25 burning questions for the 2025 golf season

We have questions. 2025 will have answers. Here we go: 25 questions for 2025 in golf. And just for fun, let’s do it without using the word “union” at any point…

INJURY DIVISION

1. Can preparing Christmas dinner do what an overzealous police officer and every golfer in the world couldn’t?

In other words: It is THIS what stops scottie scheffler? After a year where Scheffler became a father, got arrested and won nine times, including the Players, the Masters, the FedEx Cup and the Olympic Golden, is one kitchen accident enough to derail this runaway train? Maybe not. But a golfer’s hands are his livelihood, and the fact that Scheffler is starting 2025 with surgery to remove glass fragments it’s … not great.

2. In which direction is Viktor Hovland headed?

And I don’t mean just in which direction his toe is pointing – although this is a good place to start. For the second straight season, Hovland arrives at the first tournament of the year having just split with instructor Joe Mayo. Last year was mostly disappointing; he retreated in his short game, managed just two top-10s and took four months this offseason to get better and get healthy. That offseason ended with a broken finger and a new training plan. Is this a bad omen or just what Hovland needs?

3. Did Jordan Spieth fix… everything?

Sometimes wrist surgery is more than wrist surgery. Spieth Nation hopes so. We haven’t seen Spieth since he bowed out in the second round of the FedEx Cup Playoffs in August — but maybe that’s the intermission before a massive Spiethian second act.

4. What’s next for Ludvig Aberg?

He missed time this fall after a knee procedure, but looked strong in his two starts at RSM and the Hero World Challenge. The Swedish star is now number 5 in the world; what does the next step look like?

5. How much will Tiger Woods play?

We saw Tiger Woods along with his son Charlie at the PNC Championship, of course, but he urged caution. Will we see him in Genesis? In Masters? In every TGL match? What will he look like when we?

LEADERSHIP DIVISION

6. Who will be the new CEO of the PGA Tour?

Not just in name, but in philosophy – who will Monahan and Co. hire? to push the PGA Tour forward? And what does (gestures across the landscape) all this mean for Monahan?

7. Who will be the new commissioner of the LPGA Tour?

Not just in name, but in philosophy – how will Mollie Marcoux Samaan’s successor generate significant buzz for the league as it enters its 75th year?

8. Who will be the new commissioner of LIV?

With Greg Norman on the way out — or at least in a different role — can his successor take Norman’s passion for the league and marry it with a more conciliatory chapter for LIV’s future?

9. How will DP World Tour Commissioner Guy Kinnings steer the ship?

I thought it was interesting this fall when Kinnings said, of DPWT, “we really are the global tour.” LIV has requested that position. The PGA Tour obviously has tournaments all over the world, too. Does Kinnings lean more heavily on the strategic alliance with the Tour or does it decide to welcome LIV stars to bolster its biggest events?

10. What will we see from the new head of the R&A?

That would be Mark Darbon, the successor to Martin Slumbers. The R&A boss always feels like an important compass for the game; this is worth reading Slumbers exit interview with John Huggan to understand the position and where Darbon will sit in relation to the challenges of the game.

CHAMPIONS MAIN DIVISION

11. What will the continuation of Lydia Ko’s tale look like?

The gold medal of Ko-St. The Andrews-Hall-of-Fame combination made 2024 tough to beat. What about 2025?

12. Can Xander Schauffele complete the career grand slam?

Okay, maybe we’re moving on. Maybe winning the Masters and the US Open this year won’t happen. But what if it happened?! We unpacked it in this week’s Bold Predictions episode of Drop Zone, which you can find here:

13. How good can Nelly Korda get?

This year she claimed one major championship and six wins in a seven-tournament stretch — and it still felt like a freak year thanks to some high-profile missed cuts, a dog bite injury, you name it. Korda may not win five in a row again, but somehow there is still room for improvement in 2025.

14. Bryson?

Bryson DeChambeau’s continued popularity off the course is challenging established truths about what it means to be a professional athlete, things like: do you think more people know about DeChambeau’s quest at home or his victory in US Open? But the fact that he can do both in 2024 is a testament to his continued growth. I don’t even know what question to ask here, so let’s see what DeChambeau does next.

15. How good will Royal Portrush be?

It’s the major championship I’m most excited about: I’m a stickler for Northern Ireland, for Irish lore in general, for Shane Lowry’s return, five years later, for Rory McIlroy to re-enter the emotional pressure cooker. We can’t wait.

RIDER CUP DIVISION

16. Will Keegan Bradley make his Ryder Cup team?

I hope so. To Keegan and to the chaos of it all.

17. How many LIV pros will make the Ryder Cup team?

There was only one LIV golfer in the 2023 Ryder Cup – American Brooks Koepka. This time there will be more. Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton have left for LIV on the European side and others namely Bryson DeChambeau (and Sergio Garcia?!) will be under serious consideration.

18. Will the American wage become a cry?

The increase in the salary of the American side has been a source of endless debate; Will the European team and their traveling fan base use it to their advantage?

19. What will the fans be like, anyway?

Much was made of Bethpage’s $750 ticket price and how it will value regular fans. But it’s also made a lot of the unruly atmosphere we’re sure to find on Long Island. Can both be true? Maybe the fans will be a lot more unruly because they paid so much to be there? A safe prediction: delightful madness, with at least one or two incidents that cross the line.

20. Can Europeans steal another?

Each party has effectively maintained service; The Americans have now won two straight at home, while the Europeans haven’t lost at home since 1993. Can Luke Donald lead his team into hostile territory and come away with a win?

MISCELLANEOUS DIVISION

21. How much of Lexi Thompson will we see?

Her retirement was one of the biggest stories of 2024. But she also shied away from the word “retirement” at times — and finished the year playing some pretty good golf. Where will we see Lex next? What will she do when we do?

22. What’s the story with LIV’s Fox Sports deal?

That is, where, when and how will we watch LIV? Getting a big TV deal is huge for the league’s potential exposure and could be an antidote to its low ratings. But I’m curious how the media rights were evaluated and how the product will be broadcast – how much FS1 we’re getting vs. Fox, whether the international events will be live vs. tape delayed, etc. LIV ratings remain an important subplot as various power brokers decide the future of golf.

23. Will TGL work?

Color me intrigued. I think this could be wickedly fun and legitimately different; it’s going to be fast, the tech looks pretty cool and there’s a lot of star power involved – but there’s also a world where it’s something of a disaster. A directly related question: Will players buy in to the end?

24. Can Rory… know…

…get a degree? McIlroy will have four more chances to end his ten-year drought. While it’s hard to imagine him getting any closer than he did at Pinehurst this year, it’s also hard to imagine how good he’d feel if he crossed the line.

25. Can golf continue to grow?

I don’t want to say that in the impressive movement of the growth of the game you hear very often from many people. But more people have played golf. More people think and talk positively about the game. There are more options and more different ways to participate than ever. Have we peaked as a sport – or is this just the beginning?

Bonus question: Who will be the next guest on Warming Up?

Shameless Plug Time; I want you to check out the following interview with Xander Schauffele, if you’re into that sort of thing. And then I want you to stay for the next one coming up in January. I appreciate you all.

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