The long summer of golf is fast approaching, and so are many of the world's best with their games in tow. The first four months of the season saw history be made, but rest assured, more is along the way with three major championships and a momentous Ryder Cup still on the docket.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler was caught in a simmer through the early portion of the season, but a return home saw the native Texan boil over and set all types of scoring records en route to victory at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. The win represented his first of 2025 with Rory McIlroy, who did not play, remaining atop the pack amid wins and a completed carer grand slam already this campaign.
McIlroy's memorable Masters title will not be forgotten any time soon, but did the green jacket alone push him past Scheffler atop these power rankings? Slipping on the outerwear in April, McIlroy raised his third trophy of the year, and simultaneously, a weight off his shoulders that had been firmly placed there for north of a decade.
Scheffler and McIlroy will headline the action next week at the PGA Championship -- only Rory is playing this week's signature event, the Truist Championship -- as the top two on the oddsboard by a significant margin. Scheffler (+430) and McIlroy (+480) are battling for favorite status, per FanDuel Sportsbook, though no one should forget about Bryson DeChambeau (+1200) when it comes to ranking the world's best. A winner in Korea on LIV Golf this past weekend, the two-time U.S. Open champion will have something to say at Quail Hollow Club. DeChambeau represents the biggest mover in the rankings following a favorable four-tournament stretch.
The Power 18 provides insight as to how golfers are currently performing with benefit given to their play over recent events. It is a wider lens than simply what happened at the last tournament to be played but more narrow than the Official World Golf Rankings, which take into account how more than 2,000 golfers perform across an entire season.
The Power 18
| 1 | |
| He's still the top player in the game for my money, and his performance in Dallas was just a reminder of what he can do when completely locked in. It wasn't the strongest field or the most difficult golf course at TPC Craig Ranch, but that should not take away anything from Scheffler tying the low 72-hole total in PGA Tour history. He now has four straight top 10s, including that victory, and a solo fourth at the Masters where he had his "C" game. Previous: 1 | |
| 2 | |
| McIlroy may not be No. 1 in the rankings, but he may be No. 1 in the PGA Championship power rankings, if that makes sense. Four times a winner at Quail Hollow Club (unlike Scheffler, who has never seen the golf course in a stroke-play tournament), McIlroy may be on the cusp of going on a run in major championships. He is mentally as sharp as ever, and all aspects of his game are clicking even if the putter is beginning to wane slightly. Previous: 2 | |
| 3 | |
| DeChambeau held the outright lead at the Masters with 16 holes left before his iron play finally got the better of him. His T5 finish at Augusta National represented the second of three straight disappointing Sundays as he went onto finish T2 in Mexico City a couple weeks later after having the tournament in his hands. He made amends this past weekend in Korea and fended off Charles Howell III for the individual crown. DeChambeau has factored on Sunday across five of the last six U.S.-based major championships. Previous: 12 | |
| 4 | |
| I've seen enough and heard enough from the two-time major champion to say he is just about back. Schauffele revealed that he was testing a new driver when he returned from injury, and he has since put his old model in the bag. It paid dividends at the Masters where he finished T8 for his 12th straight major top 20 and fifth straight top 10. A lot is made of McIlroy's form at Quail Hollow, but let's not forget Schauffele has finished runner up at the venue the last two years. Previous: 5 | |
| 5 | |
| The major finishes bolster Åberg's rise inside the top five as the rest has been somewhat bleak. The Swede applied pressure late at the Masters before a bogey, triple bogey finish dropped him to a solo 7th finish. He will be in the mix at any golf course which requires a heavy dose of drivers off the tee, which Quail Hollow certainly does. Åberg missed the cut in his PGA Championship debut last season, but he did not arrive 100% healthy as he was nursing a knee injury. Previous: 7 | |
| 6 | |
| Rahm's run of top-10 finishes on LIV Golf is both insanely impressive and somewhat depressing. He isn't a golfer who gets to be judged on top-10 finishes on a 54-hole circuit. He's too good for that! Instead, the two-time major champion is judged on what he does on the major stage, and although he finished T14 at the Masters, he was an afterthought after an opening 75. I think he's close, but the iron play needs to improve. Previous: 4 | |
