2023, and it was a T10 in Phoenix in February.
62. Phil Mickelson
Age: 52 World Ranking: 78 PGA Championship appearances: 26
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2005, 2021
It’s a bit overshadowed because of Kiawah, but let’s not lose sight that the man just finished second in a major championship at 52 years of age. It was great to see Phil back flashing the thumbs up at Augusta, but any thought that he might be done leaning into controversy has faded with each additional tweet since. Finished middle of the pack in the LIV events in Australia and Singapore, then nearly dead last in Tulsa, and given how much local knowledge/course history factors into Masters performances it’s hard to extrapolate much from that week. Augusta tolerates the odd foul ball in a way Oak Hill does not, and he finished T72 at the 2013 PGA here back when he was still a perennial top-10 player. This wouldn’t seem to be a very good fit for him given how demanding it’ll be off the tee. But we said the same thing for Kiawah.
61. Abraham Ancer
Age: 32 World Ranking: 41 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T8, 2021
The rare LIV player who’s probably playing worse than his world ranking suggests. Was one of LIV’s highest-ranked signings when he made the jump and played solidly for most of last year, then opened 2023 with a win in Saudi Arabia that suggested big things to come. It hasn’t happened. He’s been pretty poor in LIV events this year, with zero top 15 finishes in five starts heading into the Tulsa event. Made the cut at the Masters but didn’t factor on the weekend. He does, however, have top 10 finishes in each of his past two PGA Championship starts. They’re his only top 10s in major championships, and he seems to slowly be fading from relevancy on the world stage.
60. Billy Horschel
Age: 36 World Ranking: 29 PGA Championship appearances: 10
Best PGA Championship finish: T23, 2021
How about this for a statistic: he finished T4 in his first major championship as a pro but doesn’t have a single top-20 finish in 35 attempts since. It’s a stunning number for a guy who’s been a top-50 player for the better part of a decade. You won’t see a bigger gap in rankings than his No. 29 spot in the OWGR and his No. 117 mark on Data Golf, which puts greater emphasis on recency. His last top-10 in a stroke play event came in October. Skipped the Wells Fargo and comes in off two weeks of rest.
59. Ryan Fox
Age: 36 World Ranking: 41 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T27, 2018
Long hitter from New Zealand worked his way into the top 50 in the world with a super strong stretch of play on the DP World Tour. His goal now is to play full-time in the U.S. Hasn't played a tournament since his T26 at the Masters, for whatever reason.
58. Gary Woodland
Age: 38 World Ranking: 75 PGA Championship appearances: 11
Best PGA Championship finish: T6, 2018
Been a trendy pick in DFS formats this year because his ball striking numbers have improved dramatically. His putting has…not. He’s near dead last in strokes gained on the greens and, if you wager on him, just prepare for a frustrating experience.
57. Keith Mitchell
Age: 31 World Ranking: 53 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T34, 2022
He’s had some success on tougher courses—a top five at Riviera this year, and his lone win on tour came at PGA National—but not so much in the majors. Has gained shots on the field off the tee in 12 of his last 14 starts and ranks fifth in that stat for the season, which provides ample justification for optimism.
56. Anirban Lahiri
Age: 35 World Ranking: 98 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T5, 2015
Joining LIV was something of a no brainer for India’s top golfer—a chance to play less, for more, and lean into LIV’s alliance with the Asian Tour. Squeaked into the field on his world ranking but that’s falling with LIV not offering points, and it’s entirely possible this could be his last-ever start in a major championship. A strong showing, of course, could change that.
55. Nick Taylor
Age: 35 World Ranking: 65 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T68, 2015
Gave Scottie Scheffler a helluva battle at the WM Phoenix Open only to fall just short. Also finished solo second in the Zurich Classic team competition and, with three additional top 10s in the season he’s having one of his better years as a pro. This will mark just his sixth start in a major championship in 13 years as a professional.
54. Taylor Montgomery
Age: 28 World Ranking: 60 PGA Championship appearances: First
PGA Tour rookie hit the ground running with a solo third in his very first start of the year in Napa and kept it rolling for most of the fall, emerging as perhaps the leading candidate for rookie of the year. Ranks third on tour in strokes gained putting, which checks out—he once won a major league putting event for $75,000 in his native Las Vegas. How TaylorMade hasn’t made him a TaylorMont headcover is beyond me. Qualified for each of the last two U.S. Opens but this will mark his first PGA Championship.
53. Victor Perez
Age: 30 World Ranking: 67 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T22, 2020
Been one of the better European-based players over the last half-decade and has won a few big tournaments overseas, including in Abu Dhabi earlier this year. That has him on the fringe of Ryder Cup contention and he too is in great shape to earn his PGA Tour card through the DP World Tour (still weird to type that). Should he do that, he’d return to the states full-time for the first time since he played at the University of New Mexico.
