While it may not technically be a golf major, The Players Championship certainly has the feel of one. After all, it features a full field filled with the best players in the world and one of the most dramatic venues on the PGA Tour calendar with one of the most dramatic finishing stretches of golf holes.

This makes the PGA Tour’s flagship event a melting pot for one of the best tournaments of the year with some top storylines leading into it. These talking points touch on the action inside and outside the ropes given PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan will make his annual address to the media early in the week.

Questions surrounding the future of the men’s professional game will be asked, and only time will tell if they will actually be answered. Regardless of the commissioner’s state of the tour address, eyes will shift to the golf come Thursday where stars like Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy and Ludvig Åberg will all be in the spotlight.

For now, let’s take a look at some of the top storylines entering the 2025 Players Championship in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

2025 Players Championship storylines
Not one, not two…
Unlike the last two seasons, Scheffler arrives at this year’s Players without a trophy already under his belt. Small windows here and there have hindered his ability to enter the winner’s circle — whether it was the back-nine 41 at TPC Scottsdale or third-round 76 at the Genesis Invitational. It has largely been business as usual for the world No. 1, but it remains clear his game is not quite as sharp as it has been in years past. (At least not yet.)

Last year, he became the first player to successfully defend The Players and just the seventh to win the tournament multiple times. A win this week would pull him alongside Jack Nicklaus — past the likes of Tiger Woods and Fred Couples — who leads the pack with three.

State of the Tour
This week’s address will be spearheaded, as per usual, by Monahan. The PGA Tour boss has been a busy bee traveling to the White House for a working session alongside PGA Tour members Tiger Woods and Adam Scott along with President Donald Trump and Yasir Al-Rummayyan, governor of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

Monahan remains optimistic about the state of a potential deal between the parties to unite professional golf, but he may be the only one. Almost two full years into this saga, patience from players, fans and stakeholders dries up by the day with some of the biggest names believing a deal may not even be worth the headache at this stage.

“I think the narrative around golf — I wouldn’t say [the sport] needs a deal — I think the narrative around golf would welcome a deal in terms of just having all the best players together again,” McIlroy said at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. “But I don’t think the PGA Tour needs a deal. I think the momentum is pretty strong.

“TV has been good; TGL has been hopefully pretty additive to the overall situation. I answered this question at Torrey Pines two weeks ago, before, you know, the landscape might have looked a little different then than it does now over these past couple of weeks. I think a deal would still be ideal scenario for golf as a whole. But from a pure PGA Tour perspective, I don’t think it necessarily needs it.”

McIlroy’s march to the Masters
It’s been an inherently different McIlroy in 2025 compared to 2024 when he entered The Players battling the big miss off the tee and the big number on the scorecard. He went onto grab a share of the first-round lead but backtracked over the next 54 holes to barely finish inside the top 20.

McIlroy continues to preach patience and discipline and it has paid off with a win at Pebble Beach and top 20s in the next two signature events. Those will both be tested at TPC Sawgrass — as will his new and improved wedge play. which features plenty of off-speed shots and sawed-off swings.

A win would mark his second Players in the last six playings and make it the first time in McIlroy’s career that he would enter the Masters with multiple wins under his belt in a calendar year.

Åberg’s ascension
The Players marks the first time Åberg will visit one of the five biggest tournaments for the second time. It’s easy to forget given his status in the game that 2024 marked the Swedish superstar’s first strolls around golf courses such as TPC Sawgrass and Augusta National. Unsurprisingly, Åberg acquitted himself quite nicely in his Players debut notching a top-10 finish. He has only gotten better and more experienced since winning at the Genesis Invitational and contending at multiple major championships. With a win, he would join Si Woo Kim as players to win the PGA Tour’s flagship event in their second attempts.

Déjà vu?!
The last few Players Championships have featured leaderboards that look a lot like the … Arnold Palmer Invitational played the week prior. Last year, Wyndham Clark finished runner up to Scheffler in consecutive tournaments. A few years before that, Bryson DeChambeau won the API over Lee Westwood. Both players finished second and third respectively behind Justin Thomas at that year’s Players.

Few would be surprised if a similar occurrence materializes this year given the names atop the leaderboard at Arnie’s Place. Collin Morikawa, Russell Henley, Jason Day, Keegan Bradley, Correy Conners have all found success at TPC Sawgrass, and oh yeah, Scheffler and McIlroy were in the mix, too.

