The 2024 golf year provided an incredible array of dizzying accomplishments and head-shaking heartaches. The split of the men’s professional game remains in place between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.
A new order at the top of the men’s and women’s professional levels is already underway and becoming more dominant.
PGA Tour and PIF / LIV Golf
The PGA Tour, led by Commissioner Jay Monahan, remains separate from LIV Golf, owned by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia.The split and defections of players to LIV Golf forced the hands of the leadership brass in Ponte Vedra to propose a total overhaul of the PGA Tour starting in 2026.
Television ratings for professional golf are down from a year ago and the split between the organizations has meant less visibility for both.
There is also the recent report from Bloomberg that LIV Golf is speaking separately with the DP World Tour.
Even if LIV Golf and the PGA Tour should merge, the specter of a U.S. Justice Department review could add another serious roadblock to any deal.
Scottie Scheffler
Scheffler’s seven wins on the 2024 PGA Tour was a display of dominance not seen since Tiger Woods won that many times in 2007.The 28-year-old Texan won twice prior to the Masters and became the first golfer to successfully defend his title at The Players. When he arrived at Augusta, he was the clear favorite and won his second green jacket by four shots.
The only downside came at the PGA Championship at Valhalla, where a mistaken local law enforcement officer arrested him for failing to obey directions when entering the grounds. When the dust settled, all charges were dropped.
Scheffler would add four wins on the PGA Tour with The Tour Championship being the final capper.
To add to his brilliant season, Scheffler came from four shots off the lead in the final round to win a gold medal in men’s golf at the Summer Olympics in Paris. His stunning final round of 62 was highlighted by a closing nine-hole score of 29.
His putting skills still cause concern, but if Scheffler is playing on all cylinders he’s the top figure in men’s golf.
Nelly Korda
The 26-year-old Korda matched Scheffler in wins with seven—with one a major at the Chevron Championship.The Floridian clearly solidified her No. 1 position in the world golf rankings.
But her play in the five women’s major events was uneven. After the Chevron victory, Korda missed cuts in the U.S. Open and KPMG PGA Championship. She rebounded with a T26 in the Evian Championship and a runner-up tie in the AIG Women’s Open Championship.
Xander Schauffele
No tagline in golf is more demeaning than “the best player never to win a major.”Coming into 2024 that dubious honor was owned by Xander Schauffele. The talented Californian turned pro in 2015 and began rising in the ranks of exceptional players.
Schauffele had won 10 times on the PGA Tour prior to 2024, and that included 11 top 10 and six top five finishes in major championships.
That anchor around Xander’s neck lifted with a powerful performance at the PGA Championship. Schauffele scored a closing 65 with a birdie at the final hole to secure the Wannamaker Trophy.
The 31-year-old went one step beyond by capturing the Open Championship at Royal Troon with another final round 65 to secure the Claret Jug and his second major win. The last player to do that was Brooks Koepka in 2018.
Lydia Ko
When first coming onto golf’s global stage, Lydia Ko skyrocketed up the golf ladder and in 2015 attained the No. 1 ranking at age 17, an unprecedented feat, then became the youngest to win a major title at 18.After enduring a down spell with only one win between 2017 and 2020, Ko began to resurrect her game and overall standing.
The 2024 season showcased a return to world class form. The 27-year-old captured the gold medal in women’s golf at the Summer Olympics in Paris, which she could add to her silver at the 2016 Games and her bronze in 2020.
Ko then triumphed at The Old Course at St. Andrews for the AIG Open Championship title.
She claimed a third title in winning the Kroger Queen City Championship in Cincinnati.
The highlight in 2024 came in being the youngest inductee into the LPGA Hall of Fame. She’s expressed a desire to move onward with her life, but if she keeps her focus the capacity for more achievements is well within her reach.
Nick Dunlap
The depth of players competing at the professional level is staggering. Being able to separate oneself is no small feat. Nick Dunlap started making noise at an early age after capturing the U.S. Junior and U.S. Amateur—a feat accomplished only by Tiger Woods.But the level of his golf skills went an additional step. In January he received a sponsor exemption into the PGA Tour’s American Express event. Dunlap scored a record-tying amateur score of 60—12 under par—in the third round. Dunlap then sealed the win the following day with a one-stroke margin.
The last time an amateur won at the PGA Tour level was 33 years ago. Dunlap’s victory at 20 years and 29 days made him the second youngest winner on the PGA Tour in the past 90 years. No amateur had ever won the U.S. Junior, U.S. Amateur and a PGA Tour event.
Grayson McMurray
Grayson McMurray was on his way to success in professional golf. Early in 2024 he won his second PGA Tour title with a win in Hawaii.But the nomadic lifestyle for those on the pro circuit can be lonely, and a golfer’s troubles can be hidden. Murray was struggling with alcoholism, anxiety and depression.
After withdrawing from the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, Texas, in May, citing an illness, on May 25 he died at age 30. The cause was suicide.
Keegan Bradley
When the 2025 Ryder Cup matches were announced with Bethpage State Park in New York as host it was assumed either Phil Mickelson or Tiger Woods would be picked as USA team captain given their past intersections with the Black Course.However, Mickelson took himself out of the picture by bolting for LIV Golf, and Tiger declined numerous times when actively courted by the leadership of the PGA of America.
With the clock ticking, Keegan Bradley was recruited. This is the same golfer bypassed for a captain’s pick for the last matches held in Rome in 2023.
Bradley’s enthusiasm for the position is clear, but he must secure a United States victory to show his selection was merited.
Rory McIlroy
If any other golfer had the year that McIlroy had in 2024, the euphoria would be off the charts.The 35-year-old won four times globally—including a sixth win in the Race to Dubai series—culminating with a final triumph in the DP World Tour Championship in December.
But those successes are diminished by his continued inability to end a major-less streak dating back to 2014.
The most crushing lapse came at the U.S. Open. With a two-stroke lead with four holes to play, McIlroy frittered away the lead with three bogies—two coming on extremely short putts missed at the 16th and 18th holes.
After winning four majors by age 25, McIlroy knows his ultimate legacy is success, or lack thereof, in the major championships.
Tiger Woods
The 15-time major winner turns 49 at the end of December. Woods also had microdecompression surgery on his lower back Sept. 13 to relieve nerve and impingement back pain.Woods played just five times in 2024 and made only one cut at Augusta. He had said he would play at least one event per month to keep active. His last foray took place at The Open Championship at Royal Troon in July, and he failed to advance after 36 holes.
He was 45 over par for the 11 rounds completed.
The bigger question is how long he will continue to believe he can play at the highest of levels. His last major win came in 2019, and that only broke a streak of 11 years of no majors won dating back to 2008.
Woods pulled out of his event this week in the Bahamas, the Hero World Challenge. The Champions Tour is now just ahead when he turns 50.
