Top Golfers And Trends To Bet On At 2025 Players Championship

The Players Championship 2025 Top Trends And 12 Golfers To Bet

The heart of the PGA Tour schedule from March through May includes multiple majors, Signature Events and the big money $25 million Players Championship. A week ahead of The Players at TPC Sawgrass, the prestigious Arnold Palmer Invitational had a stacked leaderboard of seven major champions battling for a $4 million top prize and a cardigan sweater for winning Arnie’s event. Some of those major winners, top golfers and trends make up the list of golfers to watch and wager on for the 2025 Players Championship.

The biggest names and best golfers on the PGA Tour, including 48 of the top 50 in the world rankings, will tee it up on Pete Dye’s famed TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida—home of PGA Tour headquarters. As The Players Championship celebrates it’s 51st year, here is a list of 10 golfers, stats and profiles with some others to consider as you prepare for the huge watch and wager event. A total of 144 players, represented by 24 countries, will navigate Pete Dye’s hazards and water on 17 holes at the 7,352-yard Par 72 Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass—77 yards longer than recent years. That includes the famed island Par 3 at No. 17.

A total of 144 players, represented by 24 countries, will navigate Pete Dye’s hazards and water on 17 holes at the 7,352-yard Par 72 Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass—77 yards longer than recent years. That includes the famed island Par 3 at No. 17.

“It’s the best field in golf. Period,” Xander Schauffele has said.

The winner of The Players cashes in $4.5 million, and the top five finishers all earn more than $1 million. Nine of the last 11 Players Championship winners are also major champions with only Si Woo Kim (2017) and Rickie Fowler (2015) without a major championship title. An asterisk (*) by a player’s name below indicates major champion.

Leading Favorites To Win The Players Championship

Leading favorites and contenders golf odds from FanDuel Sportsbook refresh periodically and are subject to change, including on props and live betting.

  1. Scottie Scheffler * (+400) — The back-to-back defending champion of The Players Championship will be the favorite again. He was +1000, or 10/1 two years ago and last year +550 pre-tournament odds and much longer into the final round before firing a 64 to finish -20 under par and a 1-stroke win over Xander Schauffele, Wyndham Clark and Bryan Harman. The 28-year-old No. 1 ranked player in the world makes his fifth PLAYERS start and will be tough again if his putter is on point.
  2. Rory McIlroy * (+1100)— The 35-year-old No. 3 player in the world missed the cut in 3 of his last 6 starts at The Players, and finished T19 last year falling back on Sunday with an even par round. McIlroy (-16) did win The Players in 2019 and finished top-12 four straight years from 2012-2016. He’s already won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am this year for his 27th PGA Tour win.
  3. Justin Thomas * (+2200) — Only McIlroy has more PGA Tour wins from this group than 31-year-old Justin Thomas (15), who also won the 2021 Players Championship at 22/1 pre-tournament odds when tournament favorites and now LIV Golfers DJ, DeChambeau and Rham were taking swings on the PGA Tour. His 2021 win win also featured a tournament-record 12-under 132 on the weekend, which was tied by Scheffler and Brian Harman in the 2024 Players Championship. In ten starts, he’s also finished T3 in 2016 and T11 in 2018 but struggled the last two years including a missed cut. Thomas is currently ranked No. 8 in the world, and entered last year’s event No. 22. But he’s playing better and was top-3 of a stacked leaderboard into Round 3 of the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational.
  4. Xander Schauffele * (+2500) – The 31-year-old No. 2 player in the world finished T2 in his debut in 2018, but missed the cut in his next three appearances before finishing T19 in 2023 and T2 last year with a pair of 65’s on his card. Two major titles in 2024 moved him into elite status on Tour, but he’s not in good form recovering from a rib injury. Schauffele made his 2025 debut at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and barely made the cut while shooting 77 and 75 in two tournament rounds.
  5. Collin Morikawa * (+1400) – The 28-year-old leads the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational into the final round and is on top of his game with full confidence and control. He’ll likely move up from his No. 5 world ranking and shoot to top his best finish in The Players, which is T13 in four starts including T45 last year. Morikawa did fire a 7-under-par 65 in Round 1 of the 2023 event.
  6. Hideki Matsuyama * (+3300) — The 33-year-old Japanese star is an 11-time PGA Tour winner after a record-breaking performance and win in The Sentry to tee-off the year. He’s up to No. 6 in the world rankings and was No. 46 in the world at the end of 2023 and No. 20 to start The Players last year, where he finished T6 and was 5th in the 2023 event. He also has two other top-10 in The Players in nine starts.
  7. Ludvig Aberg (+1600) — The 25-year-old Swedish star is on the fast track and No. 4 in the world after winning The Genesis Invitational this year with a powerful performance over Torrey Pines. Aberg finished 8th in his Players Championship debut last year.
  8. Wyndham Clark * (+6000) is No. 7 in the world rankings – exactly where he was entering The Players last year when he finished T2. Clark had a 4-shot lead through 36 holes of last year’s event after firing a pair of 65’s. The 31-year-olds previous best was T27 in 2023 and had missed the cut twice in three other starts. Clark remains the most undervalued player in the betting markets of the top players and often down the list of favorites and top contenders.
  9. Tommy Fleeetwood (+3000) is the opposite and among the leading favorites on the betting board despite zero PGA Tour wins in more than 145 starts. The 34-year-old is No. 10 in the world and risen up the rankings since teaming up with one of golf’s most respected swing coaches in 2023 – Las Vegas/Henderson-based Claude “Butch” Harman, Jr. Fleetwood finished T35 in last year’s Players event, but also has a T5 (2019) and T7 (2018) finish.
  10. Russell Henley (+4000) has a chance to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational Sunday starting 1-shot off the lead of Morikawa. Henley is up to No. 14 in the world, and the 35-year-old is playing his best golf with four top-1o finishes this year. Henley has a pair of top-15 finishes at The Players in 2021 and 2023 and T23 last year.
  11. Shane Lowry * (+4000) held the 36-hole lead at this week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational before shooting 76 Saturday. The 37-year-0ld major winner makes his 10th Players Championship start with a best finish of 8th in 2021, T13 in 2022 and T19 last year after shooting 66 on Sunday.
  12. Brian Harman * (+11000) won the 2023 Open Championship in England, but the 38-year-old little lefty has fallen from No. 10 in the world since that win to No. 37. Still, Harman has four top-10 finishes in The Players since 2015 including T3 in 2021 and then T2 last year after an even par start before shooting 65-64-68 to show his ball-striking-strength.