| 7 | |
| Thomas won the RBC Heritage and drops in the rankings. How does that happen? Well, mainly because his major form continues to lack. Outside his top 10 in last year's PGA Championship, Thomas has five missed cuts with five finishes outside the top 30 in his last 10 majors, including a T36 at the Masters. His putting has improved drastically, and his short game remains stellar, but his driver is a question mark -- a big one. Previous: 6 | |
| 8 | |
| He's searching on the greens, and I am not entirely sure why. Morikawa putted beautifully through the first three months of the season, yet he has since tinkered with his setup and putter leading to four straight tournaments of bleeding strokes on the greens. His chipping and pitching has not helped and was the reason for his T14 finish at the Masters and disappointing weekend in Hilton Head. The good news is the ball striking remains elite. Previous: 3 | |
| 9 | |
| Niemann has three wins in his last seven starts as he usurped DeChambeau in the final round at LIV Golf Mexico City. This followed up a Masters performance, which many were interested in until they weren't as some early noise was silenced en route to a T29 result. The talented Chilean will find the top 15 in a major eventually, and perhaps that will come as soon as next week as Quail Hollow. Previous: 9 | |
| 10 | |
| Henley experienced a brutal two days on the greens at the Masters where he missed the cut but bounced back with a top-10 finish at the RBC Heritage. He now has five such results in nine starts this season as his consistency continues to power through. If it is firm and fast, Henley can contend. Previous: 8 | |
| 11 | |
| There are understandably going to be some eyebrow raises here. Perhaps I am generally higher on Reed than most, but this spot is warranted. The former Masters champion now has four top-10 finishes around the world in his last five starts, including a solo 3rd at Augusta National. He's a grinder, and he's going to be under consideration for the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Accept it now. He needs to be at Bethpage, and he may do it on his own as he finished runner up in the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow. Previous: NR | |
| 12 | |
| The RBC Heritage felt like a perfect place for him to finally breakthrough on the PGA Tour, but it was not meant to be. Instead, the Englishman captured for a top-10 result which was surprisingly only his second of the season. In his seven other starts, he has six top 25s. A recent putter switch may be cause for excitement. Previous: 15 | |
| 13 | |
| Hatton had the lead at one stage of the Masters, but he ultimately settled for a T14 finish due to some frustration boiling over on the greens. The Englishman has since followed it up with a T5 in Mexico and T13 in Korea. He seems to have come out of the other side of a bad patch of driving which will be crucial to his major aspirations. Previous: 11 | |
| 14 | |
| No idea what to do with this guy. Cantlay put on a ball-striking clinic at Harbour Town but couldn't find his pace on the greens and finished T13. He is the pick for the Truist Championship as he is historically comfortable on bent grass greens, but as for the PGA Championship? My guess is he'll be right back on the second page of the leaderboard. Previous: 16 | |
| 15 | |
| Before a bad start at the RBC Heritage, Conners rattled off six straight top 25s including a T8 at the Masters. He entered the final round at Augusta National as the closest pursuer to McIlroy and DeChambeau but faltered early and often to fall out of contention. Great ball striker. Great bet for a top-20 finish. Previous: 17 | |
| 16 | |
| His Masters result is beyond misleading. The Irishman was paired with Scheffler in the final round and ahead of Justin Rose on the golf course but finished T42 thanks to a Sunday 81. Ouch! Take away that result and he has six straight top-20 finishes. After a run of red-hot approach play, he has cooled a little bit in that area. Previous: 14 | |
| 17 | |
| He's been out of sight and out of mind since his win at The Sentry the first week of the season. The man from Japan finished T21 at the Masters where he ranked second behind McIlroy in terms of iron play. Unfortunately, the putting problems have been placed back in the bag as he has lost strokes on the greens in five of his last six tournaments. Previous: 10 | |
| 18 | |
| The former top-15 player in the world is looking more and more like it by the week. Berger has not finished outside the top 30 since January and notched a T3 finish at Harbour Town which could have been even better had he experienced a decent week on the greens. He was No. 621 in the world this time last year. He's now No. 27. Previous: NR | |