52. Adrian Meronk
Age: 29 World Ranking: 46 PGA Championship appearances: First
He’s swimming upstream in the points race without a PGA Tour card, but the big Pole is doing everything he can to play his way onto the Ryder Cup team. Won his last DP World Tour start, the Italian Open, which was held at the Ryder Cup venue Marco Simone Golf Club. He’s now the reigning champion of the Italian, Irish and Australian Open, three pretty cool trophies to have on the mantle. Those are some old, proud tournaments and he’s won them all in the last 10 months. Get his first crack at a PGA Championship, the lone major he hasn’t played in yet. Needs to prove himself to captain Luke Donald in events against the best players in the world, because that’s who he’d be facing in Rome, and this week presents a great chance to make a statement.
51. K.H. Lee
Age: 31 World Ranking: 44 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T41, 2022
Should change his name to K.H.T.P.C. Craig Ranch Lee, as both of his PGA tour victories have come in the AT&T Byron Nelson there each of the past two years. Earned some valuable experience on last year’s Presidents Cup team and profiles as a player on the rise. Nothing jumps out statistically but he’s in the positive in all five big strokes gained categories. Contending at a major is a ton to ask at this point in his career.
50. Bryson DeChambeau
Age: 29 World Ranking: 201 PGA Championship appearances: 5
Best PGA Championship finish: T4, 2020
After dominating the news cycle for a good two years, it’s been pretty quiet on the Bryson front in recent months. In free fall in the world rankings, which happens when you’re playing on a tour that doesn’t offer points and missed the cut in the Masters. He’s back to looking much more like 2017 Bryson than 2020 Bryson, having dropped significant weight and making wholesale changes to his diet. Hadn’t posted a single top-15 finish in his last six LIV Golf starts heading into Tulsa, and keep in mind those are 48-man fields, before a good showing in Oklahoma. He’s got his plate full these days with acting as a CEO of sorts for his Crushers franchise and seems dedicated to his YouTube channel, which obviously brings him a lot of joy. Withdrew from last year’s PGA Championship with a wrist injury that ended up needing surgery. Says he’s back at full strength but the game hasn’t followed just yet. Has one top-10 finish in five career PGA starts, a T4 at the fanless TPC Harding Park in 2020.
49. Davis Riley
Age: 26 World Ranking: 71 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2022
Won his first PGA TOur event in team fashion along with Nick Hardy at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Watch him swing the club once and you’ll agree there should be more in his future; it’s a beautiful move in the same ilk as Adam Scott or Louis Oosthuizen. The move held up well in his two major starts last year, including a very good T13 in his PGA Championship debut.
48. Harold Varner III
Age: 32 World Ranking: 64 PGA Championship appearances: 5
Best PGA Championship finish: T29, 2020
The money was simply too good for him to pass up leaving the PGA Tour before getting his first victory. Had his best LIV event thus far this year last week in Tulsa on a pillow-soft golf course in Oklahoma. Zero top-20 finishes in 13 career major starts.
47. Shane Lowry
Age: 36 World Ranking: 25 PGA Championship appearances: 11
Best PGA Championship finish: T4, 2021
Just one top-10 finish in 11 starts on the PGA Tour this calendar year, and that was a T5 against a very weak field at the Honda Classic. It was around this time last year that his gamed kicked into gear and it’s entirely possible that’ll happen again. The issue has mostly been with his chipping and putting which have historically been strengths.
46. Russell Henley
Age: 34 World Ranking: 28 PGA Championship appearances: 9
Best PGA Championship finish: T12, 2015
He’s not going to wow you on the driving range or at the podium, but he’s had an excellent PGA Tour career and comes in on a nice run, with four consecutive top 20s. That includes a T4 at the Masters, where he popped his head up on Sunday before Jon Rahm asserted himself down the stretch. That was his first top-10 finish in 33 career major starts. Had been one of the best iron players on tour for the last three seasons—he was second in strokes gained approach in 2021-22, sixth in 2020-21 and third in 2019-20—but there’s been a big regression this year. He ranks 99th. Missed the cut at the 2013 PGA at Oak Hill.
45. Tom Kim
Age: 20 World Ranking: 19 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: CUT, 2022
It’s far too early in the year/unfair to throw the term “sophomore slump” around with a 20-year-old kid, but he hasn’t played quite as well as some might’ve hoped given his electric 2022. It hasn’t been anything disastrous—he’s made the cut in 12 of 14 starts this year—but he doesn’t have a top 10 in his last eight individual starts. He’s set up shop in Dallas and has been warmly embraced by Justin Thomas, Max Homa and Jordan Spieth, who view him as a younger brother of sorts. (Again, he’s 20). Ranks 14th in strokes gained tee to green despite being outside the top 100 in driving distance; you don’t see many 20 year olds come up with that statistical profile. Missed the cut in his first two PGA Championship appearances, but we’ll give him a pass given he was a literal teenager for both.
44. Kurt Kitayama
Age: 30 World Ranking: 20 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T51, 2020
Quadzilla, as he’s affectionately known, beat a field of world-class players on a brutally difficult golf course to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational. That’s by far the pinnacle of a career that’s taken him to the far corners of the Earth, and the numbers say he’s a top 20 player in the world. But it’s concerning that he’s missed all four cuts and hasn’t broken 70 in his four individual stroke-play starts since.
