US Open Golf 2025: Format, Participants, Favorites, and Where to Watch

Get ready to follow the third of golf’s four major tournaments this season. The 2025 US Open Golf kicks off this Thursday, June 12, promising plenty of excitement over four days of competition — and yes, Sports Betting markets for those looking to have some fun.

Part of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour calendars, the 125th United States Open Championship returns to Oakmont Country Club for the tenth time. Located in Pennsylvania, Oakmont trails only Augusta National in the number of times it has hosted the tournament.

A total of 156 golfers will compete for the title, including the current champion Bryson DeChambeau and Olympic medalists Scottie Scheffler, Tommy Fleetwood, and Hideki Matsuyama. The tournament also continues to give amateur players the chance to showcase their talent — this year, 11 amateurs will compete, with standout Jackson Koivun, just 20 years old and champion of the Arnold Cup with the United States team.

And yes, the courses of one of the most iconic and challenging clubs in the sport promise plenty of thrills. In this guide, we’ll explain everything about this year’s US Open Golf: format, participants, prize pool, and where to watch. So grab your club and keep reading!

What is the format of the US Open Golf 2025?

The century-old US Open Golf is played over a total of 70 holes and follows the Stroke Play format (also known as Medal Play), where golfers score based on the number of strokes taken to sink the ball into each hole.

Each day of the tournament represents one round, with 18 holes played daily. Thus, the United States Open Golf scores are calculated by summing all strokes taken throughout the rounds — and the lower the total, the better the score.

After two days of play — meaning 36 holes — players are cut based on their scores, in a process known as the Cut. For the US Open, only the top 60 players advance to the third and fourth rounds — though more may continue if there’s a tie at the 60th position.

If two or more players finish tied at the top, a Playoff is used to decide the champion. In the past, this was a full 18-hole round, but the USGA shortened it to just two holes starting in 2018 to make the tiebreaker more dynamic.

And yes, the Playoff can end in a tie. If that happens in 2025, a Sudden Death will determine the winner — meaning one more hole is played, and the first golfer to sink the ball wins the title.

What are Golf matches like at Oakmont Country Club?

Chosen to host the 2025 US Open Golf, Oakmont Country Club features 7,372 yards and a total of 70 holes — it used to have 80. Opened in 1904, the course was designed by steel magnate Henry Fownes and is known as one of the toughest golf courses in the United States.

This reputation mainly comes from Oakmont’s sloping, fast greens, which make ball control especially tricky. In other words: it’s challenging no matter where the golfer stands.

Additionally, the course features two notorious bunkers. The Church Pews are islands of fescue located between holes 3 and 4, while the Piano Keys are peninsulas near the 15th hole. These features offer a distinctive visual spectacle, though fortunately the current edition of the tournament no longer includes the infamous furrows once dug by the “Devil’s Backscratcher” — a brutal rake that made the course even more unforgiving.

Who Will Compete in the 2025 US Open Golf?

The 2025 US Open Golf offers two paths for qualification: exemption and qualifiers. While exempt players earn their spot through titles or world ranking positions, others had to go through qualifying tournaments to reach the competition.

Players Qualified by Exemption

The 125th edition of the US Open Golf automatically grants entry to all champions from the past decade — including Wyndham Clark, Bryson DeChambeau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Jon Rahm, Jordan Spieth, and Gary Woodland.

Also exempt are the top ten finishers from the previous edition: Sam Burns, Patrick Cantlay, Corey Conners, Tony Finau, Russell Henley, Hideki Matsuyama, Rory McIlroy, Matthieu Pavon, Xander Schauffele, and Davis Thompson.

Among champions from other 2024 events, Richard Bland stands out for winning the U.S. Senior Open. Tournament favorite Scottie Scheffler enters as a recent Masters winner, while Phil Mickelson and Justin Thomas earned their spots through recent PGA Championship victories.

Recent Open Championship winners qualified for the US Open include Brian Harman, Collin Morikawa, and Cameron Smith. Billy Horschel, the BMW PGA Championship winner, could have participated but will not play in the tournament.

