Let’s get greedy.
Last year was really good to us, maybe too good. Rory McIlroy completing the career Grand Slam in epic fashion, then starring in an emotional home game three months later. Scottie Scheffler continuing to take no prisoners in the majors. Little-known J.J. Spaun prevailing at golf’s toughest test against the best leaderboard of the year. Stirring stuff, all of it.
But rather than brace for a letdown, let’s keep it rolling in 2026.
Here are five things we’d love to see this year — for history, for the health of The Product, and, well, obviously, for the delicious drama.
Scottie Keeps Doing His Thing
This one should be obvious — an individual sport like golf needs a dominant star, and there hasn’t been a stud this spectacular since prime Tiger Woods. We’re witnessing history unfold every week, each season. We should savor it.
In 2025, Scheffler branched out and added two different majors to his career haul, meaning he’ll head into the U.S. Open — set to conclude on his 30th birthday — with a chance to seal the final leg of the slam, rightfully confirming himself as a player for the ages.
Scheffler is so good, and so complete, that he’ll always be able to get his. So what will be most interesting to see is what he does from a statistical perspective. Even if he didn’t equal his win total last year from 2024 (9-6), he actually was better through the bag, owing to a sizable improvement on the greens. Does he see more incremental gains this year, or will he revert to his career mean — and how does that affect his projected win totals?
And yet, as sensational as Scottie is and has been, it still leaves us longing for …
Jun 13, 2025; Oakmont, Pennsylvania, USA; Xander Schauffele plays his shot from the tenth tee during the second round of the U.S. Open golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
A Serious Challenger to Scheffler’s Reign
McIlroy, coming off a season in which he semi-seriously contended for Player of the Year, would seem the clear favorite here, but who knows just how much we’ll see him on the every-week tour in 2026. He’s made it abundantly clear he’ll play where he wants, when he wants, and that likely means fewer head-to-head tilts with the world No. 1.
So if there’s a void at the top, who fills it?
Xander Schauffele logged a fall victory after an injury-delayed campaign and is a prime candidate to bounce back.
Tommy Fleetwood is brimming with confidence and playing the best golf of his life.
Ludvig Åberg, still just 26, has all of the physical tools for a true breakout year.
Cam Young, Ben Griffin and Sam Burns … Chris Gotterup, Marco Penge and Michael Thorbjornsen — they’re all interesting names to consider. It’s always fun to see who ascends to the next level.
CROMWELL, CONNECTICUT – JUNE 16: PGA TOUR CEO announcement and board meetings at Delamar on June 16, 2025 in Cromwell, Connecticut. (Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR)
Clarity on the Schedule
Heading the future competitions committee, Tiger Woods said last month that he and his crew, mired in thousands of simulations and scenarios, intend to kick off the “new” PGA Tour for the 2027 campaign.
What that looks like remains to be seen as they attempt to reimagine a circuit with the top players playing the biggest events on the best courses with the brightest spotlight. Everything is apparently on the table: Starting after the NFL season and ending before Labor Day. Weeding out the C-level tournaments. Building in off-weeks following the majors. In theory, a streamlined product of powerhouse events sounds ideal.
But with so many constituents involved, there’s skepticism that a consensus can be reached for a 2027 launch – and the clock is ticking.
Fans have grown weary of the constant talk of change; ever since the advent of the signature-event series model, in late 2022, the Tour has promised a new-look product in the future. All it’s turned into is four consecutive “transition years” with swings, a distinct A/B tour and an unimaginative grand finale.
CEO Brian Rolapp has promised significant, foundational changes. Let’s see ’em.
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – DECEMBER 03: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland plays a shot as a part of the Pro-Am prior to the Crown Australian Open 2025 at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club on December 03, 2025 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Morgan Hancock/Getty Images)
More Stars in the “Shoulder Season”
It didn’t escape us that during one otherwise sleepy week in early December, McIlroy played a national open in Australia, Viktor Hovland headlined the field in South Africa, and Scheffler teed it up in a 20-man holiday exhibition in the Bahamas.
What are we doing here?
One benefit of a pared-down Tour schedule is that it opens up other opportunities around the world during the other five months on the calendar. Incentivizing the Tour’s best to play some of the marquee events on the DP World Tour schedule (particularly the national opens) would be a boon to all involved — especially golf fans who can watch their favorite players on different courses, in different conditions and during different broadcast windows than the heart of the golf season.
Sure, that requires significantly better cooperation among the established tours, but a scribe can dream.
PLYMOUTH, MI – AUGUST 22: Brooks Koepka of Smash GC concentrates on the third hole during Day One of LIV Michigan at The Cardinal at Saint John’s on August 22, 2025 in Plymouth, Michigan. (Photo by Michael Miller/ISI Photos/ISI Photos via Getty Images)
ISI Photos via Getty Images
Koepka Reincorporated into the PGA Tour
Outside of the schedule, the biggest question at the dawn of the new year is what happens with Koepka.
The five-time major winner left LIV with one year left on his contract, and his immediate playing future is unknown. In a statement announcing the move, Koepka said that he wants to prioritize time at home with his family — but he also used that same rationale in explaining away his decision to leave for LIV back in 2022.
The Tour should provide some clarity on Koepka’s status soon because right now it’s murky. He didn’t renew his Tour membership following the 2022-23 season, which theoretically puts him in a different position than, say, Laurie Canter, who never held Tour status but served a one-year suspension for competing in an unauthorized event and qualified for the 2025 Players. The first step, if he’s interested in returning to the Tour, would be for Koepka to reapply for membership — and from there, it’s up to the Tour to decide any disciplinary action.
Every Tour player likely has a different answer on the best path forward. McIlroy said on the record he wants Koepka back as soon as possible — but not all Tour players are in McIlroy’s gilded position, of course, with guaranteed status, a hunger for the top competition and hundreds of millions in the bank. To many in this new era of fewer members and dwindling tournaments, Koepka’s reentry without retribution could be seen as a threat to their competitive livelihoods.
It’s a fascinating test case for Rolapp and Co. — and a gut check for the player policy board – that would provide a blueprint for any other LIVers potentially looking for an exit ramp.
Any outcome is sure to rankle at least a segment of the Tour population, but we keep returning to a data point from last year: After polling golf fans, roughly 70% said they favored reunification, the best players together again. Reintegrating Koepka – one of the most successful and well-known players of his generation – would be a significant step toward that end goal.