43. Tom Hoge
Age: 33 World Ranking: 30 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T9, 2022
Top-threes in two designated events to start the year, the Sentry and the Players, banked a ton of points, but some of the shine has worn off with back-to-back missed cuts at the Masters and RBC Heritage. That said, he leads the tour in strokes gained approach, a statistic that’s always led by a who’s who of the best players in the world. He can get hibachi-hot with the irons. As Sahith Theegala, his partner during their victorious QBE Shootout week, said in the first episode of Side Gig: “he’ll hit one to 12 feet and turn to his caddie and be like, I pulled it. Not a good shot. I pulled it.” Aim small, miss small.
42. Adam Svensson
Age: 29 World Ranking: 58 PGA Championship appearances: First
Part of a solid contingent of Canadians on tour, he played Division II golf in Florida before slowly but surely working his way up to the PGA Tour. Won a fall event to get into his first major but missed the cut at the Masters; now he gets another chance to play his first weekend round at one of the big four.
41. Corey Conners
Age: 31 World Ranking: 27 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T17, 2021
Sweet-swinging Canadian won the week before the Masters and had three consecutive top 10s at Augusta before missing the cut in the year’s first major. In related news, golf remains impossible to forecast. Has since bounced back with a top 10 at Quail Hollow. It’s the same story it’s been in recent years: he’s one of the best ball strikers in the world, ranking in the top 20 in both strokes gained off the tee and strokes gained approach, but the closer-to-the-hole struggles continue, and he’s outside the top 125 in both around-the-green and putting. Rinse, repeat.
40. Joaquin Niemann
Age: 24 World Ranking: 26 PGA Championship appearances: 5
Best PGA Championship finish: T23, 2022
Jumped to LIV right after last year’s Tour Championship and finished T4 or better in three of his first starts on the rival circuit. He’s embraced his new surroundings and appears to be having plenty of fun hanging out with his buddy Mito Pereira and the rest of his Torque teammates. His major championship career got off to a nightmare start, missing five of his first six cuts, but he’s made the weekend in each of his last 10 major starts. That’s progress, even if he’s still waiting for his first top 10.
39. Matt Kuchar
Age: 44 World Ranking: 48 PGA Championship appearances: 14
Best PGA Championship finish: T7, 2015
He’s old enough to have a son who made it through U.S. Open local qualifying. (The kid’s 15, but still). Played in just one major last year as his ranking dropped and, brace yourselves, missed the cut in seven straight majors running from 2020-21. That said, he’s playing very solidly with four consecutive finishes of T23 leading up to the Nelson. Data Golf likes what they see, ranking him No. 23 among every golfer on the planet. It’s more than likely he’ll end a fantastic career without a major championship, which is a bummer.
38. Seamus Power
Age: 36 World Ranking: 39 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: T9, 2022
Wasn’t all that long ago that he was on the Monday qualifier grind. A late career resurgence has the Irishman—by way of East Tennessee State University and living in Las Vegas—firmly in the Ryder Cup picture but he’s got to prove it on bigger stages; he’s way up in the FedEx Cup (13th) based on a win a two other top 5s in the fall. Showed impressively in his first PGA Championship last year with a T9 at Southern Hills.
37. Min Woo Lee
Age: 24 World Ranking: 62 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: CUT, 2022
Not yet a PGA Tour member but that’s surely in the cards sooner rather than later, and the young Aussie’s long been identified as one of the top young talents in the game. Played in the final pairing at the Players Championship on Sunday and got a front-row seat to Scottie Scheffler closing it out like a boss. He’ll have learned plenty from that, even if it didn’t help much when he missed the cut at the Masters. Finished T27 or better at three of the four majors last year. Certainly has the firepower to compete on grown-man courses; he frequently gets driver around 190 mph ball speed and cruises in the mid 180s.
36. Denny McCarthy
Age: 30 World Ranking: 55 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T48, 2022
Long been known as perhaps the greatest putter on the planet, but the overall games’ reached a new level this year. He’s gaining ground in strokes gained off the tee and approach, and while his putting stats have dropped a hair he’s still top 15 on tour. Comes in off a T25 at the RBC Heritage and a T8 at the Wells Fargo, both designated events, and he’ll be raring to go after missing out on both last year’s Open at St. Andrews and this year’s Masters. Last major start yielded a T7 at last year’s U.S. Open.
35. Jordan Spieth
Age: 29 World Ranking: 10 PGA Championship appearances: 10
Best PGA Championship finish: 2, 2015
The rollercoaster continues—he made 19 birdies and an eagle at the Masters, more than good enough to get the job done had he not shot himself in the foot with self-admitted mental errors. Then had an eight-footer to win the following week at the RBC Heritage and, in that moment, he looked in great shape to mount a serious challenge for the one major championship he hasn’t won, which is this one. Now there’s a huge question mark in the form of a left wrist injury that he said has caused “severe pain” and kept him out of the AT&T Byron Nelson last week. It’s not definite that he’ll play and this isn’t a golf course you want to be playing while worrying about your wrist. Missed the cut at the 2013 PGA Championship at Oak Hill back when he was a teenager. If you make a wager on him you are a braver man than I.