José Luis Ballester enters as the reigning U.S. Amateur champion, joined by runner-up Noah Kent. In other amateur competitions, Evan Beck qualified as the U.S. Junior Amateur champion, and Trevor Gutschewski earned his spot by winning the U.S. Mid-Amateur.

The 2024 Tour Championship qualified 15 players for the US Open — this number could’ve been higher if Sahith Theegala had entered. The group includes Ludvig Åberg, An Byeong-hun, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Akshay Bhatia, Keegan Bradley, Tommy Fleetwood, Tom Hoge, Viktor Hovland, Im Sung-jae, Chris Kirk, Shane Lowry, Robert MacIntyre, Taylor Pendrith, Aaron Rai, Adam Scott, and Sepp Straka.

The FedEx Cup also qualified the top five players in the rankings as of May 19: Jacob Bridgeman, Brian Campbell, Cameron Davis, Ryan Gerard, and Sam Stevens. In addition, Matt McCarty earned his place as the points leader on the Korn Ferry Tour, while the Race to Dubai qualified three players: Rasmus Højgaard and Thriston Lawrence as the top two from 2024, and Laurie Canter as the leader in the standings as of May 19.

Jacob Skov Olesen would have qualified via the Amateur Championship title but turned pro and lost his spot. The same happened with Luke Canton, who had won the Mark H. McCormack Medal.

Michael La Sasso enters as the 2025 NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Champion. Joining him is Justin Hastings, who earned his spot as the winner of the 2025 Latin America Amateur Championship.

Players ranked in the top 60 of the Official World Golf Ranking as of May 19 also qualified. These include Daniel Berger, Jason Day, Thomas Detry, Nick Dunlap, Nico Echavarría, Harris English, Lucas Glover, Max Greyserman, Ben Griffin, Tyrrell Hatton, Joe Highsmith, Mackenzie Hughes, Stephan Jäger, Michael Kim, Kim Si-woo, Tom Kim, Min Woo Lee, Denny McCarthy, Maverick McNealy, Andrew Novak, J. T. Poston, Patrick Reed, Davis Riley, Justin Rose, J. J. Spaun, Nick Taylor, and Jhonattan Vegas.

Three more golfers received last-minute invites after breaking into the top 60 by June 9: Bud Cauley, Ryan Fox, and Cameron Young. Lastly, Joaquín Niemann qualified for being among the top three in the individual LIV Golf League standings as of May 19.

Players Who Qualified Through Regional Tournaments

Golfers who had to go through qualifying events began their road to Pennsylvania on May 19, when three courses hosted the first rounds.

At Walton Heath Golf Club in Surrey, England, qualifiers included Sam Bairstow, Jacques Kruyswijk, Frédéric Lacroix, Joakim Lagergren, Guido Migliozzi, Edoardo Molinari, Andrea Pavan, and Jordan Smith.

From Tarao Country Club in Kōka, Japan, three players qualified: Jinichiro Kozuma, Yuta Sugiura, and Scott Vincent. The Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas, Texas, produced James Hahn, Johnny Keefer, Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen, Carlos Ortiz, Adam Schenk, Lance Simpson, and Cameron Tankersley.

The final round of qualifiers took place on June 2 across ten courses. Only one was outside the U.S.: Lambton Golf and Country Club in Toronto, Canada, which qualified Emiliano Grillo, Mark Hubbard, Niklas Nørgaard, Thorbjørn Olesen, Victor Perez, Kevin Velo, and Matt Wallace.

At Valencia Country Club in Santa Clarita, California, Joey Herrera, Riley Lewis, Zach Pollo, and Preston Summerhays earned their spots. At Emerald Dunes Club in West Palm Beach, Florida, qualifiers included Philip Barbaree, Frankie Harris, Justin Hicks, and Austen Truslow.

At Piedmont Driving Club in Atlanta, Georgia: Jackson Buchanan, Will Chandler, Mason Howell, Jackson Koivun, and Tyler Weaver qualified. From Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Maryland: Trevor Cone, Bryan Lee, Marc Leishman, and Ryan McCormick.

