Three weeks after Rory McIlroy`s historic Masters win captured the golf world`s attention, the PGA Tour has already arrived at the halfway mark of its 2025 FedEx Cup season.
The tour begins its second half this week with the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, starting Thursday at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas.
Although injuries affected world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele, the first half of the season saw numerous surprises and new winners, including two pairings at last week`s Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
The good news is that the remaining 17 tournaments include three more major championships, culminating in what is expected to be a memorable Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black Course in Farmingdale, New York, from September 26-28.
Here`s a review of the first half of the 2025 PGA Tour season:
Midseason Player of the Year
Rory McIlroy stands out as the clear choice. He not only became the sixth player in the Masters era to achieve the career Grand Slam by winning the green jacket at Augusta National, but he also secured victories in strong fields at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am on February 2 and The Players on April 13.
McIlroy leads the tour with a scoring average of 69.2 and holds a nearly half-stroke advantage in strokes gained: total (2.319). His 2,463 points give him a lead of almost 800 points in the FedEx Cup standings.
The five-time major champion could be just hitting his stride, especially considering his impressive record at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte, North Carolina, the venue for the PGA Championship from May 15-18. He has won the Wells Fargo Championship there four times and holds course records of 61 and 62. Later, he will return home to Northern Ireland for The Open Championship at Royal Portrush from July 17-20.
“Going back to Portrush will be incredible,” said Shane Lowry, the 2019 Open champion there. “With Rory returning as the Masters champion, it will take a little pressure off me, which I`m quite happy about. It`s going to be a fantastic tournament.”
Others considered: Justin Thomas, Scottie Scheffler, Russell Henley, Ludvig Åberg
Midseason Rookie of the Year
Karl Vilips, who moved to the U.S. at age 11, claimed his first PGA Tour win at the Puerto Rico Open on March 9, winning by three strokes in just his fourth start. The former Stanford standout set a new 72-hole scoring record of 26-under 262 at Grand Reserve Golf Club in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, beginning with a 6-under 66 and finishing with an 8-under 64.
“This is a dream come true for me and my dad,” Vilips commented. “We`ve been working towards this for a long time. This is what we dreamed of when I was a kid. It feels pretty surreal.”
Due to a bulging disc in his back, Vilips started the season late but quickly found success. Following three consecutive missed cuts and a tie for 54th at the RBC Heritage, Vilips paired with Michael Thorbjornsen to secure a tie for fourth at last week`s Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
The 23-year-old Vilips became the first ambassador for Tiger Woods` Sun Day Red apparel line in February. As the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Rookie of the Year, he idolized Woods growing up in Australia.
“He`s the reason I got into this sport, the one who motivated me to be who I am today,” Vilips stated. “The mindset he applied to everything he did.”
Others considered: Aldrich Potgieter, Rasmus Højgaard, Isaiah Salinda, Danny Walker
Midseason Comeback Player of the Year
Bud Cauley made his return to the PGA Tour in February 2024, having been out for over three years due to severe injuries from a serious car crash. In the 2018 single-car crash at the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, where he was a passenger, Cauley sustained six broken ribs, a collapsed right lung, and a fractured left leg.
Cauley played for two years after the wreck but dealt with persistent rib pain caused by a plate inserted in his chest. Subsequent surgeries and infections followed, leading to another three seasons on the sidelines.
This year, Cauley has shown a return to form, achieving four top-25 finishes and three top-10s in nine starts. He tied for sixth at The Players, where his former Alabama teammate and close friend, Justin Thomas, famously said he`d do “really, really weird things for Bud to win today.” This strong finish was crucial in helping Cauley retain his PGA Tour card.
Currently 37th in the FedEx Cup standings with 553 points, Cauley also secured a tie for fourth at the Valspar Championship and a tie for fifth at the Valero Texas Open.
“When I`m out there, I`m not thinking about anything that`s happened in my past, just trying to play as well as I can,” Cauley commented at the Valspar Championship. “It feels like nothing ever happened when I`m on the course.”
Others considered: Michael Kim, Daniel Berger, Viktor Hovland
Midseason Breakout Player of the Year
Andrew Novak`s journey through the PGA Tour has been a consistent yet sometimes frustrating climb. He finished 156th in the FedEx Cup standings in 2021-22, requiring him to return to the Korn Ferry Tour Championship to regain his tour card. He then improved to 105th the following year and 86th in 2024.
