2025 may go down in history as the year of Raleigh’s big wins around the world, including an unforgettable final round at Augusta National. Still, we’ll enter 2025 with little question as to who is the best player in the world, but that inevitability remains whenever Scottie Scheffler is on the field.
I may be suffering from Scheffler Confusion Syndrome, which has side effects such as a reluctance to take outright no-name bets whenever Scheffler is on the field, but sportsbooks are adapting to help SDS sufferers like me.
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“No Schaeffler” markets will become more common in 2025. While some could argue that by betting on this market we are leaving expectations on the table and introducing more volatility into the fray (dead heat rule!), we are at least grateful that it is now an option at various sportsbooks.
One of the better options for your bankroll and peace of mind is to target finishing position bets and other props, rather than allocating your weekly budget only to outright winners. There’s nothing better than a Sunday sweat, but if year-end profitability is one of your goals, it’s not a sustainable way to approach golf betting.
Related: Best golf gambling games explained
Also, you don’t have to place all your bets before the tournament starts. Live leaderboards are available at Betsperts Golf. In addition to your score, you’ll also see all the underlying performance metrics that determine the score you see while watching the broadcast. Leaderboard data will help you make informed decisions before placing live finishing position bets, round-by-round matchups, or 3-ball bets. Don’t fly blind.
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With that in mind, here are some names to target in these markets early on in the 2026 season. Perhaps, and I’m not kidding, it also includes some full names.
marco money
2246487499
david cannon
PGA Tour spectators got their first real look at Marco Penzi at Renaissance Club in July. There he battled against strong contenders and finished T-2 with Rory McIlroy, two strokes behind eventual winner Chris Gottelup.
Penge is a three-time winner on the DP World Tour in 2025 and has a skill set built to compete in a standard PGA Tour setup. Penji is an elite ball striker with world class ball speed off the tee. His average tee shot distance in 2025 is 319 yards, which puts him in a very small tier alongside the McIlroys, Potgieters and DeChambeaus of the world. Penji wants to continue on the DP World Tour, but says he will do everything in his power to qualify for all signature events in 2026. And we think his game will lead to success in the US
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Max Homa
2234874255
Jed Jacobson
I was encouraged by what I saw from Max Homa’s recent match. Homa’s erratic ball-striking numbers have been at the heart of his recent struggles, but the trend is on track heading into 2026. In 2022 and 2023, the average number of ball strikes per round was +0.81 strokes, but in 2024 and 2025 it was a full stroke less. Over the past 24 rounds, Homa’s stroke rate has increased to +0.85. He is highly capable of hitting the ball, and the calendar is primed for him to bring positive momentum to the heart of the 2026 season.
Dating back to the 2020 American Express, Homa played in 38 tournaments in the West. He finished inside the top 20 in 19 of those starts, including wins at Torrey Pines and Riviera. He also turned heads at two other Western venues earlier in the season, Pebble Beach and TPC Scottsdale. I expect Max to threaten the top of the leaderboard once or twice before heading to Florida in late February.
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aldrich potgieter
2229084303
andy lyons
It’s been far from smooth week-to-week, but Aldrich Potgieter’s ceiling can’t be ignored. The current PGA Tour rotation is full of tracks that quickly become competitive with ball speeds over 190 MPH. The player, who recently turned 21, needs to play more consistently once he puts the headcover back on his driver. Still, he’s tasted Sunday Smoke many times before, and he overcame the ordeal in Detroit in June.
The 2025 Arnold Palmer Award winner was the only rookie to qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs last year. Once you are selected for the Aon Next 10, you will be eligible to compete in the Signature Event early in the season, but you will also need to compete in other non-Signature events to improve your ranking.
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Related: Rory McIlroy says LIV Golf players have ‘paid their responsibility’ and would welcome Bryson DeChambeau back to the PGA Tour
michael brennan
2247821762
mike mulholland
After knocking on the PGA Tour America’s door all season, the Wake Forest graduate finally broke through with a win at the BioSteel Championship in August. And he wasn’t finished yet. He won two of his next three starts and earned a sponsorship exemption to Fall Swing’s Bank of Utah Championship after finishing T-5 or better in his next two starts. We knew it would be skill to win and close out on Sunday. The moment was no big deal for the 23-year-old, who won by four shots over the weekend with a score of 64-66.
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Brennan’s victory allowed him to avoid the Korn Ferry Tour, earning him a PGA Tour card and a two-year exemption. Like the other young players on this list, Brennan can also move the ball off the tee without sacrificing too much accuracy. I believe there’s something to be said for putting yourself in competition as many times as Brennan did in Black Desert, especially when you succeed in a close race. If he ends up playing on a Sunday in January or February, that moment will come.