34. Si Woo Kim
Age: 27 World Ranking: 42 PGA Championship appearances: 7
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2020
Began the year by winning his fourth PGA Tour title at the Sony Open. He’s made a bunch of cuts since and finished just one shot behind Jason Day at last week’s Nelson. This will mark his 25th start in a major and he’s still looking for his first top 10. He’s certainly got the ball striking chops to get it done, ranking 22nd on tour in strokes gained tee to green. One thing’s for certain: he’ll wear some article of clothing with an obnoxiously large PGA TOUR logo on it at least one of the days.
33. Mito Pereira
Age: 28 World Ranking: 57 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: T3, 2022
Blew last year’s PGA Championship in spectacular fashion with a T-rex-arms swing on the 72nd hole, blocking one into the one place where you couldn’t. Unlike his fellow Chilean Joaquin Niemann he stayed on the PGA Tour long enough to represent the International team at Quail Hollow then quietly made the jump back in February. Remains an excellent, excellent ball striker and has played nicely on the LIV Tour thus far. A deep sleeper if he can somehow get over last year’s heartbreak.
32. Harris English
Age: 33 World Ranking: 36 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T19, 2020
The oldest member of that dominant 2021 Ryder Cup team still isn’t yet 34 years old. Underwent hip surgery that kept him out for quite a while and it took a few months to get back into playing shape but he’s there—he and Tyrrell Hatton tied for the victory in the non-Wyndham or Xander division at the Wells Fargo Championship, his second top-three finish in a designated event thus far this year. A ball striker’s ball striker, he’s made the cut in an impressive 20 out of 24 major championship starts. A good bet to make the weekend who’ll provide some good value in DFS formats.
31. Chris Kirk
Age: 38 World Ranking: 34 PGA Championship appearances: 9
Best PGA Championship finish: T5, 2022
Provided perhaps the best feel-good story of the year when he won the Honda Classic in February, capping off a comeback from alcohol and depression struggles. Might have the silkiest tempo on tour and ranks 19th on tour in strokes gained overall. His world ranking has surely benefitted from the departure of the LIV guys, but he won’t be complaining about that. Had his best-ever major showing, by a wide margin, at last year’s PGA Championship.
30. Taylor Moore
Age: 29 World Ranking: 45 PGA Championship appearances: First
Something of a late bloomer, he struggled with a collapsed lung that kept him out of golf for months back during his Korn Ferry Tour days. Now playing the best golf of his life and won the Valspar Championship to get into his first Masters, where he made the cut. He comes in off seven consecutive made cuts and has been a top-25 player on the PGA Tour this season. We like his chances for a top 20.
29. Hideki Matsuyama
Age: 31 World Ranking: 22 PGA Championship appearances: 10
Best PGA Championship finish: T4, 2016
Feels like he’s been fighting a nagging neck injury forever, and it’s kept him out of action for three designated events this year: the WGC Match Play, the RBC Heritage and the Wells Fargo Championship. Went back to Japan for treatment earlier this month but looked fine in opening the AT&T Byron Nelson with a five-under round. He’s made the cut in each of his last 11 major championship starts and hasn’t missed a weekend at the PGA in 10 tries.
28. Sahith Theegala
Age: 25 World Ranking: 24 PGA Championship appearances: First
One of the brightest young personalities on the PGA Tour with a unique swing, swagger and background. Netflix showed off his easygoing nature and, hopefully, so did the first Side Gig episode. In the time since filming that, he finished as the top rookie at the Masters with a solo 9th and a T5 at the RBC Heritage, his fourth top-five finish of the year. Was recently invited to a preliminary Ryder Cup team-bonding outing, a sign that captain Zach Johnson definitely has him on the radar. He can scramble with the best of ‘em and the next step in his progression is to get that first win. He will go as his driver goes this week—if it’s wild, he could struggle. If it’s not, he’ll make plenty of birdies.
27. Sam Burns
Age: 26 World Ranking: 13 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T20, 2022
His season ran into an unexpected speed bump when his driver failed a compliance test, which threw his confidence for a loop. Got fitted into a new one that clicked immediately, keying his victory at the final edition of the WGC-Dell Technologies match play. That’ll be a trivia answer one day. Missed the cut in his last start at the Wells Fargo Championship and hasn’t posted a major championship finish better than his T20 at Southern Hills last year. Remains one of the best putters in the world; the issue this year has been getting to the green. He ranks 169th in strokes gained approach and 107th in strokes gained tee to green. It’s nearly impossible to maintain your position among the game’s elite with those kind of ball striking stats.
26. Justin Rose
Age: 42 World Ranking: 32 PGA Championship appearances: 20
Best PGA Championship finish: T3, 2012
Started the year off right on the West Coast by winning his 11th PGA Tour event but first in four-plus years. A few more victories should put him in the Hall of Fame. Followed that W up at Pebble Beach with two straight missed cuts but has since bounced back with solid showings in his last four starts. His last event, the RBC Heritage, was the 400th of his career. His lone major championship victory, at the 2013 U.S. Open, came on another Golden-Age Northeast gem at Merion. Seventeenth on tour in strokes gained overall for the season. The other members of the 2010s Ryder Cup Europe core have gone to LIV but he remains, and he’s looking good to make his sixth team and pick up a captaincy in the future.