At Canoe Brook Country Club in Summit, New Jersey: Roberto Díaz, Chris Gotterup, Ben James, and James Nicholas qualified. At Duke University Golf Club in Durham, North Carolina: Zach Bauchou, Chandler Blanchet, Alistair Docherty, Emilio González, George Kneiser, Álvaro Ortiz, and Trent Phillips earned their spots.

From Kinsale Golf and Fitness Club in Powell, Ohio: Lanto Griffin, Justin Lower, Harrison Ott, and Erik van Rooyen qualified. Springfield Country Club in Springfield, Ohio: Zac Blair, George Duangmanee, Grant Haefner, and Maxwell Moldovan.

The final qualifier took place at Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Washington, and offered only two spots — earned by Brady Calkins and Matt Vogt. Alternates stepping in for withdrawals include Matthew Jordan, Chase Johnson, Eric Cole, Doug Ghim, Takumi Kanaya, and Riki Kawamoto.

Who Is the Favorite to Win the 2025 US Open Golf?

Scottie Scheffler, the reigning PGA Champion and Masters winner in 2022 and 2024, enters as the top favorite to win the 125th US Open Golf, with odds of 3.5. His main rival is fellow American and defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, listed at 8.0.

Spanish star Jon Rahm is the third most likely to win, with 10.0 odds to break his four-year winless streak at the event. Not far behind is Rory McIlroy, current Masters champion, with odds of 11.0 to claim his second US Open title.

Xander Schauffele, winner of both the 2024 PGA Championship and The Open Championship, is the fifth favorite at 21.0 odds. Collin Morikawa follows as the sixth favorite at 23.0, with Swedish golfer Ludvig Åberg at 26.0.

What Is the Prize for the 2025 US Open Golf?

Known for its elite status, golf typically offers hefty prizes to top players. The 125th US Open Golf maintains the highest total purse: $21.5 million, to be split among those who make the Cut — matching last year’s amount, still the largest in tournament history.

The champion is expected to earn around $4.3 million, the runner-up roughly $2.3 million, and third place approximately $1.2 million. These are estimates, as final distributions depend on two factors: the number of players tied for a position and the number of amateurs in top rankings — since prize money is awarded only to professional golfers.

Why Won’t Tiger Woods Play in the 2025 US Open Golf?

Yes, Eldrick Tont Woods is still an active golfer. Tiger Woods remains a golf legend thanks to his 108 titles and a record 82 PGA Tour wins. At 49 years old, the Florida-born athlete is far from retiring and could have played in this year’s US Open — if his physical condition allowed.

In March this year, Tiger Woods tore his Achilles tendon and underwent surgery. The injury kept the icon out of April’s Masters Tournament and is expected to sideline him for the rest of the year.

He’s been dealing with physical issues for some time now, having undergone back surgery for the sixth time in September of last year. Additionally, he suffered a serious injury to his right ankle in a car accident near Los Angeles in February 2021.

Still, Tiger Woods shows no sign of slowing down. Although he hasn’t won a title since the 2019 Masters Tournament, he continues to give golf fans the thrill of seeing him play in person — even if he’s no longer the dominant force he once was.

Where to Watch the 2025 US Open Golf

While golf may not be among the most popular sports in Brazil, don’t worry — you can still catch all four days of the 2025 US Open Golf. ESPN will broadcast the tournament on cable TV, while Disney+ will stream the matches live.

Bet on the 2025 US Open Golf at Blaze!

Now that you know everything about one of the biggest golf tournaments of 2025, you can enjoy it even more — whether you're just curious or as passionate about the sport as Donald Trump himself. Who knows, maybe the president of the United States will even show up at Oakmont Country Club?

Either way, remember to approach your betting experience responsibly, mindfully, and with the goal of adding excitement to the game — not financial stress. It’s essential to understand the risks involved with gambling.

Never bet money you can’t afford to lose, as financial losses can seriously affect your needs — and the needs of those around you. Remember: betting is not an investment or a source of income.

Lastly, be aware that gambling can be addictive, leading to mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and gambling disorder. Irresponsible gambling can have serious consequences for you and everyone around you.

Ready to take your shot at the thrill? Bet on the 2025 US Open Golf at Blaze and good luck!