This season, the 30-year-old is enjoying the best form of his career. He finished solo third at the Farmers Insurance Open in January and tied for 13th in two signature events: the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and the Genesis Invitational.
After a quieter period during the Florida swing, Novak tied for third at the Valero Texas Open and was defeated by Justin Thomas in a playoff at the RBC Heritage. Then, just last week, Novak and Ben Griffin secured their maiden PGA Tour wins in the team format of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. This victory came in Novak`s 100th tour start.
Novak currently sits sixth in the FedEx Cup standings with 1,380 points and is ninth in the U.S. Ryder Cup team standings with 5,587.6 points.
“I believe I`ve managed well by not getting overly frustrated with the close calls,” Novak commented. “I`ve been trying to extract as many positives from each experience as possible, because the goal is to put myself in contention as often as I can. I want to improve every time I`m in that situation, to feel more comfortable, and to have things I can review and work on.
“Yes, it`s frustrating, but it`s also a great feeling heading into a tournament knowing you`re playing well.”
Others considered: Michael Kim, Ben Griffin, Joe Highsmith, Jacob Bridgeman, Brian Campbell, Ryan Gerard
Most Surprising Stat
Zero. That`s the number of wins in eight starts on tour for Scottie Scheffler, who secured nine victories globally in 2024.
It`s not that Scheffler has performed poorly since his return in early February after recovering from a right hand injury sustained while cooking on Christmas Day. He has finished within the top 25 in every start, tying for third at the Genesis Invitational and for second at the Texas Children`s Houston Open. He also finished solo fourth at the Masters in his bid to win consecutive green jackets.
However, even Scheffler acknowledges that his game hasn`t been quite sharp, and he hasn`t sunk the crucial putts that were key to his frequent wins in 2024. Despite this, he remains second on the PGA Tour in strokes gained: total (1.911) and tee to green (1.627), and fourth in approach (.942). By no means is this a poor performance.
Best Victory
The Masters, the season`s opening major, delivered everything golf fans could desire: a final-round showdown between Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau, followed by intense drama on the back nine at Augusta National during Sunday`s final round, highlighted by McIlroy`s near-collapse and Justin Rose`s remarkable comeback attempt.
Rose, who shot a 6-under 66 in the final round, sank a 20-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole (18th) to apply even more pressure on McIlroy, who had seen his four-stroke lead diminish. McIlroy then missed a 5-footer for par on the 18th green, which would have forced a playoff.
On the first playoff hole, Rose`s approach shot landed within 15 feet of the hole on the 18th green. McIlroy`s second shot settled just 4 feet away. Rose missed his birdie attempt, and McIlroy then sank his putt to secure his first green jacket on his 11th attempt.
“This is my 17th time here, and I started to wonder if it would ever be my moment,” McIlroy stated. “Thinking back on the last 10 years coming here with the weight of the Grand Slam on my shoulders and striving to achieve it… I`m sort of wondering what everyone will talk about heading into next year`s Masters.”
Best Round
Jake Knapp recorded the 15th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history, posting a bogey-free 59 featuring 12 birdies and six pars in the opening round of the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.
Best Shot
Following a double-bogey on the 14th hole during the Masters final round, McIlroy executed the `shot of a lifetime` leading to a birdie on the 15th.
Best Putt
It was a long path back to the top for two-time major winner Justin Thomas, who finally broke a nearly three-year winless streak by sinking a 20-foot birdie putt to win a playoff at the RBC Heritage on April 20.
Best Drive
Rookie Aldrich Potgieter tops the tour with an average drive of 324.1 yards, including a notable 374-yarder at the Mexico Open.
Worst Drive
At the Arnold Palmer Invitational, the 20-year-old South African, Aldrich Potgieter, demonstrated he`s capable of hitting a poor drive just like anyone else.
Best Attitude
Joel Dahmen displayed a commendable attitude after concluding his round with three consecutive bogeys and missing a short 2-foot putt on the 17th hole, leading to a one-stroke loss against Garrick Higgo at the Corales Puntacana Championship in Puerto Rico on April 20.
Best Punt
Patton Kizzire expressed his frustration after missing a 5-foot putt for par during the first round of the Valspar Championship.
Best Save
Chandler Phillips came close to wading into alligator-infested waters to execute one of the season`s most remarkable saves in New Orleans.