25. Adam Scott
Age: 42 World Ranking: 37 PGA Championship appearances: 22
Best PGA Championship finish: 3, 2018
Gave some interesting comments at the Wells Fargo, where he said he’s been pretty average for a while and that pretty average sucks on the PGA Tour. The stats say he’s better than that, given he hasn’t missed a single cut in 10 starts on tour this year, but the T5 at the Wells was his first top 20 of the season. Has seemed glued in the T20-T40 range over the past few seasons which has to be frustrating given he’s still got all the speed and flexibility as he moves into the fat part of his 40s. Finished T5 at the 2013 PGA at Oak Hill and comes in having played well each of the past two weeks.
24. Keegan Bradley
Age: 36 World Ranking: 23 PGA Championship appearances: 12
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2011
At 36, he’s rededicated himself to his craft with a new diet that has him looking and feeling better than ever. In related news, he’s having one of the better seasons of his career, with a win in Japan and a solo second to Max Homa at Torrey Pines. Now been 12 years since he won the PGA Championship in his major debut, a feat equaled by only five other players in the history of the game. Comes in off solid if uninspiring form with a T23 at the Masters, T48 at the RBC Heritage and T35 at the Wells Fargo Championship. Finished T19 in the 2013 PGA Championship at Oak Hill.
23. Cameron Smith
Age: 29 World Ranking: 8 PGA Championship appearances: 7
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2022
Top 10s in each of the past two LIV events leading up to Tulsa, where he was near the lead through two rounds, were a much-needed bounce back after a pretty forgettable start to the year. He’s an old-school, feel-first player who shines best on courses that demand and reward shotmaking, both with the full swing and around the greens. No surprise, then, that he’s had good success at both Augusta and St. Andrews, courses that permit a few loose shots so long as you can make the ball dance. He’ll always fit the Masters and Open Championship better than the other two stateside majors, and he’s yet to pick up a top 10 in seven career PGA Championship starts. Still hanging in the top 10 of the world but that’ll change without a strong week, and Data Golf thinks he’s closer to No. 25 at present.
22. Tommy Fleetwood
Age: 32 World Ranking: 21 PGA Championship appearances: 8
Best PGA Championship finish: T5, 2022
The winless streak on the PGA Tour continues but he continues to put himself in position on Sundays—he had at least a semi-chance to win three of his last six starts but hasn’t broken 70 on a Sunday since October. Yikes. Statistically you’d think the more chances he kicks at the door it’ll eventually fall, but you do have to wonder if there’s a mental block at this point. It’s not that he hasn’t closed out big tournaments around the world, but not winning on the PGA Tour in 116 starts is impossible to ignore. He checks the boxes statistically, with above-average marks in the key strokes gained categories and ranking ninth on the PGA Tour in strokes gained overall.
21. Talor Gooch
Age: 31 World Ranking: 63 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T20, 2022
You gotta think he’ll have a chapter in Alan Shipnuck’s upcoming book on LIV Golf, for he’s unexpectedly emerged as a key figure in The Schism. Raised eyebrows when he appeared on that first field list—an up-and-comer on the PGA Tour, in his prime, leaving behind the ecosystem to take the jump. Then claimed he didn’t know he’d be suspended, and now has reemerged in headlines for winning back-to-back LIV events in Australia and Singapore but no longer being qualified for the U.S. Open because of a subtle but effectual change in the exemption criteria. It’s a BS move on the USGA’s part, but his refusal to try to qualify reeks of a kid taking their ball and going home, so it’s just an ugly episode all around. He is, however, into the PGA Championship and can play his way into the U.S. Open with a strong week. And he’s playing great golf. Of that there is no doubt.
20. Patrick Reed
Age: 32 World Ranking: 49 PGA Championship appearances: 9
Best PGA Championship finish: T2, 2017
Was part of LIV’s strong showing at Augusta with a T4 and kept it up at the LIV event in Australia. If there’s one player who’d take the most pleasure in becoming the first LIVer to win a major it might be Patrick Reed, and he seems to play best when he feels people are against him. Was middle of the pack in LIV’s Tulsa event but given the design and conditioning of Cedar Ridge it’d be borderline criminal to make anything more of that.
19. Collin Morikawa
Age: 26 World Ranking: 16 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2020
Worked hard at his short game, always the Achilles heel, this offseason and showed some excellent early signs in Hawaii, but the stats tell the same story: he’s fourth in tour in strokes gained approach and 161st in putting. That’s gotta be maddening, and he continues to tinker, including switching back to the “saw” grip that he used for most of 2021 at Quail Hollow only to miss the cut. Been nearly two years since his last victory at the Open Championship. All that said, he’s been excellent in the majors with seven top 10s in 13 career starts and he’ll always love his chances on tight courses that reward precision.