Struggling stars
Many of the usual suspects are still in the field, but they are no longer on the short list of contenders. The last couple of Players Championships have featured the likes of Matt Fitzpatrick, Sahith Theegala, Viktor Hovland and Max Homa on the first page of the leaderboard. These four players have combined for just one top-20 finish this year with that coming courtesy of Theegala’s T17 at the Genesis Invitational. Throw in a player like last year’s runner-up Xander Schauffele, who just returned from injury at Bay Hill and is still shedding some rust, and there is a slew of stars who are searching for answers.

Laurie Canter? Yes, Laurie Canter.
You might be wondering, “Why should I care about Laurie Canter?” It’s a fair question, but given the oddity of the golf world and fractured nature, his name deserves some shine. Following his playoff defeat at the South African Open a few weeks ago on the DP World Tour, Canter earned a spot in the field at the Players Championship.

This would not be noteworthy otherwise except that Canter’s appearance at TPC Sawgrass will mark the first time that someone who played on LIV Golf will play a PGA Tour event. Canter played with LIV in 2022 and served as a reserve option across the first two tournaments last year.

.PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan announced Tuesday that the league will begin implementing new pace-of-play policies starting next month. The rule change will first be introduced on the Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour Americas; it will include the assessment of stroke penalties for slow play violations.

Following the Masters, the PGA Tour itself will test a new policy allowing players to use distance-measuring devices during six tournaments between the year’s first and second majors, the latter being the PGA Championship. The PGA of America currently allows competitors in the PGA Championship to use such devices. The PGA Tour also plans to publish player specific pace-of-play statistics later in the year.

Justin Thomas said making such data public would “definitely” be effective in helping curb pace-of-play issues.

“It’s something I’ve said, if we put [the data] in the locker room or put it out [public], which would obviously end up getting out, but nobody wants to be known as [a slow player],” he explained. “I’m the first to admit I’m on the slow side of players. It bothers me, but I’ve talked to many officials about it, like I want to know why I’m slow because obviously the first thing that any slower player thinks is that they’re not slow.”

The PGA Tour’s pace of play came under fire during the West Coast Swing when the final group at The American Express took 5 hours, 40 minutes to complete its final round. One week later at the Farmers Insurance Open, a similar pacing issue occurred and drew further criticism.

Potential solutions were laid out during the week of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am by the PGA Tour, including the use of distance-measuring devices, increasing use of the video review center to expedite rulings and publishing pace-of-play data with accountability for slow players.

“After talking to some guys, I think you just have to start … giving guys actual penalties, whether it be strokes or FedExCup,” Collin Morikawa said. “What I’ve learned is that monetary fines are useless. We make so much money, and some guys frankly could care less about — I don’t know how much the fines are, but whatever X amount they are, and I think they care more about playing good golf and making sure they make the playoffs and making sure they make, you know, 70, 50, 30. That’s where it hits hard.

“And I see no issue with it. I think what is there to hide, right? If you’re slow, you know you’re slow. I mean, if you don’t know, then there’s an issue. To me, there’s no issue with letting it out, right? It’s only going to make things better because then you’re either going to have a target on you, put a little more pressure and hopefully you pick it up, or you get penalized. Like it’s very simple.”

2025 Players Championship picks, odds: Expert predictions, favorites to win in betting field at TPC Sawgrass
Patrick McDonald
2025 Players Championship picks, odds: Expert predictions, favorites to win in betting field at TPC Sawgrass
This past fall, the PGA Tour chose to adopt sweeping changes to its membership structure including the downsizing of tournament fields. One of the aims of this decision was to alleviate the pace-of-play problem on the PGA Tour. Although early returns were minimal, the league has seen improvement in recent weeks thanks to smaller fields and the utilization of twosomes.

“It’s easy to identify the problem,” Monahan said. “It’s a little bit harder to find the solution, just given the depth and breadth of everything that goes into pace of play. But we are committed to finding the right solutions and making progress on that front.”

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan did his best to fend off questions regarding the organization’s ongoing negotiations with LIV Golf’s financial backers, Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, during a press conference Tuesday ahead of the 2025 Players Championship. While Monahan kept his cards close to the vest, he did say the PGA Tour would be willing to adopt certain aspects of LIV Golf in order to bring the two sides together.

“When you’re in the midst of complex negotiations, particularly when you may be near a breakthrough, there are ebbs and flows in the discussion,” Monahan said. “The most important thing is the mutual respect that we’ve built over the last couple of years. We appreciate Yasir [Al-Rummayyan]’s innovative vision, and we can see a future where we welcome him on to our board and work together to move the global game forward.