Others Players To Watch

  • Maverick McNealy (+7500) is up to No. 12 in the world after starting the year at No. 30, and among the biggest movers in the top-20 rankings along with Thomas, Lowry and Sepp Straka (36 to 18). The 29-year-old McNearly finished T9 in the 2024 Players Championship, and he has three top-10 finishes overall in 2025.
  • Sepp Straka (+4500), the 31-year-old Austrian who played college golf at Georgia, won The American Express tournament this year and has four other top-15 finishes in 2025. Straka finished T16 in last year’s Players Championship and T9 in the 2022 event.
  • Patrick Cantlay (+4000) has fallen from No. 7 to No. 13 in the world rankings since last year’s event, and the 32-year-old, 8-time PGA Tour winner and 2021 FedExCup champion has a best finish is T19 (2023) in seven starts at The Players.
  • Jason Day * (+6500) won The Players in 2016 when he reached No. 1 in the world, and the 37-year-old 13-time PGA Tour winner also finished top-5 in 2018 and 2019. Day is currently ranked No. 34 in the world (down from No. 19 to start last year’s event) and finished T35 and T19 the last two years of The Players.
  • Jordan Spieth * (+7000) is a 13-time PGA Tour winner including 3 majors, and also reached No. 1 in the world in 2015. But the 31-year-old has fallen down the rankings to No. 64 after entering last year’s Players at No. 13 in the world. Wrist surgery in summer of 2024 and a big shift and swing change is taking time to adjust, but he does have a pair of top-10 finishes this year. Spieth has missed the cut six times at TPC Sawgrass since finishing T4 at The Players on debut in 2014. His best finish since is T19 in 2023.
  • Viktor Hovland (+7500) finished T3 in the 2023 Players Championship on his way to winning the FedExCup. He reached No. 3 in the world rankings, but the 27-year-old Norwegian has struggled with his game since and is currently No. 13 and without a top-20 finish in four starts this year and he missed the cut at Arnie’s event this week.
  • Si Woo Kim (+6500) has a strong stats profile at TPC Sawgrass and he won The Players Championhip in 2017. The 29-year-old South Korean currently ranked No. 71 in the world also finished T6 last year and T9 in 2021.
  • Max Homa (+27000) has fallend to No. 66 in the world after entering The Players at No. 8 last year. The affable 34-year-old 6-time PGA Tour winner finished T6 (2023) and T13 (2022) in four starts at The Players with a pair of missed cuts.
  • Adam Scott * (+10000) makes his 24th Players Championship start – most in this field. He won the event in 2004. The 44-year-old Australian is ranked No. 24 in the world, and he has a terrific record at TPC Sawgrass that also includes four-straight top-12 finishes from 2016-2019, but no top-30 finishes in his last four appearances.

Others golfers of note and best finishes Top 20 or better at The PLAYERS:

  • Sungjae Im (T6 in 2023), Corey Conners (7th in 2021, T13 2024), Tom Hoge (T3 in 2023), Daniel Berger (T9 in 2021), Justin Rose (T6 in 2023), Sahith Theegala (T9 in 2024), Aaron Rai (T19 in 2023), Matt Fitzpatrick (5th in 2024), Tony Finau (T19 in 2023), Rickie Fowler (Win 2015, T13 in 2023).