Michael Thorbjornsen
2247946940
mike mulholland
The No. 1 player in the PGA Tour college class of 2024 continues to show why so many (myself included) are so bullish about his future as a professional. His game beliefs pay dividends. He is an elite ball striker and one of the best players on tour in total driving, a measure of distance and accuracy off the tee. He is also an exceptionally strong long iron player, a skill set needed at the tour’s toughest and longest venues, including most major championships.
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The experience and close calls of the past 18 months as a tour pro will no doubt serve him well in 2026. Late Sunday tee times are character-building, and Thorbjornsen got to experience it a few times in 2025. With an experienced caddy like JJ Jakovac now in the bag, I’m hopeful that Michael Thorbjornsen can win at least one game and potentially make the Presidents Cup in 2026.
Cameron Young
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Jared C. Tilton
If Cameron Young hadn’t finally gotten over the hump at the Windham Championship in August, perhaps he would have continued to dazzle us with his immense talent from time to time. But he certainly wouldn’t have been the first or last golfer with elite tools to fail to reach the top of the mountain.
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but.
Now that he has the proverbial monkey off his back, in 2026 the sky is the limit.
Young arrived on the PGA Tour as a rookie and hit the ground running. He could hit bombs and sink putts. The next few seasons he really lost his way on the greens, dropping an average of over 0.20 strokes per round in 2023 and 2024. A big factor in Young’s turnaround in 2025 was his putter, which helped him gain an average of 0.56 strokes per round, leading to a career-high eight top-10 finishes on the season. Following his win at Sedgefield, he started all three games in the FedExCup Playoffs and had a great performance, as well as a strong performance at the Ryder Cup, and expectations are higher than ever for 2026.
robert mcintyre
2250808266
david cannon
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We continue to see more consistent top-level golf from Robert McIntyre, and his stellar play this fall has many excited for his early season start on the PGA Tour in 2026. He will likely start 2026 at the Dubai Desert Classic, but will likely make some noise at the tail end of Q1.
The two-time PGA Tour winner won the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship in October by four strokes, shooting a 66 on all three courses in the tournament. The southpaw’s approach game was more consistent in 2025, sacrificing a bit of ball speed off the tee to keep the ball in play more, and that worked out well for him. With strong performances at Bay Hill (T-11), Sawgrass (9th), and two majors, the U.S. Open (2nd) and British Open Championship (T-7), McIntyre’s ability to compete against elite competition is encouraging. He also had a great fight at Caves Valley, but fell short to Scotty Scheffler in the 50-man BMW Championship.
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sam burns
2249987613
Jared C. Tilton
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Sam Burns played his best golf in 2025 against a strong field. He seemed to be back on track in the summer of 2024, but that carried over into 2025, although he was never able to find the winner’s circle again.
Burns has more stripes than many other elite golfers on the PGA Tour. He wasn’t able to replicate his 2021 approach numbers, but when you’re the best putter on the PGA Tour, it can hide a lot of the things that bother you. Burns was basically an average PGA Tour golfer in 2025, with 0.01 more strokes from tee to green, but +0.89 more strokes per round on the green around the field, so he averaged 0.9 more strokes per round on the field.
Over the past three years, Burns ranks eighth on tour (playing a minimum of 16 rounds) with +1.38 strokes gained per round during the California/Scottsdale swing.
matt fitzpatrick
2246922811
andrew reddington
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From June 2024 to this year’s PGA Championship (May 2025), Matt Fitzpatrick started 21 games around the world. He only finished T-20 or higher once (2024 FedEx St. Jude, T-18). He seemed lost. His short game gave up on him. His hitting was inconsistent. He didn’t have the skills to succeed that would get him through each round. But he’s clearly turning a corner and seems ready for a big 2026.
Fitzpatrick has started 16 games since the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow (a T-8 finish) and finished in the top 10 in nine of those 16 games, including a playoff win over Rory McIlroy at the DP World Tour Championship last November. Fitzpatrick’s approach play was great and his short game was perfect. We may not see him until the WM Phoenix Open in February, but we have high hopes for the 2022 U.S. Open champion in 2026.
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ryan noonan He is a sports betting manager for 4for4 and Betsperts Golf, where he writes articles and hosts several shows under the Betsperts Group, including Move The Line and Betsperts Golf Betting Show. Find him on Twitter @RyNoonan. Follow him on Twitter @RyNoonan.
