Ultimate LIV Golf Guide to the 2025 PGA Championship

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Three past champions. Three recent major winners, including the reigning U.S. Open champ. Last year’s Senior PGA winner. A top-15 finisher from last year. A 2023 Ryder Cup participant. Six special invites.

That’s how 15 full-time LIV Golf players – representing 10 different teams – earned their way into this week’s PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club. In addition, one LIV Golf reserve player – John Catlin, the International Federation points leader – is in the field. Each player tees off Thursday hoping to raise the hefty Wanamaker Trophy on Sunday.

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Ten of those players were born outside the U.S., which means they will have to end the current streak of nine consecutive PGA Championship wins by Americans, four of those by current LIV Golf captains Brooks Koepka and Phil Mickelson.

Six of those players, led by current Individual Championship points leader Joaquin Niemann, have never won a major, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing at the PGA Championship. Of the tournament’s last 16 winners, nine were first-time major winners, a list that includes another LIV Golf captain, 2010 winner Martin Kaymer.

To get you ready for Thursday’s first round, here’s a look at the LIV Golf players through various lenses.

FORM CHECK

How the LIV Golf players are trending going into the PGA Championship

DISTANCE MATTERS

Bryson DeChambeau was asked Tuesday why he thought new Masters champ Rory McIlroy – who has won four pro events at Quail Hollow – has had so much success at the course.

“I do believe you have to have a lot of distance out here,” DeChambeau replied. “Rory is a great driver of the golf ball and his iron play is great, too. I think it’s a golf course that sets up for his shot shapes pretty well, and I think it sets up well for mine, too. We’ll see.”

The ability to hit it far and accurate seems to be paramount at a course that measures 7,624 yards. As Justin Thomas, the PGA Championship winner in 2017 when Quail Hollow last hosted the major, said this week: “I feel like a place like this, where it doesn’t necessarily require a lot of thought or strategy off the tee, it’s generally pulling out driver and just hit this as far and straight as possible.”

Given that perspective, here are the LIV Golf players inside the top 20 in driving distance this season who are at Quail Hollow.

Bryson DeChambeau – Ranks 1st in driving distance with a 333.3 yard average and also ranks T7 in accuracy – the only LIV Golf player inside the top 10 in both categories.

Dean Burmester – Ranks 2nd with a 328.4-yard average but is 47th in accuracy.

Joaquin Niemann – Ranks 3rd with a 327.3 yard average and T23 in accuracy.

David Puig – Ranks 4th with a 326.8 yard average and T34 in accuracy.

Tom McKibbin – Ranks 6th with a 322.2 average and T23 in accuracy.

Jon Rahm – Ranks 9th with a 318.0 average and 14th in accuracy, the only other player besides DeChambeau who is top 15 in both categories.

Dustin Johnson – Ranks 14th with a 313.9 average and 18th in accuracy.

Cameron Smith – Ranks 16th with a 312.3 average but is 52nd in accuracy.

Note: Brooks Koepka, Tyrrell Hatton and Sergio Garcia rank just outside the top 20 in distance this season.

ODDS TO WIN

According to BetMGM, Crushers GC Captain Bryson DeChambeau is the third-best favorite to win behind Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler (each +500). Here are the odds for each LIV Golf player.

• DeChambeau +800
• Rahm +2000
• Niemann +3300
• Hatton +4500
• Koepka +5000
• Reed +6000
• Smith +10000
• Johnson +12500
• Puig +17500
• Burmester +17500
• Garcia +20000
• McKibbin +30000
• Mickelson +40000
• Bland +60000
• Kaymer +100000

QUAIL HOLLOW EXPERIENCE

The Quail Hollow Club hosted the PGA Championship in 2017 as well as an annual PGA Tour event. A look at the course history for each player

2017 PGA Championship results

T2 – Patrick Reed 69-73-69-67 (-6)
T13 – Dustin Johnson 70-74-73-67 (E)
T13 – Brooks Koepka 68-73-74-69 (E)
T33 – Bryson DeChambeau 73-71-72-71 (+3)
T58 – Jon Rahm 70-75-71-75 (+7)
MC – Tyrrell Hatton 77-72 (+7)
MC – Sergio Garcia 75-75 (+8)
MC – Phil Mickelson 79-74 (+11)
MC – Cameron Smith 75-82 (+15)

PGA Tour event results at Quail Hollow

NOTES

The 15 full-time players represent 28% of the total 54-man field starting at each LIV Golf tournament

Of the 15 players, nine have won at least one major, while a 10th player – Richard Bland – won two senior majors last year

Three LIV Golf players have won PGA Championships – Brooks Koepka (2018, 2019, 2023), Phil Mickelson (2005, 2021) and Martin Kaymer (2010)

Phil Mickelson will be making his 126th career major start. He is also making his 32nd start at the PGA Championship, which ties him for fifth most all-time. The only four players with more appearances are Sam Snead (38), Arnold Palmer (37), Jack Nicklaus (37) and Tom Watson (37)

Sergio Garcia is making his 101st major start

Dustin Johnson’s invite allow him to continue a string of major eligibility that began in 2009

Richard Bland’s invite is the 10th major start of his career and second in the PGA Championship

Tom McKibbin is making his first PGA Championship start (and third major start) of his career

11 players have previously competed in professional events held at Quail Hollow, and 9 competed at the 2017 PGA held at the course

LIV AT THE PGA

How LIV Golf players have fared in the two previous PGA Championships since the league made its debut in the summer of 2022.

2023 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP (18 players)

1-Koepka; T4-DeChambeau; T9-Smith; T18-Pereira, Reed; T29-Varner; T40-Pieters; 54-Burmester; T55-Johnson; T58-Mickelson; T62-S. Kim. MC-Steele, Lahiri, Niemann, Gooch, Ancer, Casey, Kaymer

2024 PGA CHAMPIONSHIP (16 players)
2-DeChambeau; T12-Burmester; T26-Koepka; T39-Niemann; T43-Johnson, Herbert; T53-Reed; T60-Gooch; T63-Hatton, Smith; T73-Kaymer. MC-Rahm, Meronk, Puig, Mickelson, Ogletree