Hero World Challenge 2024 Preview, Picks & Analysis

Sadly, there will be no Tiger Woods at this week’s Hero World Challenge at Albany. It seems to be an annual question for the 15-time major champion - will he be fit enough to play in his own tournament?

And for 2024 the answer is resounding no. Once again, the great man has played little or no competitive golf this year, although he did remarkably well to complete all four rounds at The Masters. But his leg continues to trouble him and he has also had to endure further back surgery.

The next time we will see him in action, he will be 49 years old, looking and playing very differently from the fresh-faced young golfer who won for the first time on the PGA Tour in 1996 and then tore up the record books at The Masters the following year. 

In Woods’ absence, world number one Scottie Scheffler returns to tournament action for the first time since The Tour Championship. 

It is worth saying again that the American won SEVEN times on the PGA Tour this year, claimed the gold medal at the Olympic Games in Paris and was a member of the winning US team in the Presidents Cup. He has dominated our sport this year in a manner we have not witnessed since Woods himself was in his glorious prime.

You have to feel sorry for Xander Schauffele, who would have stolen all the headlines after his wins at the US PGA and Open Championship were it not for everything that Scheffler achieved. I would remind you that less than 12 months ago questions were being asked about Scheffler’s putting stroke - and they continued during the early part of the season. His rivals should be thankful - if his ability on the greens matched every other part of his game he would be utterly unbeatable.

And it goes without saying that he will start this week as a hot favourite to claim yet another title. Oh, did I mention that he is the defending champion? Well, of course he is!

He may well not have played tournament golf for months but he has revealed that he has been at home working hard on his game. Getting to the top is the easy part (or so they say) - staying there is the real challenge. I have no doubts that Scheffler will continue to dominate in 2025, and that he will be receiving the trophy from Woods on Sunday.

He will be joined at Albany by seven other members of the victorious US Presidents Cup team - Wyndham Clark, Patrick Cantlay, Sahith Theegala, Keegan Bradley, Russell Henley, Sam Burns and Brian Harman and three members of the International team in Sungjae Im, Tom Kim and Jason Day.

Eight players will make their Hero World Challenge debuts - Ludvig Aberg, Theegala, Henley, Robert MacIntyre, Aaron Rai, Matthieu Pavon, Akshay Bhatia and Nick Dunlap. 

The field features six golfers who have combined to win eight major championships - 2022 and 2024 Masters champion Scheffler, 2023 US Open champ Clark, 2023 Open Championship winner Harman, 2017 and 2022 PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas, 2015 PGA Championship winner Day, and 2011 PGA Championship winner Bradley.

This is, of course, a fun event. And nobody will be having more fun than Scotland’s MacIntyre. 

He is still walking on air after a year he will never forget. He earned a PGA Tour card for 2024 and is the first to admit that he struggled with life on the other side of the pond. He missed his friends and family as he played in an environment in which players tend not to mix socially - unlike Europe. But then he won the Canadian Open and, in highly emotional circumstances, the Scottish Open. He is now firmly established in the top 20 in the world rankings, has places on all four majors and the PGA Tours’s signature events and his future could not look brighter.

Tournament Winners:

It was won in 2015 by Bubba Watson, in 2016 by Hideki Matsuyama, in 2017 by Rickie Fowler, in 2018 by Jon Rahm, in 2019 by Henrik Stenson, and in 2021 and 2022 by Viktor Hovland, and in 2023 by Scottie Scheffler. There was no tournament in 2020.

The Course:

Albany is a stunning course designed by Ernie Els. It combines a mixture of links and desert features, with windswept dunes and several water features. It is a par 72 that measures 7,309 yards.

Form Guide:

Can anybody stop Scottie Scheffler from successfully defending his title? Erm, no!

How to Watch:

Thursday, December 5, Friday, December 6, Sky Sports Golf, 6.30pm, Saturday, December 7, Sky Sports Golf, 5pm, Sunday, December 8, Sky Sports Golf, 4.30pm.

To Win:

Scottie Scheffler. Of course

Each Way:

Robert MacIntyre. Living the dream

Each Way:

Keegan Bradley. The big comeback story

Five to Follow:

Scottie Scheffler. Glorious to watch

Robert MacIntyre. Touch of an angel

Keegan Bradley. Easy Ryder?

Nick Dunlap. Thrilling talent

Sahith Theegala. Hugely entertaining