Who can win the 2025 PGA Championship? Money is on Rory McIlroy at the moment, who might as well call Quail Hollow his home. The Irishman has won the Wells Fargo Championship four times on that very course. Next in line would probably be Scottie Scheffler. Finally breaking his winless streak by capturing the 2025 CJ Cup Byron Nelson must have given him a much-needed boost. He also has a point to prove this year after dominating the PGA Tour all through 2024. Then there is Bryson DeChambeau, who has a chip on his shoulder, having faced a lot of criticism after a final-day blunder at Augusta.
While the big names are obvious favorites to win the second major of the season, who are the players who can pull off a surprise in the 2025 PGA Championship? Let’s look at the 5 possible dark horses who can lift the Wanamaker Trophy on May 18, 2025.
Underdogs at the 2025 PGA Championship
Jordan Spieth
Being the quality of player that he is, Jordan Spieth will always be in contention for another major win. However, he is not the same man who nearly pulled off a season Grand Slam in 2015. Spieth has been far from his peak for many years now. He hasn’t even won on the PGA Tour since 2022. But the kind of stroke play he has displayed in 2025 makes everyone believe that he can finally break the shackles.
Apart from ending the dry spell, Jordan Spieth’s biggest driving force at Quail Hollow will also be finally becoming a Grand Slam champion himself. The PGA Championship is the only major he hasn’t won. He will be eager to overcome that challenge in the coming days.
Sepp Straka
Sepp Straka has been one of the most consistent golfers in 2025. He won the American Express back in January and followed that up with a T7 finish at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The Austrian also got close to the top of the leaderboard at the Arnold Palmer Invitational this season. He finished at T5, four strokes away from first place.
Five other top 15 finishes, and we can say that the 32-year-old has had an outstanding year so far. He is also competing for the 2025 Truist Championship. Considering his form, it won’t come as a surprise if Sepp Straka ends up at the top of the leaderboard fighting for the Wanamaker Trophy next weekend.
Russell Henley
What a season Russell Henley is having. Five of the eight cuts he has made have seen him finish in the top 10 of the leaderboard. That includes a nail-biting win over Collin Morikawa in the 2025 Arnold Palmer Invitational. The only time Henley has underperformed this year was at Augusta National. But the 36-year-old has been in prolific form in every other event. What’s more? He also finished in 10th place in his last appearance at Quail Hollow in 2024, the Wells Fargo Championship. Sitting in sixth place in the FedEx Cup standings for the season, Russell Henley is capable of pulling off a shocker at Quail Hollow just like he did at the Bay Hill Golf Course. It won’t be a bad bet to put some money on the Georgia local.
Sungjae Im
Sungjae Im had a splendid time on the course recently as he spent all four rounds of the 2025 CJ Cup Byron Nelson grouped with his friend, Jordan Spieth. While the duo ended 29 places away from each other in the end, the pro golfer was definitely exciting to watch at TPC Craig Ranch. Overall, Im having a great season with three top 10 finishes in 10 cuts. One of them was in the 2025 Masters Tournament, where the South Korean tied with tournament favorite Bryson DeChambeau in fifth place. That was certainly a shocker, considering the LIV Golf pro was actively competing with Rory McIlroy for the win until the very last round. However, he has been going through a dry spell on the PGA Tour since 2021. But it won’t come as a surprise if he breaks it and rewards his great performances with a win at Quail Hollow.
Thomas Detry
Thomas Detry grabbed the first win of his career at TPC Scottsdale in February. After 9 years since turning pro, he finally achieved the dream he had been yearning for since he was a kid. An emotional Detry had confessed how he had to work hard to reach his goal, as he lacked the natural talent of players like Ludvig Aberg. But he has reached the pinnacle of that stage of his life and is only aiming to rise higher now. Despite a wayward run that has only seen him with another top 10 finish, the Belgian golfer has still managed to keep pace with a lot of his peers. He is ranked higher than Ben Griffin, Min Woo Lee, and Viktor Hovland on the FedEx Cup leaderboard. The 32-year-old has been consistently performing well against the best fields. With the first win jitters gone, Thomas Detry would also be more confident to pull off the second win and first major of her career at Quail Hollow.
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