“As part of our negotiations, we believe there’s room to integrate important aspects of LIV Golf into the PGA Tour platform. We’re doing everything that we can to bring the two sides together.”

Monahan — along with PGA Tour members Tiger Woods and Adam Scott — participated in a four-hour working session with President Donald Trump and Al-Rummayyan, the PIF governor, a couple weeks ago. The commissioner has since been complimentary of the President and his willingness to help the deal along, which may include swerving potential roadblocks presented by the U.S. Department of Justice.

PGA Tour to allow distance measuring after Masters, test new pace-of-play policies before implementation
Patrick McDonald
PGA Tour to allow distance measuring after Masters, test new pace-of-play policies before implementation
Monahan confirmed a next meeting has yet to be scheduled.

While there appears to be headway in these discussions, one of the main talking points between the two leagues remains team golf’s place at the PGA Tour level. LIV Golf is currently made up of 13 teams owned and operated by playing captains such as Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau. Whether these squads or simply the concept of team golf continues — based on whatever form a unification between the tours takes — remains a question without a definitive answer.

“We will not [integrate LIV Golf] in a way that diminishes the strength of our platform or the very real momentum we have with our fans and our partners,” Monahan said. “So, while we’ve removed some hurdles, others remain. But like our fans, we still share the same sense of urgency to get to a resolution. Our team is fully committed to reunification.

“The only deal that we would regret is one that compromises the essence of what makes the game of golf and the PGA Tour so exceptional.”

James and Curry gelled perfectly during the Paris Olympics, and many fans are salivating for a union between the two at the NBA level.

Who says no?

On Friday, Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey outlined a realistic package that the Warriors could send LA for LeBron: Jonathan Kuminga, Brandin Podziemski, De’Anthony Melton, Andrew Wiggins, Gui Santos, and two first-rounders (2025, 2027).

The Warriors would also be getting Cam Reddish and Bronny James in the proposed deal.

“The framework above gives L.A. at least one movable contract to turn into more assets if this would just be the start of a rebuild. Andrew Wiggins is only making $26.3 million this season.”

“The big get here would obviously be the younger players. There’s reason to be high on both Jonathan Kuminga (his athleticism, defensive range and untapped playmaking potential) and Brandin Podziemski (his feel for the game and playmaking help him perform like a much more experienced player).”

“As for the Warriors, this is a risk. They’re giving up depth, youth and picks for a player near the end of his career, a wing who’s played like an end-of-bench player throughout his career in Cam Reddish and a multi-year project (to put it kindly) in Bronny.”

“But Golden State has a point differential around that of a 64-win team when Curry is on the floor this season. He’s still good enough to be the scoring leader on a title contender. And LeBron unquestionably raises the short-term ceiling higher than any combination of Wiggins, Kuminga, Podziemski and Gui Santos does.”

“Lineups with him, Curry, Buddy Hield and Draymond Green could go toe-to-toe with just about anyone in the West.”

Should the Warriors call up Lakers GM Rob Pelinka and put this offer on the table?

That changed in his fourth career G League game when he exploded for 30 points on an efficient 13-of-23 shooting.

This is much more of what Bronny looked like at Sierra Canyon, which led to him being mocked so high at the end of his high school career. It’s just one game, but he could be turning a corner and tapping back into that potential from two years ago.

BRONNY JAMES STATS: Complete G League game logs | Complete NBA game logs

This is the Bronny James NBA scouts were excited about
Bronny hit just 26.7 percent of his 3s at USC and was 1-of-12 during the NBA preseason. He wasn’t always an unreliable shooter.

Bronny earned a spot on the McDonald’s All-American game in high school, coming one 3-pointer away from tying the record during a 5-of-8 performance. He was a streaky shooter capable of going off for big shooting nights.

That finally happened again on Thursday. Defenders have routinely gone way under screens, daring him to shoot. He made his first two attempts against that defense, gaining confidence and eventually even nailing a bomb a solid foot-and-a-half behind the line.

It wasn’t just the shooting that came back. Bronny has always been a terrific athlete, but he hasn’t gotten a ton of chances to showcase that skill. In high school, he finished second place in the McDonald’s Slam Dunk Contest, and his 40.5-inch vertical was the fourth-highest at the NBA Draft Combine.

MORE: Bronny James impresses at NBA Draft Combine in 3-point shooting, agility drills

The Lakers ran a nice play at the start of the second quarter to get him a dunk attempt, having him fake coming off a pindown screen before cutting to the rim. It worked perfectly.