18. Rickie Fowler
Age: 34 World Ranking: 50 PGA Championship appearances: 13
Best PGA Championship finish: T3, 2013
Firmly on the rebound after a few year dip into golfing wilderness. He hasn’t quite contended for a title this year but he’s done everything but—his T14 at the Wells Fargo was his eighth finish of T20 or better in his last nine PGA Tour starts, and that run of consistency has him back inside the top 50 of the world rankings for the first time in 2.5 years. Data Golf is even more convinced, ranking him as their No. 18 player in the world based on current form. He hasn’t missed sincer October (13 weekends in a row) and his return to Butch Harmon is paying huge dividends. What a story it’d be if his first major championship came not in the 2015-17 run when he lived near the top of major boards, but after a major slump when so many counted him out. Either way, it’s lovely to have Rickie back in the conversation.
17. Wyndham Clark
Age: 29 World Ranking: 31 PGA Championship appearances: 2
Best PGA Championship finish: T75, 2021
Picked up his first PGA Tour victory in dominant fashion at the Wells Fargo Championship, sucking the life out of the final round at Quail Hollow with a three-under 68 that gave him a four-shot victory over Xander Schauffele. For a player that relatively low ranked—he was world No. 80 coming into the week—to produce such an overwhelming display speaks to the depth of fields on the PGA Tour. He gained over 19 shots on the field for the week, a feat that’s been accomplished only four other times since the start of the 2020-21 season. He’s always looked the part with a picture-perfect swing and he hits it long. No major championship success to speak of yet, with three MCs, a T75 and a T76 in five major starts, but he’s a much better player these days.
16. Viktor Hovland
Age: 25 World Ranking: 12 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T30, 2021
Had to check twice to make sure he’s still just 25 years old. Hasn’t missed a single cut this year and does have some excellent finishes in big events—T3 at the Players, T7 at the Masters—yet it does sort of feel like he’s dropped a half-level from his peak in 2021. No one strikes it in the dead-center of the face more than he does, and he’s made the weekend in 11 of his 12 major championship starts. His last two majors have produced a T4 at the Open, where he played in the final pairing with Rory McIlroy (and admitted he was far too conservative off the tee) and that T7 at Augusta. Certainly flying under the radar, perhaps because his five wins in PGA Tour-affiliated tournaments have all come at resort courses: in Puerto Rico, twice in Mayakoba and twice in the Bahamas.
15. Max Homa
Age: 32 World Ranking: 6 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T13, 2022
His play in non-majors can go toe-to-toe with anyone in the world. Now a six-time winner on the PGA Tour, he’s left with the trophy at some major championship-type golf courses: Riviera, Quail Hollow, Torrey Pines. But, and it’s a sizable but, there’s really been no major championship success to speak of. His T13 last year at Southern HIlls was his first finish better than T40 in 14 career major starts. The vibes are strong after a solid T8 at the Wells Fargo in his last start, and he’s too smart and too in touch with his emotions for there to be some sort of mental block in the majors. He’d be an immensely popular major winner among his peers and the fans, and a strong week at Oak Hill would catapult him even further into stardom.
14. Rory McIlroy
Age: 34 World Ranking: 3 PGA Championship appearances: 14
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2012, 2014
It sure feels like something’s off. Missed the cut at both the Players and the Masters, then skipped the RBC Heritage for his emotional and mental health. That’s what he should do, but we’re in the business of ranking golfers’ chances to win tournaments, and there hasn’t been much recently to suggest he’s ready to do that. Returned to action at his second-home of sorts in Charlotte, where he’s won three times, but looked quite lackluster after an opening-round 68. He says the last 12 months have really worn on him and, well, of course they have. No player has put more effort and thought into the PGA Tour’s future than he has, and he’s beginning to sound like he just wants to get back to the golf and only the golf already. Now, for some positivity: he’s still a generational talent, he’s going to win more majors before he’s done and this is a home game of sorts. His wife, Erica, is from the Rochester area and he frequently visits upstate New York for holidays. His two PGA Championship wins sandwiched a T8 at Oak Hill in 2013.
13. Matt Fitzpatrick
Age: 28 World Ranking: 7 PGA Championship appearances: 7
Best PGA Championship finish: T5, 2022
Came into the Masters in doom-and-gloom mode, talking about how he felt he was starting from square one and how his goal for the week was simply to make the cut. Perhaps he was downplaying his chances as a sort of mental trick. Whatever the strategy, it worked. His neck issues are in the rearview mirror and he’s played well in the last month: a top 10 at the Masters and a thrilling victory over Jordan Spieth at the RBC Heritage for his second PGA Tour win. That brought him to a career-high world ranking, and he’s sneakily posted top 10s in three of the last four major championships. Played his way into the final group at last year’s PGA at Southern Hills only to play listless golf on Sunday. Learned from that experience and won his next major start at the U.S. Open, the crowning achievement of his career thus far. He’s a very consistent driver and putter of the ball and, speaking generally, he goes as his iron play goes. When it’s good, he contends. When it’s not, he’s prone to the odd missed cut.
