As one of three “legacy invitationals” — along with the Genesis Invitational (hosted by Tiger Woods) and the Arnold Palmer Invitational — the Memorial features a small field (69 golfers) and friendly 36-hole cut. Competitors within the top 50 or 10 shots of the lead at the end of Round 2 will make the weekend.
The winner will earn 700 FedExCup points and $4 million of the $20 million purse. Viktor Hovland is your defending champion.
Last week’s PGA Tour winner (RBC Canadian Open), Robert MacIntyre, and his grass-cuttin’ dad, will not be participating. Well deserved.
Here’s are the three biggest storylines heading into the 49th edition of the Memorial at Muirfield Village, a.k.a “Jack’s Place.”
The Memorial preview: 3 storylines
3. Jack’s Place is no walk in the park
Since opening the venue in 1974, Jack Nicklaus has personally remodeled every hole at Muirfield Village. The result is one of the most recognizable and famed PGA Tour venues — and arguably the toughest.
A mammoth par-72, 7,569 yard-trek, Muirfield Village offers the rare combination of daunting length and small (Bentrgrass) greens. Yet, perhaps no course on the PGA Tour penalizes missed fairways more harshly. It’s the ultimate test of precise ball-striking and iron play.
Muirfield’s signature hole, the 220-yard 16th, has long ranked amongst the least forgiving par 3s in golf. After a particularly brutal 2023, Nicklaus moved the 16th tee box 30 yards to the right to keep the water mostly out of play. He also removed a greenside bunker.
“I think it’s more fair now,” said Xander Schauffele, the second-best player in the world who will be competing for the first time since snagging his first major at the PGA Championship.
“I think taking that bunker out allows you to be as defensive as you would like without sort of laying up with like a 50-yard pitch shot. So I think you’re going to see a lot of balls end up in that little area there, especially those front two pins. I think it’s more fair.”
Considering the overall stiffness of the course and the exclusivity of the field, expect to see a true PGA Tour star in the winner’s circle. This isn’t an event that typically produces unheralded champs.
Jack may not be thrilled about its placement on the schedule, but the Memorial should offer a useful test before the 2024 U.S. Open gets underway at Pinehurst No. 2, where strong iron performance is paramount.
2. Viktor Hovland, fully back (to-back)?
Hovland seemed to turn a corner at the PGA Championship. After reuniting with his old swing coach, Hovland — who looked like the best player on earth when he won the FedExCup playoffs then Ryder Cup last summer — had looked lost in 2024.
At Valhalla, he finished solo third — easily his best result of the year.
“I was super proud about that week,” Hovland told reporters in Dublin on Tuesday. “After not playing very good golf the first few months of the year, it was nice to turn something around and what was really cool to see was as soon as I found a shot that I knew where the ball was going and I could get myself around the golf course, I was immediately up in contention. That was really cool to see that it wasn’t going to be a project that was going to take two, three months. It was a nice little feel that got me to hit the ball better immediately.”
Last year, Hovland gained 6.5 strokes on the Memorial field with his irons and another 4.6 off-the-tee as he topped Denny McCarthy in a playoff. That’s top-notch ball-striking.
“Sure, that helps, but this golf course doesn’t care about your memories or good vibes,” Hovland said at his pre-tournament presser. “t’s going to punish you and bring you down if you miss it on the wrong sides. I think it’s one of the hardest courses we play all year, so you definitely have to bring your A game, whether you’re defending champion or not.”
The last golfer to repeat at the Memorial? You guessed it. Tiger Woods, in 2001 (also the last year Adam Scott missed a major.)
1. Scottie Scheffler, free!
Instead of being arraigned in Louisville this week, Scheffler can navigate newfound fatherhood and his professional golf career without felony charges looming over his head.
Despite the distractions, Scheffler still finished T8 at the PGA Championship and T2 at the Charles Schwab Challenge. He won four of his five prior PGA Tour starts.
Scheffler has finished solo third each of the the last two Memorials. He was, by far, the best tee-to-green player in the field in 2023, gaining more than 20 strokes on the field. He fell short of the playoff by one stroke, thanks to a shaky putter.
One year later, Scheffler enters Muirfield having gained strokes on the field with his mallet in seven straight events. His ball-striking remains unrivaled.
“I try not to focus too much on the results, especially with putting,” he said Tuesday. “A lot of it has to do with kind of our approach to things, but … seven weeks in a row … that’s a great stat. It’s nice to see kind of the fruits of labor.
“I feel like what I’m trying to do now with my putting, I’m trying to get more into my athleticism, more trying to get into feel and seeing versus being very technical. I obviously work on the technical side of my game and putting, but on the course just trying to get be athletic, be competitive and go do what I’m naturally good at, and that’s going out there and competing.”
Pick: Collin Morikawa. He was two strokes off the lead after 54 holes in 2024 before withdrawing due to a back injury. His irons and focus have been sharp since the Masters. He’s due for a dub.
Enjoy the golf!
