With the U.S. Open, golf`s third major championship of the season, now just one week away, several top players from both the PGA Tour and the LIV Golf League are making their final preparations.
World No. 2 Rory McIlroy is back in action on the PGA Tour at the RBC Canadian Open. Meanwhile, reigning U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau is set to compete in the LIV Golf League tournament in Gainesville, Virginia.
DeChambeau spoke about his goals for the upcoming major, saying, “We`re all aiming for achievements not seen in a while. Winning back-to-back would be fantastic, and three in a row would be even better, so that`s definitely on my mind.”
Upcoming on the PGA Tour
The next event on the PGA Tour schedule is the RBC Canadian Open, taking place from Thursday through Sunday at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley (North Course) in Caledon, Ontario. Robert MacIntyre is the defending champion, and the tournament features a total purse of $9.8 million.
Rory McIlroy Returns
After opting out of last week`s Memorial Tournament, a signature event, McIlroy is teeing it up north of the border. Having won the Canadian Open in 2019 and 2022, he will attempt to join an elite group of just three other players (Tommy Armour, Sam Snead, and Lee Trevino) as a three-time winner of the event.
McIlroy expressed his approval of the PGA Tour`s decision to move the Canadian Open to a date one month earlier in the schedule. He shared his experience, “I honestly love the date change. I love that it’s the week leading into the U.S. Open. Before playing in this event in 2016, 2017, 2018, I missed three cuts in a row at the U.S. Open. Since playing the Canadian Open the week before, I`ve had six top-10s in a row, so there`s something to that.”
Following his career Grand Slam completion with his Masters victory, McIlroy admitted that “grinding on the range for three or four hours every day is maybe a little tougher than it used to be.” He added, “You have this event in your life that you’ve worked towards and it happens, sometimes it’s hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again. I think the last two weeks have been good for me just as a reset, just to sort of figure out where I’m at in my own head, what I want to do, where I want to play. Yeah, reset some goals.”
Scheffler Secures Ryder Cup Spot
Although the Ryder Cup is still over three months away, world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has become the first player to automatically qualify for the U.S. team. The team is set to face the Europeans at Bethpage Black Course in Farmingdale, New York, from September 26-28.
The PGA of America confirmed on Wednesday that Scheffler has accumulated a leading total of 25,918.25 Ryder Cup points, more than double the points of any other golfer (Xander Schauffele is second with 11,905.84). U.S. team captain Keegan Bradley praised Scheffler in a statement, “Scottie continues to prove why he is the No. 1 player in the world, showcasing incredible consistency and dominance week to week. He is the ultimate team player and I have no doubt that he will be ready and motivated come September. I could not be more excited to have him as a member of the U.S. Team.”
The top six eligible players following the BMW Championship on August 17, 2025, will automatically make the squad. Captain Bradley will then select six additional players as captain`s picks.
This will mark Scheffler`s third appearance in the Ryder Cup. He posted a 0-2-2 record during the U.S. team`s 16½-11½ defeat at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club near Rome in 2023. As a rookie in 2021, he went 2-0-1 in the dominant 19-9 victory at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin.
Scheffler commented on representing his country, stating, “Representing the United States at the Ryder Cup has been one of the greatest honors of my career, and I look forward to doing so for a third time this September. I will do whatever it takes to help our team reclaim the Cup and cannot wait to play in front of the passionate New York spectators at Bethpage Black.”
New Professionals Make Their Debut
Three golfers in the RBC Canadian Open field – Luke Clanton, Gordon Sargent, and David Ford – are making their professional debuts this week.
High expectations surround Clanton, a standout from Florida State University. Last year as an amateur, he achieved two runner-up finishes on the PGA Tour, tying for second at both the John Deere Classic and the RSM Classic. He was the first amateur since Jack Nicklaus in 1961 to record three or more top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour in a single season. This year, Clanton also tied for 15th at the Farmers Insurance Open and 18th at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.
“It’s been incredible,” Clanton told reporters in Canada regarding turning pro. “It’s something you dream for always, constantly. To kind of now be here and to call myself a professional is a little bit — honestly, a little bit weird at first because I’ve always been an amateur. It’s amazing. I’m just excited to come out here and compete. It’s not about the money. It’s not about any of the fame. It’s about competing with these guys on tour. It’s something I’ve chased for my whole, entire life, and especially my family.”
Clanton was ranked the No. 1 amateur in the world before turning professional this week. He also received the Ben Hogan Award as the top collegiate golfer after winning four times for FSU this spring.
He is scheduled to play the first two rounds alongside Rory McIlroy and Ludvig Åberg.
On Tuesday, Clanton expressed gratitude towards his parents, Rhonda and David. His mother recently retired after over four decades as a Delta flight attendant, and his father owned two businesses to support his son`s private schooling and golf pursuits. “What they did not just for me, but my two older sisters as well, to get us through everything, it was incredible,” Clanton said. “Again, my mom and dad are two hard-working people, and they’ll never, ever take credit for it, which kind of pisses me off sometimes because they did everything they could.”
Clanton is known for hitting the ball long off the tee (his average drive of 312.4 yards would rank 14th on tour if he qualified) and considers his “strong mentality” one of his best assets.
