Players Championship tips: Colin Morikawa and Sepp Straka set to rival Scottie Scheffler

The iconic 17th hole is back, with the world's best ready to tee off this week at the 2025 edition of The Players Championship, TPC Sawgrass.

Scottie Scheffler will be hoping to become the first man in the history of the tournament to win three in a row, with the world number one claiming victory in both 2023, and 2024.

However, with a talent-packed field ready to compete at the ‘fifth major’, victory for the world number one will be no easy feat.

TPC Sawgrass has a unique, yet balanced layout, with long rough and diverse hole layouts rewarding the elite ball strikers and strategic thinkers.

A solid iron game is a must in Ponte Vedra, and putting comes second to approach play at the Stadium Course.

Here, Sports News Blitz’s Sam Condy picks out some of the favourites to dethrone Scheffler at this year's edition of The Players.

Colin Morikawa

Morikawa led through most of Sunday at last week's Arnold Palmer Invitational and looked a sure thing to pick up the win in Bay Hill.

Unfortunately for the American, he dropped to second late on in the evening, and couldn’t claw back the lead, conceding the tournament to an in-form Russell Henley.

Morikawa is in excellent form at the minute, with two runners-up finishes across his last five starts.

The two-time major winner will surely be looking for redemption this week.

Sawgrass tests a player in every department and Morikawa’s well-rounded game and near-perfect iron play could give him an advantage heading into the ‘fifth major’.

Best odds: 14/1 (8EW, 1/5) with Betfair

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Shane Lowry

The Irishman may be a bit of an outside pick this week, but the tougher the course, the better Lowry seems to play.

Lowry thrives on a course where making a par carries some weight.

Sawgrass’ four-inch rough this week will set up a grindy style of play over the weekend, with all mistakes being punished and plenty of dropped strokes across the board.

Best odds: 33/1 (10EW, 1/5) with Paddy Power

Sepp Straka

Straka has performed consistently well at the stadium course with ninth and 16th-placed finishes in 2022 and 2024 respectively.

Straka’s elite iron striking makes him an ideal candidate to rival Scottie Scheffler’s three-peat attempt, with TPC Sawgrass’ punishing layout favouring those with an elite approach game.

Straka also performs well on Pete Dye-designed golf courses, ranking T8 by this metric across the last five years.

The course layout appears to suit him to a tee, and with fantastic odds, backing the Austrian to do well here doesn’t seem amiss.

Best odds: 40/1 (10EW, 1/5) with Paddy Power

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Michael Kim

One of the very best players of 2025, Kim’s rise to the top has been nothing short of a surprise.

Kim was cut last year at the Stadium course, but his flying run of form makes him one to watch.

We could very well see the best of the American this week, as a top-10 finish this week would pretty much secure him a place at The Masters in Augusta.

Some will say that Kim’s form is sure to run dry at some point, but backing the rising star to perform with The Masters on the line looks like a smart pick, especially considering his mammoth odds.

Best odds: 70/1 (8EW, 1/5) with William Hill