Bronny had other unscripted plays where he was also able to demonstrate how much of a physical advantage he can have over opponents.

He used a shoulder dip to create space on layups, powering through defenders like former NBA prospect TyTy Washington. And his acrobatic touch reminded everyone of the type of elite athleticism he has.

MORE: The perfect trade for Warriors to land LeBron James

Bronny has always been at his best in transition. Our draft expert Kyle Irving wrote of him in high school that “even when he’s pushing the pace, his court vision seemingly slows the game down as he decides whether to attack the rim or dish to an open teammate running the lane.”

That evaluation was evident on Thursday. Bronny showed great awareness in getting the ball and taking one dribble before throwing it up for a perfect lob.

The biggest skill Bronny had as a high school player was his defense. Givony called him “arguably the best perimeter defender in his high school class.” Irving agreed with that assessment.

“Off the ball, he does a great job of lurking like a safety, using his anticipation to jump passing lanes for steals and deflections or soar in from the help side for blocks,” Irving wrote.

Bronny’s defensive athleticism was on full display in the following play. He flew past a screen to swat a 3-pointer away in the fourth quarter.

That we haven’t seen this version of Bronny for a while shouldn’t be that surprising. Coming back from a potentially life-threatening medical condition was going to take a lot of time. This could be a sign of him finally turning that corner and getting back to the guy who had scouts thinking he was one of the better prospects in his class.

A former candidate for MVP, Defensive Player of the Year and Clutch Player of the Year, the 35-year-old Butler’s status as a possible trade chip has been theorized in league circles for months, but recent reports shared by Forbes’ Evan Sidery via Twitter/X have indicated that his mind is set on one destination in particular.

“Jimmy Butler is absolutely interested in coming to the Phoenix Suns,” shared Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix talk show host John Gambadoro Thursday evening.

“If he were to be traded from the Miami Heat, the Phoenix Suns are very, very high on his list. I would go as far as to say that I believe that this will be his No. 1 choice, is to come play for the Phoenix Suns.”

Along with the latest reports from ESPN’s Senior NBA Insider Shams Charania, Gambadoro’s statements come from sources that they claim to be fully vetted and correct.

Even though Butler’s agent Bernie Lee recently came out to dispel any rumors of Butler’s availability for trade, both Charania and now Gambadoro have stood behind their sources and information, reiterating that it is completely reliable.

With Butler’s reported assertion that Phoenix is at the top of his preferred list of trade destinations, the Suns could very well carry momentum toward getting a deal done to acquire Miami’s superstar as rumors continue to run rampant.

In theory, Phoenix could use the leverage and pressure on Miami’s front office created from these developments to hopefully land Butler. In return for their two-way force, Miami could potentially seek a large contract like Bradley Beal, a young prospect like Ryan Dunn or Oso Ighodaro and a combination of first and second-round draft capital.

With the potential acquisition of Butler, a Phoenix team that began the season with a 9-2 record prior to a poorly timed injury to former league MVP Kevin Durant would be provided with one of the best playoff performers of the past decade as they gear up for a deep postseason run.

On Friday, Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey outlined what a Butler deal would look like for the Nuggets: Michael Porter Jr., Pelle Larsson, Dario Šarić, Zeke Nnaji, and three first-round pick swaps (2026, 2030, 2031).

“Right now, despite having the clear and almost consensus best player in the world in Nikola Jokić, the Denver Nuggets don’t look like a title contender,” Bailey said.

“That probably has more to do with Jamal Murray not playing like a max player than it does with Michael Porter Jr., but the former isn’t tradable this season (because of when he signed his max extension).”

“So, if the Nuggets are going to go after Jimmy Butler, who could be the biggest name available on the trade market between now and February, it will almost certainly cost them MPJ. And that’s a real cost.”

“At 26, Porter is nine years younger than Butler, and a lack of three-point volume is one of Denver’s current biggest issues. MPJ leads the team in three-point attempts and is shooting 38.8 percent from deep. Butler isn’t replacing that.”

“In a vacuum, though, even at his age, Butler is the better player. In fact, he might be the best player Jokić has ever played with (with the possible exception of the postseason version of Murray).”

“Butler’s cutting, slashing and playmaking ability would make him a good fit alongside the three-time MVP. He’d up the team’s defensive potential, too.”

