The Five: Take a closer look at five most underrated performers on PGA TOUR this season

With Scottie Scheffler’s victory at the PGA Championship, the dominant storyline in golf for the foreseeable future will be the battle for supremacy at the top of the game between Scheffler and Rory McIlroy.

But to focus solely on the top of the sport is to ignore some of the impressive performances and seasons that are developing elsewhere. Who is putting together a career season, making the leap from who we previously knew them to be? What unproven pros are emerging into consistent contenders? And are there any players coming back into our collective consciousness after injuries set them back?

Let’s take a look at five of the most underrated performers thus far this season.

Corey Conners

It’s been a banner year for the Canadian Corey Conners, who has done everything but win this season on the PGA TOUR.

At No. 7 – yes, seventh – in the FedExCup, Conners is having the best season of any non-winner on TOUR. He has five top 10s, third-most this season behind only Scottie Scheffler and Justin Thomas (is that any good?), top 20s in seven of his last eight starts – and he’s showing up in the biggest events. Conners finished T6 at THE PLAYERS Championship, T8 at the Masters and T19 at the PGA Championship. It’s the first time in his career that he’s finished inside the top-20 of the first two majors of the year.

All that consistency has pushed Conners to 19th in the Official World Golf Ranking, the best mark of his career.

Conners relies on his steady ball-striking to put himself in position, but the top-end results have come because of putting improvements. Consistently a below-average putter, losing strokes on the greens in every season of his career, Conners is just slightly above average this season. That’s made all the difference. He’s gained strokes on the greens in seven of his last nine starts, including at TPC Sawgrass, Augusta National and Quail Hollow Club.

An understated personality with an understated game, Conners flies under the radar. He shouldn’t after this start to 2025.

Daniel Berger

He began the year outside the top 125 players in the OWGR. Now he’s a top-25 player. That’s the jump Daniel Berger has made this season, his first fully healthy season since stepping aside from pro golf in 2022 because of chronic back issues.

Berger is up to 15th in the FedExCup after finishing T3-T11-T33 in his last three starts (two Signature Events and the PGA Championship) and is closely resembling the version of himself that we saw before the back injury. Statistically, he hasn’t played this consistently since March of 2022, per Data Golf. His ball-striking is carrying him (17th off the tee and 15th in approach), but every part of the game is working for him. He’s without a weakness this season, gaining strokes in all five of the major strokes gained categories.

After missing two of his first three cuts to begin the year, he’s made the cut in his last 10 starts, and his worst finish was the T33 at the PGA.

It’s time to think of Berger the way we did before his injury: a threat in major championships, a favorite to win week-in and week-out on TOUR, and a possible Ryder Cup player.

Jacob Bridgeman

Bridgeman has made the leap in his second full season on the PGA TOUR. In his rookie year, he struggled just to keep his card, needing a strong fall after finishing the regular season 123rd in the FedExCup standings. Now, he’s projected to make it all the way to East Lake, currently 23rd in the FedExCup.

Bridgeman has made the most of the weeks he’s playing well. He’s had a chance to win in three of his four top 10s, including a runner-up at the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches. He added a solo-third at the Valspar Championship and a T4 at the Truist Championship, arguably his best finish because of field strength.

Bridgeman struggled in his first major championship, missing the cut at the PGA, but he’s still been one of the success stories of the 2025 season, playing his way into the last three Signature Events.

His putting is his superpower, currently third on TOUR in Strokes Gained: Putting. That has made up for an average season tee-to-green, and while that often isn’t sustainable for others, Bridgeman has proven it can be for him.

Keegan Bradley

Keegan Bradley the U.S. Ryder Cup captain? He’s not underrated nor under-recognized. But Keegan Bradley the golfer? He’s flying under the radar.

Bradley, 38, is quietly having one of his best statistical seasons in years. He’s pacing to have his second-best SG: Total season in the last 10 years, powered by a tee-to-green game that ranks fifth on TOUR, which would be the best mark of his career.

Bradley has struggled at times with the putter this season, the only thing holding him back from top-end results. Thus far, he has three top 10s. His T5 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard is his best finish.

Yet Bradley has carved out a spot as one of the most consistent golfers this season. He’s 28th in the FedExCup and 16th in the OWGR. That’s naturally going to lead to Ryder Cup questions down the line and whether or not Bradley should play. In that scenario, would he play and remain captain? Or would he have to pass off the captaincy to one of his assistants? That conversation will heat up in the coming months, but for now, what he’s doing in his 15th season on TOUR is underrated.

Ryan Gerard

Ryan Gerard notched his career-best showing at a major, finishing T8 at the PGA Championship, and it wasn’t a fluke given his form. Gerard has put together an impressive season in his first year as a PGA TOUR member, ranked 33rd in the FedExCup.

Gerard has three top 10s in his last two months, including a runner-up at the Valero Texas Open. He’s missed just two cuts in 15 starts and is playing well above what his world ranking (currently 74th) would indicate. The PGA Championship was the first time Gerard showcased his talent on a big stage. He was right in the mix after a first-round 66 and stuck around through the weekend while many of the early-round contenders fell apart.

Gerard is a former top amateur and standout at the University of North Carolina and that promise is coming to fruition now on TOUR. Gerard ranks 14th in SG: Total this season and is positive in every major category.