12. Cameron Young
Age: 26 World Ranking: 71 PGA Championship appearances: 1
Best PGA Championship finish: T3, 2022
His dad’s a longtime PGA professional, so winning this one would be special. He might be the most impressive guy to watch on the driving range; his power will stop you in his tracks and he hits the sexiest tight draws. His game is an explosive one, and he makes tons of birdies when he’s firing but the flip side of that is a certain combustibility. He’s played seven majors in his career and has three top-seven finishes to go along with four missed cuts. Outside the top 50 in each of his last two starts has his odds pretty far down there. Still chasing that first win but he’s played 40 total events in his career and has finished in the top three in 20% of those thus far. A sleeper indeed.
11. Tyrrell Hatton
Age: 31 World Ranking: 17 PGA Championship appearances: 8
Best PGA Championship finish: T10, 2018
He’s a singular character in world golf, our version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde—a gentle, kind soul off the course and a borderline lunatic on it. It’s the same comportment whether he’s missing a cut or contending for the lead, and there’s been way more of the latter in recent weeks. The Brit has been tremendous in the designated events this year: T6 in Phoenix, T4 at Bay Hill, solo 2nd at the Players, T19 at the RBC Heritage and, most recently a T3 at the Wells Fargo. He’s gone 12 straight majors without a top-10 finish, however, and mixed into those great finishes is a meh T34 at Augusta, a place he does not enjoy. The question as always is whether he’s up for the mental and emotional grind that is four days at a major championship. That’s the only question, because he’s answered every one about his game. He’s gained ground on the field off the tee in 11 of his last 12 starts, and putting the ball in play is ever crucial on demanding tracks. It’s why he’s played the designates so well. He’s 10th in strokes gained off the tee and eighth in approach for the season.
10. Dustin Johnson
Age: 38 World Ranking: 61 PGA Championship appearances: 13
Best PGA Championship finish: 2, 2019
After a dominant 2022 on the LIV Golf circuit he had a pretty slow start to the season—he admitted that he didn’t play much golf during LIV’s extended offseason, which was surely part of the appeal of joining. Apparently the kinks are out given he dominated en route to his second LIV win at Cedar Ridge in Tulsa, which was in pretty rough condition after rain all week. (Though it didn’t look exactly Augusta-esque to begin with). That doesn’t mean much for next week from an x’s and o’s perspective but you’d rather win a tournament than not win it. Interestingly enough he’s missed the cut in his last two PGA Championship starts, but he also has three top-three finishes in PGAs, including nearly chasing down Brooks Koepka at Bethpage Black. Took T8 at the 2013 PGA at Oak Hill.
9. Justin Thomas
Age: 30 World Ranking: 14 PGA Championship appearances: 7
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2017, 2022
It’s been a pretty frustrating year by his sky-high standards. He’s not missing many cuts or anything (besides from the Masters) but he’s not really giving himself chances to win, and so he’s turning over every possible stone in search of a slight edge. That includes a new dairy-free, gluten-free diet that he’s a few months into and yes, that means no beer at the moment. He peaked up near contention on Sunday at the Wells Fargo only to fall back with a poor last nine holes, and that’s sort of been his year in a nutshell. But there is still so many big tournaments left to win including this one, where he’s the defending champion, and he remains positive and upbeat that the good results are just around the corner. He’ll have to putt better to make that a reality—ranking 132nd on tour in strokes gained isn’t going to cut it.
8. Xander Schauffele
Age: 29 World Ranking: 5 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T10, 2020
He’s a trendy pick going into every major because of his no-nonsense game and calm, steady demeanor. Nothing flusters him, at least outwardly, but surely he’s growing a bit ancy still chasing his first major as he watches so many others from his generation (Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Jon Rahm, Matt Fitzpatrick, Cameron Smith, Scottie Scheffler etc.) knock their first ones off. Finished solo second in his last start at Quail Hollow and has been very steady in the big four in his career, with 10 top-10s in 23 career major starts. He’s been T16 or better in three of the last four PGA Championships. Fourth in strokes gained overall and, speaking to his consistency, comes in off a tour-high 24 consecutive cuts made. Data Golf says he’s the third best player in the world behind only Rahm and Scheffler, wins be damned. All systems are a go.
7. Sungjae Im
Age: 25 World Ranking: 18 PGA Championship appearances: 4
Best PGA Championship finish: T17
Playing his fifth PGA Championship at the age of 25, a testament to just how good he’s been since such a young age. The best part: it really should be his sixth. He couldn’t play last year’s event after he tested positive for COVID-19 during a trip back home to play in a Korean Tour event. He’s finished T21 or better in 11 of his last 13 starts including six top-10s and, most recently, sealing a win in that same Korean Tour event last week with an up-and-down birdie at the last. He’s perhaps a bit underrated as a player because his still-improving English doesn’t allow him to do many interviews, but his peers speak wonders of his game and know what he’s capable of. His two top 10s in majors both came at the Masters.
