IN all likelihood we all made mistakes this Christmas Day. Attacked the Toblerone before breakfast? At least three-too-many pigs in blankets? A third helping of pudding? The belt is probably feeling the strain and it is all contributing to the general wear and tear that eventually leads to cosy middle age, but golf’s finest player, Scottie Scheffler, maintained his secondary theme of 2024 (clumsiness) and trumped us all.

The man who contrived to get himself arrested at the PGA Championship somehow found himself requiring minor surgery for a cut hand following an accident when preparing Christmas dinner. Bad news for Scheffler, who misses the first of the season’s eight Signature events – The Sentry on the Plantation Course at Kapalua in Hawaii – but good news for the field which can make a head start on him because his main theme last year was dominating them. In all he won nine times and he has a particular fondness for the first few months on the calendar (once he’s got rid of the rust in January).

He won February’s Phoenix Open back-to-back in 2022 and 2023, and was third last year. He claimed the Arnold Palmer Invitational in both 2022 and 2024, finishing fourth in-between. He’ll head to the Players Championship in search of a three-peat having been victorious in each of the last two years. And he’s also won the 2022 and 2024 Masters. In fact, he won 10 of his 22 starts in February, March and April of the last three years. If the hand heals correctly we can expect more of the same in 2025.

What else can we look forward to on the PGA Tour? Well, those eight Signature events are an example of the elite taking their fondness for gated communities into the competitive environment. The Sentry includes only 2024’s winners and the top 30 in the rankings. The other Signature events are a little more democratic in stretching to fields of 72 but with prize funds of $20 million and only the top 50 in the end-of-year rankings guaranteed entry it makes breaking through those gates somewhat problematic.

On the playing side, Xander Schauffele will be seeking to build on the two majors he won in 2024 not least because when golfers win multiple majors they tend to do so in quick time. Padraig Harrington won his trio in two years, Jordan Spieth’s three came in three years, Rory McIlroy’s quartet in four years. These are high class performers so they can win again but it is often a one-off after the initial rush of success. The importance of that sweet spot – and making the absolute most of it – cannot be under-estimated (and McIlroy, of course, knows this better than most).

A couple of other highlights to anticipate include the delicious prospect of the Truist (formerly Wells Fargo) Championship visiting the Philadelphia Cricket Club and then there is the tale of the Wirral’s Paul Waring. In recent years this DP World Tour veteran has spent Open week walking the course with a mic in hand, chatting away to BBC radio listeners. After his stunning win in last year’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship he has booked himself a spot in the field at Royal Portrush and he also nabbed a PGA Tour card for 2025. His journey will be one for the romantics and provide significantly more pleasure than watching the stars flap around in their gilded cages.

What of this week’s action? The Plantation Course has a stunning location and it is a cunning test. Short par-4s climb steep slopes and then enormous par-4s tumble down them. The yardage book is often redundant. The trade winds can be a significant factor – in fact it tends to be the only thing that keeps the scoring in check – but current forecasts suggest that the breezes won’t inconvenience the field too much. Here are three to take on the favourites.

Each Way – Sahith Theegala at 28/1

The elegant Aussie Adam Scott makes some appeal. He ended 2024 with third place in Dubai and was twice second on the PGA Tour last year – he’s hungry to lift another trophy and has been a runner-up on the course. Wyndham Clark is another to ponder. He’s desperate to rediscover the winning touch, has won by the Pacific at Pebble Beach, thrived on a tropical island when second in Bermuda and thrashed a final round 63 last year.

But Sahith Theegala just edges the pair. He always looked a good fit for the course on paper and proved it last year when he was a good second, pushing for the win in aggressive fashion during the final round. He loves a track he can attack and he’s bubbling towards a second PGA Tour win. He added seconds at Harbour Town and East Lake (in scoring, at least) last year following the near miss here.

Each Way – Austin Eckroat at 66/1

Last year’s winner of this tournament, Chris Kirk, had won at PGA National the year before his win in Hawaii and Eckroat picked up his first PGA Tour win there last March. That’s more coincidence than determining factor because there’s not a lot in common between the two courses (other than Bermuda grass on the greens). What appeals is that he was a two-time winner in 2024 and that his second win was on the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal. Like this week it was wide open, asked to be attacked and had ocean views.

Each Way – Nico Echavarria at 100/1

Like Eckroat, Nico Echavarria might have been a little overlooked with the view that he’s performed at his best when up against the journeymen and dreamers rather than the tour’s elite. The Colombian landed his first win in 2023 on the holiday island of Puerto Rico. He struggled afterwards but hit a golden patch late last year. He won in Japan but then went low at El Cardanal, played nicely in Bermuda and was second at Sea Island.

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