The world is still reeling from the impacts of Rory McIlroy winning the Masters and joining the golfing greats by becoming only the sixth man in history, and last since Tiger Woods to win the career Grand Slam.
We are now well into the heart of the season and the great news for golf fans all around the world is that the PGA Championship is now just a few weeks away and the betting markets are already open.
Although the odds are still likely to change, here is an early look as to how the betting currently looks.
Two titans of the game sit atop of the betting
For the first time in what seems like an eternity, Scottie Scheffler has company at the top of the betting with Scheffler tied alongside Rory McIlroy.
Moving forward into the year’s three remaining majors, McIlroy is without doubt the most interesting storyline to follow.
For well over ten years the Northern Irishman has rocked up to the majors with questions to face as to when he will end his major drought and finally get his hands on that elusive fifth major. Now he heads to Quail Hollow, with those questions answered and the career Grand Slam in his back pocket. The prospect of McIlroy now being completely free is incredibly exciting and with the record he has at Quail Hollow it’s hard not to think he has a great chance of winning a second major in succession.
If there is a course made for McIlroy it looks to be Quail Hollow. A winner at the course on four separate occasions, he also holds the course's scoring record and if in the mood will likely start as the man to beat.
To show how dominant he has been this season his stats make for pretty reading.
Leading the way when it comes to strokes gained in total, he has been the second most efficient player from tee to green and fewer have been more prolific with a driver in their hands.
His Masters win has ensured his legacy is already firmly intact, he looks to have a great chance of building on that future at the 2025 PGA Championship.
Scottie Scheffler isn’t used to playing second fiddle, but after seeing McIlroy win at Pebble Beach, the Players and now Augusta, the world number one’s superb 2024 is in danger of being overshadowed.
Since making his seasonal debut at Pebble Beach, Scheffler has shown he is no slouch and has three top fives in his seven starts to date, but the wins have yet to come. Scheffler only deals in wins.
With McIlroy now shorn of the pressure, the pressure is now firmly back on Scheffler as he is still yet to win a major away from the comfy confines of Augusta.
The one question he needs to answer is on the greens. Having changed to switch his grip back to a claw, he doesn’t seem to have the same level of fluency and the putts just haven’t dropped.
The stats indicate how much he is struggling to find his way and if his putting doesn’t improve he could be on for a long season. At the moment it is McIlroy who has the advantage, Scheffler will hope he can respond at the first time of asking at the PGA Championship.
Beware the wounded DeChambeau and Aberg will hope he bounces back
The narrative heading into the final round of the Masters was how it would be a rematch between Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau.
The two memorably locked horns in the U.S. Open and it was the LIV man who emerged with the victory, at the Masters it was McIlroy’s turn to reign supreme.
Despite having worked his way into contention at Augusta he found himself unable to handle pressure and despite finishing in a tie for 5th he was barely a footnote on a day of drama.
There is a growing narrative that those playing on the LIV Tour are struggling when it comes to the majors, and with Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm not really featuring in any of the last five majors, there is an argument that argument holds weight. DeChambeau has been the exception.
The winner of the U.S. Open he was also the runner up at this event twelve months ago, and like McIlroy, Quail Hollow should really suit his eye.
He should overpower the course and if he can get his approach play right a third major could well be in the offing.
One man who looks destined to win multiple majors is Ludvig Aberg. The young Swede has risen to the top of the game in record time and had it not been for a disaster on the 18th green in his final round at the Masters, he would have finished much closer to the leaders.
With a swing as pure as silk and a temperament that never seems to get flustered, Aberg has all of the ingredients to regularly compete for and land the game’s biggest prizes.
It’s easy to forget how inexperienced he still is when it comes to playing in the majors, and he is still well short of playing ten majors in total. However, he has now competed at the top end of the leaderboards on a few instances now and should once again give his running at the PGA on a course that should suit.
Rahm and Koepka need to help switch the LIV narrative
Although nobody can deny that the action on LIV still produces some top quality, at the Masters there was a worrying trend of some of their best players not featuring once again. At the moment it is only Bryson DeChambeau who is flying the flag for LIV and there are starting to be question marks over the performances of Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm.
Koepka has tasted Major success since joining the LIV ranks with the American landing the fifth major of his career at the 2023 PGA Championship, but since then he is yet to crack the top ten of any subsequent major and he would miss the cut at Augusta.
Considering how Koepka lives and breathes for the majors, the fact he hasn’t featured of late will be concerning and he will hope to remind everyone of his qualities by the time this year’s PGA Championship rolls around.
For Jon Rahm it’s been a familiar story of frustration. Having reached the pinnacle by landing a second major title at Augusta, the Spaniard then moved to LIV for a reported $400 million and is still looking for his first major since his move.
A late surge saw him move into a fifteenth place finish at the 2025 Masters but his only top ten came at the Open where he was able to finish seventh.
Rahm has been a model of consistency over on the LIV Tour but hasn’t quite been able to piece it together at the majors. Everybody wants to see Rahm back to his best but in order for people to not doubt his move to the Saudi funded organisation he will need to rediscover his best game quickly. He will hope it fires at Quail Hollow.
Jack Hartman
A keen golfer and huge fan of the game, Jack has been covering golf for the last five years. Bringing you all the latest coverage and news from the PGA, LIV, LPGA and DP World Tours, never before has golf been so popular and Jack can’t wait to bring all the excitement to his readers.