6. Brooks Koepka
Age: 33 World Ranking: 43 PGA Championship appearances: 10
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2018, 2020
Dare we declare him back? Won his final LIV start before the Masters then held the18- 36- and 54-hole lead before running out of steam and getting leapfrogged by Jon Rahm at Augusta. Shot 12 under for the first two days and four over for the final two. Now, a big part of that was conditions, but he leaked oil as Rahm kicked it into overdrive. Still, That was his 15th finish of T6 or better in a major—fifteen!—and he just missed making a playoff at the LIV event in Singapore. He’s insisted that he’s finally healthy a number of times over the past few years but this one actually feels legit. And when he’s fully healthy, no one has played the majors better. He’s a two-time winner of the PGA Championship with a runner-up to boot and has never missed the cut in 10 career PGA Championship starts.
5. Jason Day
Age: 35 World Ranking: 35 PGA Championship appearances: 13
Best PGA Championship finish: WIN, 2015
He’s having a resurgent year and Data Golf pegged him as the 15th-best player in the world—and that was before he fired a nine-under to win the AT&T Byron Nelson and get his first victory in over five years. Was a very trendy dark-horse pick heading into the Masters on the strength of a really consistent start to the year—he started 2023 with seven consecutive finishes of T-20 or better— and played his way near the lead before unraveling with a 10-over-par weekend. Said he’s improved his diet and finally has his vertigo under control. Would be a shame for him to end his career with “only” one major championship, and he has a terrific record on PGA of America setups with six top-10 finishes in 13 career starts, including a T8 at the 2013 PGA Championship at Oak Hill.
4. Tony Finau
Age: 33 World Ranking: 11 PGA Championship appearances: 8
Best PGA Championship finish: T4, 2020
After years of answering the when will you win again question he’s developed into quite the closer. Won his fifth event in the last 19 months by outdueling Jon Rahm in Mexico. Now that question is when he’ll carry that play over into a major championship. Is that fair? To constantly be moving the goalposts, and do view every accomplishment threw the lens of majorz, which is golf’s version of ringz? Probably not, but that’s the ecosystem we live in. He played the majors beautifully from 2018 through 2021, at one point finishing in the top 10 in 9 of 13 starts, but he’s failed to post a top 10 in seven consecutive major starts. His five recent wins have all come on easier layouts, and Oak Hill is the polar opposite of the Greg Norman-designed resort course at Vidanta in Mexico. But Data Golf has him as a top-five player in the world right now, and top five players in the world can win anywhere. A great chance this week.
3. Scottie Scheffler
Age: 26 World Ranking: 2 PGA Championship appearances: 3
Best PGA Championship finish: T4, 2020
An old soul (and face) steering a young man’s body, he makes being a world-class athlete seem rather straightforward: he keeps things lowkey, doesn’t overthink much, remains grounded in his faith and his family and just keeps on cashing checks. Skipped the Wells Fargo Championship in favor of playing the Byron Nelson last week and hung near the lead through 54 holes, as is his habit these days. He and Rahm have tussled all year for the unofficial Best in the World title, and given the see-saw nature of their budding rivalry it would only make sense for Scottie to answer Jon’s win at Augusta with his second major championship. Statistically he’s the best driver of the ball on tour and leads in greens in regulation, always a key statistic for majors as you want to make as many easy pars and avoid scrambling as much as possible. He and Rahm have been head and shoulders above the rest this year and the odds speak to that dynamic.
2. Jon Rahm
Age: 28 World Ranking: 1 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T4, 2018
The finest player on the planet, his Masters win was a proper reward for years of sustained excellence. Has emerged as the top dog in the game and not just with his play; he’s been a refreshing, unemotional, dispassionate voice of reason throughout these tumultuous last few years. The golf has also, of course, been fucking incredible. He has four wins already this year, three in designated events, and finished solo second in his last start in Mexico before taking a much-deserved break back home in Arizona. He’ll feel refreshed and ready to chase the third leg of the career Grand Slam and yes, we feel comfortable throwing around terms like career Grand Slam for this guy. First in the world rankings, first in the FedEx Cup, first in Data Golf’s rankings, first in birdie average, first in scoring average, first in strokes gained overall, first in par 3 scoring average, first in par 4 scoring average, first in par 5 scoring average. You getting the hint here? His No. 2 ranking here is not me suggesting he’s not the best player in the world, but you simply can’t have him first for every single event. That’d be boring, right?
1. Patrick Cantlay
Age: 31 World Ranking: 4 PGA Championship appearances: 6
Best PGA Championship finish: T3, 2019
This’ll be his first major with Joe LaCava on the bag after the partnership debuted with a T21 at Quail Hollow. He remains sky high in the world rankings and continues to be an ATM in regular PGA Tour events—it’s one of the reasons LaCava left Tiger Woods for the bag—but his major championship record leaves quite a bit to be desired. It wasn’t awful at the Masters, with a T14, but he has just three top-10 finishes in 24 career major starts. He’s not too stressed about it, nor is he bothered by all the slow-play criticism he’s received online, mostly because he’s never online. Hard not to be jealous. And odds are the major championship “struggles,” which are relative, are the byproduct of a small sample size rather than anything systemic. He is as solid as golfers get, hardly ever missing a cut and ranking well above average in all key strokes gained categories. He flies under the radar at majors, which doesn’t hurt the cause, and he’s going to pick one off soon enough. We’ve got a funny feeling it’s this one.