When asked about potential recruitment from the LIV Golf League, he stated his preference clearly: “I want to play the PGA Tour, pretty simple. I want to play against the best, I want to compete in majors, and that’s it. Simple.”
Gordon Sargent, another notable amateur turning pro, was the 2022 NCAA individual champion as a freshman at Vanderbilt. He was also the low amateur at the 2023 U.S. Open. Sargent had previously secured a PGA Tour card through the PGA Tour University Accelerated pathway in October 2023 but chose to defer turning professional to return to Vanderbilt.
David Ford, who won five times during his past season at North Carolina, earned his PGA Tour card by finishing No. 1 in the PGA Tour University Rankings. He received both the Jack Nicklaus Award and the Fred Haskins Awards this spring.
All three newly professional golfers are guaranteed PGA Tour status through the 2026 season.
Upcoming in the LIV Golf League
The next event in the LIV Golf League is LIV Golf Virginia, taking place from Friday through Sunday at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia. Harold Varner III is the defending champion, and the tournament boasts a total purse of $25 million.
Bryson DeChambeau`s Busy Month
In addition to tying for second place at the PGA Championship, defending U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau has recently been hitting tee shots in various unconventional locations, including Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a mountain range, the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, and the White House.
This represents another typical month for golf`s “content king,” who commands a large following with over 2 million subscribers on his YouTube channel. Regarding his packed schedule, DeChambeau explained, “How do I find time to sleep? I actually sleep quite well. It’s a lot of planning. We prepare, strategize and execute accordingly with these game plans, and when things work based upon other people’s schedules.”
He mentioned riding as a passenger for a couple of 180 mph laps at the famous Indianapolis oval and noted that he now incorporates salt from Utah into his meals following his visit there.
DeChambeau was initially hesitant about hitting golf balls on the back lawn of the White House until President Donald Trump encouraged him to do so. “I never thought I would ever in my life get an opportunity to do it, but the President himself was like, `Just go out there and hit some shots,`” DeChambeau recalled. “I was like, `Okay, yes, sir.` It was quite the experience. It was 105 yards and I hit a few good shots to a couple feet and almost made a few of them, too.”
Despite his off-course activities, the reigning U.S. Open champion maintains that his primary goal remains winning golf tournaments. “Do I want to win every single tournament I show up to? 100 percent,” DeChambeau stated. “I’m never not going to be the hardest competitor out there in my perspective. But it also allowed me to do other things which are meaningful, as well.” He added, “I think creating my YouTube channel was something that I’ve always wanted to do, seeing what MrBeast and Dude Perfect had done in the mid-2010s, and I said, `Why can’t I do that, as well? I think there’s an opportunity to be as influential as I am now, and this was just the beginning. I think there’s a lot more to come.`”
Joaquín Niemann Turning the Corner
Torque GC captain Joaquín Niemann believes he is finally finding his stride after tying for eighth place at the PGA Championship. This marked his first top-10 finish in 24 starts at golf`s four major championships. His 72-hole total of 4-under 143 placed him seven strokes behind winner Scottie Scheffler.
“I didn’t feel like I played my best game,” Niemann commented. “I felt like there was a lot more at the time to play better. I knew I could have a way better result. But I think we can take the positives and go step by step. It’s my first top-10 in a major, so that’s a positive.”
Winning in the LIV Golf League has not been an issue for Niemann, who has claimed five victories since February 2024, including three this season. His success on the circuit, financed by Saudi Arabia`s Public Investment Fund, prompted Phil Mickelson to controversially call him the best golfer in the world.
Mickelson defended his statement, suggesting the strength of the LIV field is often underestimated due to the league`s newness. “I think because LIV is new, they don’t quite realize the field and the strength of the field, and the guys you’re playing against are these best same players repeatedly,” Mickelson said. “Joaco is winning and he is playing every single week Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka and Dustin Johnson and these guys. He’s playing against that same level of competition every single week, and it’s tough to really grasp that and how great that is when it’s new.”
Preparing for Oakmont
Mickelson, Niemann, and other LIV Golf participants feel that this week`s course setup at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, which has hosted four Presidents Cups and the 2024 Solheim Cup, provides an excellent test in preparation for next week`s U.S. Open.
“We have greens that are rolling 14 to 15 on the stimpmeter, just like we will next week,” Mickelson stated. “We have contours, undulations just like we will next week. Short game, touch, chipping around the greens, rough, speed, lag drills and speed and touch on the greens, all of that’s critical here, same thing as next week. It couldn’t be a better spot to get ready.”
The last time the U.S. Open was held at Oakmont in 2016, Dustin Johnson won with a score of 4-under 276. Only four players finished the tournament under par.
“It’s going to be hard,” Niemann predicted. “I know it’s going to be a good challenge. Greens are going to be flying, so I feel like it’s not going to be a lot of 5-footers, 6-footers for birdie. I feel it’s going to be a lot of where you position your golf ball to have an uphill putt maybe, which is going to be easier. They want to win it over par, so at the end of the day it’s not who makes more birdies, I feel like it’s who makes less bogeys and less mistakes.”
Wesley Dunham 
Marcus Blakely