Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches 2025 Preview, Picks & Analysis

I have a feeling that Shane Lowry is going to have a decent year in 2025. He started it by going toe to toe with his great mate Rory McIlroy at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, where he came off second best.

Lowry has a wonderful short game and is one of our sport’s best shotmakers and he will surely fancy his chances of doing something special at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches at PGA National. He was runner-up here three years ago when the tournament was known as the Honda Classic.

Another who will return with fond memories is Sepp Straka, who won the event in 2022 to become the first Austria to claim victory on the PGA Tour.

Perennial crowd favourite Rickie Fowler has also committed. He won this event in 2017 and has three other top 10s but is currently sliding down the world rankings and needs to quickly find some form if he is to find his way into this year’s majors.

Austin Eckroat will return to defend. Twelve months ago this was his maiden success and he proved it was no fluke by adding the World Wide Technology Championship in November.

(Image Credit: Kevin Diss Photography)

Last year, Eckroat held off Lowry and England's David Skinns to win his first PGA Tour title on a Monday finish at the rain-delayed Cognizant Classic.

The American was 15 under after seven holes on Sunday when play was suspended at the Florida course. On Monday, Eckroat added three birdies and a bogey to finish 17 under and seal victory on his 50th PGA Tour start. Lowry and Skinns finished in a five-way tie for fourth place on 13 under.

Eckroat looks like the real deal. He was born in Edmond, Oklahoma on January 12, 1999 and attended Oklahoma State University from 2017 to 2020 and was a four-time All-American with the Cowboys, who won the NCAA team title in 2018.

He also competed in the Walker Cup in 2021.

He turned professional in 2021 and earned limited status on the Korn Ferry Tour for 2022 through qualifying school. He played in just two events in the first half of the season and missed both cuts. His third start came at the Advent Health Championship in May, where he tied for 23rd, earning entry into the next event and commencing a stretch of nine top-25 finishes in the final 11 regular-season events, highlighted by a runner-up finish at the Memorial Health Championship. He qualified for the Korn Ferry Tour Finals, where he earned a PGA Tour card after finishing second at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship.

In May 2023, Eckroat was runner-up at the Byron Nelson in Texas, one shot behind Jason Day. A month later in the final round of the US Open he tied the nine-hole record of 29 and tied for 10th. And those two victories in 2024 confirmed his huge promise.

It is also interesting to see Jordan Spieth in the field. He was a late entrant as he seeks a return to form after wrist surgery last year. The early signs have been pretty encouraging, with a tied fourth finish at the Phoenix Open. Missing the cut at the Genesis was not part of the plan, however. Determined to get himself ready for the big events to come, Spieth has entered this week.

Tournament Winners:

It was won in 2015 by Padraig Harrington, in 2016 by Adam Scott, in 2017 by Rickie Fowler, in 2018 by Justin Thomas, in 2019 by Keith Mitchell, in 2020 by Sungjae Im, in 2021 by Matt Jones, in 2022 by Sepp Straka, in 2023 by Chris Kirk and last year by Austin Eckroat.

The Course:

PGA National’s Champion course opened in 1981 and staged the Ryder Cup in 1983 and the US PGA Championship in 1987. It underwent a $4m renovation in 2002. The tough three-hole stretch of the par-3 15th, par-4 16th, and par-3 17th holes is known as "The Bear Trap," named after Jack Nicklaus who is nicknamed the Golden Bear and redesigned the course. It is a par 70 measuring 7,048 yards and the winner is going to be looking for a score around 270.

Form Guide:

Shane Lowry has made an excellent start to the season, going toe to toe with Rory McIlroy at Pebble Beach, and is desperate to win - PGA National is made for his game.

Prize Money:

Total prize money is $9m, with the winner’s share around $1.6m. There are also 500 FedEx Cup points to the champion.

How to Watch:

Thursday, February 27, Friday, February 28, Sky Sports Golf, 4pm; Saturday, March 1, 3pm; Sunday, March 2, 2.30pm.

To Win:

Shane Lowry. Fabulous short game

Each Way:

Austin Eckroat. Class act

Five to Follow:

Shane Lowry. Time for another win

Austin Eckroat. Could win a lot of tournaments

Min Woo Lee. Exciting golfer

Jordan Spieth. Still feeling his way back.

Luke Clanton. Amateur star