Wednesday morning of the 2025 Players Championship, Rory McIlroy spoke to the gaggle of press members that gathered outside the media center in the flash area. It was cool — chilly, really — with dew still on the ground waiting to be swept by the early goers who aimed to put last-minute preparations together for the week ahead. Nothing that notable came out of McIlroy’s mouth unless you count a shot across the aisle at the … Champions Tour.
With time to spare following a mundane meet up with the future champion, I decided to walk up the 18th hole towards the merchandise tent to cash in on a $50 gift card that was burning a hole through my pocket. While on my journey, an elderly couple was making the same trek.
The woman asked her husband if McIlroy was in the field; he confirmed Rory was indeed playing.
“Isn’t it nice that he still tries,” she replied.
I zoomed past them on the left — in true Floridian fashion, leaving them in my dust — sort of like McIlroy did to J.J. Spaun in the three-hole aggregate playoff five days later.
The par-3 17th was still quiet at this time of day, but once through the stadium-like build out, the Fan Zone emerged. This is the largest merchandise tent of the year on the PGA Tour, and I wanted to see what it had to offer. While the outside world saw grandfathers and grandmothers making lovely strolls through the perfectly manicured Pete Dye design, the Fan Zone housed loud music, gaudy designs and a younger crowd with plenty of plastic.
A sign at the entrance stated no food or drinks, but it quickly became apparent there was nothing noted about clouds, forecast be damned. Backward hats were barely on heads, crowds formed around the influx of foul headwear and bros bro’d down with the best of them.
I asked myself, “Is this golf, or is this just Florida?”
The PGA Tour’s Florida Swing came to an exciting end Sunday at the Valspar Championship. Putting a bow on a four-tournament stretch that saw three of the top eight players in the world win — highlighted by McIlroy’s masterful performance at TPC Sawgrass — this run of events answered plenty of questions the West Coast Swing did not.
There were winners, there were losers, there were a lot of memorable moments. That’s where we will live as we dish out awards for the PGA Tour’s annual stop in the Sunshine State as major championship season lurks around the corner.
R-E-L-A-X Award
The possibility of Aaron Rodgers joining my Pittsburgh Steelers has brought unnecessary stress into my life, but it has been nothing compared to what players experienced at the Copperhead Course. Was there something in Tampa-area water?
Clubs were tossed, temper tantrums were had and no one was immune from it. Speaking of football, Patton Kizzire put on a punting exhibition that would make Ray Guy gush when he executed a coffin corner punt to perfection … with his putter. Adam Hadwin slammed a club against a sprinkler head and was met with a wet rebuttal. Justin Lower snapped a wedge after a poor bunker shot. Sahith Theegala slammed, picked up and threw his club again en route to a par. Even Jordan Spieth got in on the action.
I could not tell you why everyone was in such a mood — it’s a difficult golf course, yes — but it was clear everyone just needed to take a deep breath and R-E-L-A-X. That’s probably the only advice they need to take from Rodgers.
Winner: Players at the Valspar Championship
Resale-only Tickets Award
I asked you to wait a month to get excited about McIlroy at the Masters, and that month has brought nothing but more hype for his chances to complete the career grand slam. Third-class tickets have officially sold out on the hype train. Resale value has skyrocketed. My apologies! It’s not my fault the world No. 2 is playing the best golf in the world at the moment (which does not necessarily mean he is the best golfer, mind you) with Augusta National knocking at the door.
The reason for excitement feels different than years past. McIlroy has won twice before the calendar flips to April for the first time in his career. He has introduced sawed-off iron shots and flighted wedges that former versions of himself simply did not have. He eliminated the left side of the golf course at TPC Sawgrass and went through the Florida Swing without carding a double bogey. He is golfing his golf ball like we have never seen before.
I can’t sit here and tell you not to jump aboard the hype train. You already had one foot in, and now you’re waving goodbye. So, go. Have fun! Accommodations are scarce at this point, and you’re going to have to shack up with a random in steerage, but you don’t care, and why should you?! McIlroy is making his march to the Masters, and you want to be apart of it, so be apart of it.
Winner: Rory McIlroy’s hype train to Augusta National
Newsmaker of the ‘Swing’ Award
Tiger Woods did not play once during the Florida Swing. In fact, he has not played on the PGA Tour since the 2024 Open Championship, but that did not stop the 15-time major champion from making headlines. First, there was his trip to the White House where he met with President Donald Trump alongside PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan and Adam Scott to discuss the ongoing negotiations between the PGA Tour and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
OK, noteworthy for sure, but Woods had more to share. As Ludvig Åberg’s press conference at The Players Championship was ongoing, the 49-year-old announced on social media that he had undergone surgery on a ruptured Achilles while gearing up for the Masters. His return — if there will be one — remains unknown as attention in the room quickly switched from the Swede to the superstar.
Woods wasn’t done with his social media antics as — just this weekend — he bizarrely hard launched his new relationship with Vanessa Trump — Donald Trump Jr.’s ex-wife. We’ll leave it at that. Love is in the air, and Cat still moves the needle. Now, please heed to the advice of his public post and respect his privacy.
Winner: Tiger Woods
The Double Clutch Award
Perhaps my favorite player to follow during the final two weeks in Florida was Cauley. The Alabama product entered the 2025 season playing on a major medical extension and with 10 starts to gather the necessary amount of FedEx Cup points to secure full-time status for the rest of the year. While he did not enter the winner’s circle at TPC Sawgrass as an alternate, he did cross the FedEx Cup points threshold needed with his T6 finish. He parlayed this success in Ponte Vedra Beach to more of the same in the Tampa area as he nearly raced down the field Sunday at the Valspar Championship. Cauley finished T4 and has gone from sweating about his playing privileges to No. 35 in the FedEx Cup standings.
Winner: Bud Cauley
Florida Man Award
Billy Horschel was born for this award and all but locked it up in the first round of the Cognizant Classic when he guided a gator off the golf course with a 60 degree wedge and stated afterwards that it was no big deal. Oh, and then he ripped the set up at PGA National for being too easy. Hell yeah, Billy! He wasn’t finished, however, as Horschel lamented that he had no control of his golf swing at The Players. One week later, he was in contention at the Valspar Championship where on Sunday he went from swinging right handed to left handed back to right handed on the greens to steal a birdie in the early stages of his final round.
He may not have won a normal PGA Tour event his home state — and TGL certainly does not count toward the Florida swing — but he also just spent the last two days in Florida setting fire to the SoFi Center in Palm Beach Gardens while leading Atlanta Drive GC to the become inaugural TGL champions.
Winner: Billy Horschel
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