Scottie Scheffler is one of those characters who is easy to like but hard to get overly passionate about.
2025 US PGA Tour
Signature Event
Truist Championship
Wissahickon Course, Philadelphia Cricket Club, Flourtown, Philadelphia
8th-11th May
Scottie Scheffler is one of those characters who is easy to like but hard to get overly passionate about. He is a humble, gentle figure- Louisville police officers notwithstanding- and goes about his business in almost robotic fashion. But you can’t deny his uncanny ability. He was sensational at last week’s CJ Cup, winning his first title of the season by an incredible eight strokes (Van Rooyen finished eight shots behind on 23-under-par!). Scheffler topped virtually every single statistical metric, gaining 12 shots on the field on approach. His approach play- statistically- is comparable to Tiger in his pomp. His victory just adds to the excitement leading into next week’s US PGA Championship, with Rory, Scheffler, JT and Bryson all winning in the last month. Scheffler will be skipping this week’s Signature Event in preparation for next week’s trip to Quail Hollow. But fear not, as Rory McIlroy returns to individual competition for the first time since completing the career Grand Slam.
This week, the tour moves to Philadelphia for the 6th Signature Event of the season: the Truist Championship. Formerly known as the Wells Fargo Championship, the tournament will be sponsored by Truist for the next seven seasons. The Truist Championship was first staged in 2003 and this will be the 22nd renewal (the 2020 edition was cancelled due to the pandemic). But a name change isn’t the only difference this year. The traditional host venue- Quail Hollow- will be hosting next week’s US PGA Championship. That means that the event will be hosted by a new venue this year (the 3rd time that has happened in recent seasons). The 2017 edition was hosted at Eagle Point, with Quail Hollow hosting the US PGA Championship. The 2022 renewal was shepherded off to TPC Potomac, as Quail Hollow took care of President’s Cup duties. This year, the event moves to Philadelphia to accommodate next week’s US PGA Championship (once again hosted at Quail Hollow). The Wissahickon Course at Philadelphia Cricket Club will provide a stern, classical test.
The Wissahickon Course was the brainchild of iconic course designer A.J. Tillinghast (who was a member of the Philadelphia Cricket Club). In fact, Tillinghast so loved his creation that he had his ashes scattered in the nearby Wissahickon Creek. The layout underwent a significant overhaul in 2013 and 2014, with Keith Forster wishing to return the course to something resembling Tillinghast’s original design. This is a relatively short par 70, measuring just a smidge over 7,100 yards. The course is laid to bentgrass and fescue. It is quite wide off the tee, with plenty of inviting, straightaway tee-shots. But that doesn’t mean that what you do off the tee is irrelevant. While you may not find the rough, a poor tee shot will leave you with a difficult angle to approach these well-protected green complexes. This course features a staggering 118 bunkers (the most featured on the tour this season). Many of the greens are raised, meaning there are plenty of cheeky runoff areas to contend with. I think that approach-play and scrambling could be crucial this week. The bentgrass greens are almost a leveller, with nary a straight putt in sight.
Rory is a four-time winner of this event (all four of those coming at Quail Hollow). It will be interesting to see how he responds to this classical test. Is he going to go all out this week, or will this just be a week of last-minute tinkering? Xander Schauffele will be defending his US PGA Championship crown next week and he is starting to find a semblance of his best form (he missed eight weeks of the season due to a rib injury). Justin Thomas should be a threat after winning the last Signature Event at Harbour Town. Collin Morikawa is a sensational iron player who should thrive on this layout. Bentgrass specialist Patrick Cantlay is due a win while the likes of Ludvig Aberg and Tommy Fleetwood lead a strong European supporting cast. Jordan Spieth has been slowly trending in the right direction and could do with a strong showing ahead of the year’s 2nd Major Championship.
Past Winners
2024: Rory McIlroy (-17)
2023: Wyndham Clark (-19)
2022: Max Homa (-8) * TPC Potomac
2021: Rory McIlroy (-10)
2020: event cancelled
2019: Max Homa (-15)
Betting Favourites (To Win): Rory McIlroy (4/1), Collin Morikawa (12/1), Justin Thomas (16/1), Patrick Cantlay (16/1), Xander Schauffele
Value Bets
Daniel Berger- To Win (25/1)
Daniel Berger looks like he could be returning to his best form. He is 6th in the field for SG: tee-to-green over the last three months and is fresh off an excellent T3 finish at the RBC Heritage (his 2nd top-three finish of the season). Berger is a fantastic long-iron player- which should come in handy this week. He ranks 5th on the tour in proximity to the hole from 200-225 yards. I think he just looks like a great bet this week.
Michael Kim- To Win (60/1)
I think that Michael Kim could be one to watch in the place markets this week. He is currently enjoying his career-best season, picking up three top 10’s and a runner-up finish at the Phoenix
Open. He currently ranks 11th on tour for SG: tee-to-green and should be able to plot his way around this difficult setup.
The Man to Beat- Patrick Cantlay- To Win (16/1)
Could this be the week where Patrick Cantlay finally breaks his title drought? The former FedEx Cup champ hasn’t won a title since clinching the 2022 BMW Championship. But he has been trending well in recent weeks, and he looks like a great statistical match for this course. Firstly, five of Cantlay’s seven individual PGA Tour victories have come on Bentgrass greens. He has been dialled-in on approach this year, gaining strokes on approach in his last seven events. He finished 3rd at the US PGA Championship hosted at Bethpage Black in 2019 (another Tillinghast design). He knows how to play difficult courses, ranking 4th in Bogey Avoidance in his last 12 rounds on difficult setups.