Iconic Island Green And Par 3 At Hole No. 17

The PGA Tour headquarters is located just South of the Clubhouse at TPC Sawgrass. It is surrounded by a large freshwater lake, echoing the iconic “Island Green” 17th hole at The Players Stadium Course. Fans will be tuning in to watch the players hit short wedge shots into the famous Par 3.

Types Of Bets And How To Read The Odds

There will be plenty of prop bets offered by the leading online sportsbooks including Will there be a hole-in-one on the 17th hole during the 2025 Players Championship? (Yes, +200). 

Balls in Water on 17th Hole: O/U 54.5 (last year 53.5, and 36 balls were hit into water after 58, 64 and 66 balls ended up in the wager in the 2023, 2022 and 2021 events. In 2007 there were 93 balls hit into the water, including a record 50 in Round 1 alone as stronger winds created chaos. The 2014 tournament saw just 28 balls hit into the water at No. 17).

The Most Watched And Wagered Golf Tournament?

The Players has an international reach on NBC/Golf Channel and digital coverage on ESPN+ and Discovery in more than 200 countries and 27 languages. The Golf Channel and NBC will provide more than 45 hours of live coverage with limited commercial interruptions, and the digital platforms including streaming on Peacock carry golf action for more than 160 hours.

The advance weather forecast shows mid-70s temperatures Thursday-Sunday with higher winds over the weekend up to 20 mph and the best chance of rain Sunday (35%). Recall that in 2022, the golfers battled rainy weather and delays that forced the first Monday finish at The Players in 17 years. Cameron Smith, now on the LIV Golf Tour, won the event. He’s not eligible to play in the 2025 Players Championship, nor is Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson or any other LIV golfers.

Stats And Trends At TPC Sawgrass

TPC Sawgrass is considered a positional and second shot golf course where strong iron players and elite ball-strikers excel. Strong course management and patience is required and players must be precise with their shots and strategic in their approach. The tight Pete Dye design can be tricky with sightlines, and hazards await for players that are not accurate from the tee or precise with their irons and on approach. The quirky greenside bunkers and undulations put an emphasis on scrambling and short game, and the runoff areas around the greens allow players more options and creativity.

Big bombers have no significant advantage. Greens in Regulation (GIR) is essential to success when hitting into many smaller putting surfaces. Evaluating Strokes Gained: Approach and Around the Green stats at TPC Sawgrass can assist you in identifying stronger players, along with elite ball-strikers and some of the notable trends below.

Top Golfers In SG: Approach At TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course

  • Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas, Tom Hoge, Viktor Hovland, Keegan Bradley, Si Woo Kim, Will Zalatoris, Scottie Scheffler, Shane Lowry, Rory McIlroy, Corey Conners, Ludvig Aberg, Erik van Rooyen, Joel Dahman, Max Homa, Tommy Fleetwood, Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, Daniel Berger, Doug Ghim

Top Golfers In Combined Approach And Around The Green At TPC Sawgrass Stadium Course

  • Justin Thomas, Si Woo Kim, Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Joel Dahmen, Erik van Rooyen, Ludvig Aberg, Doug Ghim, Mark Hubbard, Daniel Berger, Matt Kuchar, Rory McIlroy, Chirs Kirk, Ben Griffin

Incorporating all Pete Dye courses with Bermuda greens, the top golfers and trends in total Strokes Gained Total stats and best model fits according to stats from Fantasy National include (min. 24 rounds):

  • Scottie Scheffler, Si Woo Kim, Xander Schauffele, Brian Harman, Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas, Tom Hoge, Tommy Fleetwood, Sepp Straka

Notable Trends

  • 9 of the last 10 winners were of age in their 20’s.
  • The last five winners since the event was moved back to March were ranked top-10 in the world.
  • 9 of the last 11 winners were ranked top 16.
  • 11 of the last 12 winners have had a top 20 finish in their previous two starts ahead of The Players.
  • 9 of the last 11 winners had won a major championship.
  • 11 of the last 12 winners had a top-25 finish in the Players prior to winning (only Scheffler in 2023).
  • 9 of the last 12 winners had posted a top-15 finish in the event.

Check out more golf stats, top golfers and trends with coverage of The Players Championship and weekly PGA Tour events along with how golf courses are leading the way in technology and sustainability. Meanwhile, the top online sportsbooks lead the way in wagering options for PGA picks and plays betting on golf continues to be a most popular watch and wager sport with fans firing for more fairways and green on their favorite golfers.

You can bet on it.

From Forbes, March 9.

 

Author: FairwayJay is a leading national sports betting analyst, writer, handicapper and sports betting insider providing insight and information you can bet on for nearly two decades from Las Vegas. He chips in additional sports betting coverage and reporting on industry news and events for leading media and sports betting sites and companies. Follow him on X (Twitter): @FairwayJay
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