“For the Heat, this seems like a deal that some other suitor would be able to beat. Most of Denver’s trade capital has already been spent. But Butler’s age could suppress his market a bit. And Miami might determine that three first-round pick swaps are more valuable than a single first-rounder from someone else.”

“This also gets Miami out of Butler’s upcoming contract negotiations without necessarily conceding a playoff appearance.”

“In the wake of a deal like this, the Heat could use Bam Adebayo as even more of a playmaking hub while surrounding him with the outside shooting of Tyler Herro, Duncan Robinson and MPJ.”

Should Miami seriously consider a deal like this from the Nuggets, or should they focus on other suitors amid the Butler sale?

On Friday, Bleacher Report’s Andy Bailey envisioned the Thunder going after Brandon Ingram of the New Orleans Pelicans. Bailey’s proposed deal would send Luguentz Dort, Aaron Wiggins, Ousmane Dieng, and a first-rounder to New Orleans for Ingram.

“Like LaVine, Brandon Ingram has been all over trade rumors, fake-trade articles and other reports for at least a year,” Bailey said.

“And after injuries helped push the New Orleans Pelicans to last place in the West, they should be even more motivated to turn those rumors into an actual deal.”

“At one point, it almost felt inevitable New Orleans would flip Ingram for a center, but rookie Yves Missi has been better than expected. And after this first quarter of the season, the Pelicans probably shouldn’t be looking at win-now trades anymore.”

“Even with CJ McCollum, Dejounte Murray, Herbert Jones and Trey Murphy III all recently filtering back into the rotation, it will be nearly impossible to make up enough ground to even be in the Play-In Tournament.”

“Instead, New Orleans should be angling for more forward-looking deals.”

“This one gives the Pelicans a first-round pick, something teams are going to be hesitant to give up for a player on an expiring contract who’s looking for a raise this coming summer. It also gives them an intriguing 21-year-old wing who hasn’t been able to crack the Oklahoma City Thunder’s crowded rotation.”

“Luguentz Dort and Aaron Wiggins aren’t just salary filler, either. Assuming Zion Williamson comes back this season, both would fit in well around him and alongside other versatile wing and forward defenders like Jones and Murphy.”

“For the Thunder, this deal simply might not be necessary. They’re already playing like a championship contender, and Dort’s perimeter defense is a big part of that.”

“But making Ingram, a former All-Star who’s averaging 22.2 points, 5.2 assists and 2.4 threes, their super sixth man might make them the favorite, even in a league with the Boston Celtics.”

“This deal would likely force OKC to move Alex Caruso into Dort’s starting spot. That defense is important for the first five. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams would obviously take the other two guard and/or wing spots. And whenever Chet Holmgren is ready to return, he and Isaiah Hartenstein can play together on the front line.”

“That would leave Ingram to absolutely dominate second units as a scorer-for-hire for a few months (that would hopefully end with a championship).”

“If it went swimmingly, OKC could try to re-sign Ingram for less than the max. If he wanted out, the Thunder are in a better position than most to let him walk. They would still be a contender in 2025-26.”

Should the Thunder get on the phone with New Orleans and get an Ingram deal in motion? Keep in mind that Ingram is on an expiring contract.

On Wednesday, Athlon Sports’ Sean Deveney crafted a compelling trade proposal that would send LeBron and Bronny James to the Heat for Jimmy Butler and Alec Burks.

James, averaging 23.0 points, 9.1 assists, and 8.0 rebounds with the Lakers this season, spent four seasons in Miami in the early 2010s after dramatically departing from the Cleveland Cavaliers.

The 2008 scoring champion won two championships alongside Dwayne Wade and Chris Bosh, solidifying himself as a winning superstar in the NBA.

The idea of James returning to his second NBA home is intriguing, considering the 20-time All-Star is familiar with the Heat’s culture and head coach Erik Spoelstra’s determination to maximize each player’s potential.

Likewise, It would be interesting to see how Butler would manage under JJ Redick in Los Angeles.

However, based on a recent statement by a Western Conference executive, the chances of witnessing a James and Butler swap this season are likely below 50%.

“The only way to get (Jimmy) Butler to the Lakers is to trade about half the Lakers roster, and they don’t have the stomach for that,” the executive said.

“Either side. But if the Lakers really want to trade LeBron, if that is something they want to do, Miami would be one of the spots they’d have to consider. I think the Lakers would want something more than just Jimmy but it’s hard to make that work.”

Don’t expect the Lakers and Heat to complete a mind-blowing deal this season.