2024 Hero World Challenge: 5 Potential Golfers Who Can Still Enter the 20-Man Field

Tiger Woods has announced the 17-man field for the 2024 Hero World Challenge. Scottie Scheffler leads the contingent, followed by four from the world’s top ten. Notably, there are still three spots open to be filled later. There hasn’t been any clarity on when the final announcement will come. Nevertheless, here are our five picks who might end up booking a flight to the Bahamas in early December.

Rory McIlroy

The Ulsterman has played the Bahamas tournament only three times in his career. Rory McIlroy is committed to the last two events in the DP World Tour calendar: the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and the DP World Tour Championship. So, his season will wrap up by November 17. Another 72-hole round two weeks later might be the right tune-up for McIlroy and Scheffler before heading to Shadow Creek for ‘The Match’ on December 17.

Xander Schauffele

Barring 2021, Xander Schauffele has never missed the Hero World Challenge. Last year, he finished solo fourth. The field does look a bit incomplete with having the two-time major champion in Albany. Currently, the world’s second-best golfer is in Japan for the Zozo Championship. The schedule on his website doesn’t show any other PGA Tour event after the Japan trip. So, a late announcement of Schauffele’s name is not unlikely. 

Matt McCarty

Yes, a bit of an outlier, but then who has had a better season in the Korn Ferry Tour than the 26-year-old Santa Clara University grad? McCarty won thrice this year, earning his way to the PGA Tour. And then he netted his first PGA Tour title in what was his only second start. For the 2024 Black Desert champion, an invite from Tiger Woods for the Hero World Challenge would be a massive shot in the arm.

Nick Dunlap

First amateur to win on Tour since Phil Mickelson. Winning twice in his first season. Need we say more? The only thing missing from Nick Dunlap was a bit more consistency. But considering his age—he is still 20—and the fact that this is the first time he is playing on the PGA Tour courses, three top-tens with two titles is something the University of Alabama grad should be proud of. And, if Nick Dunlap takes one of those three spots available, it won’t cause any surprise or furor. 

Tiger Woods

Finally, the usual suspect. Yes, he had undergone a microdiscectomy in September. But there is a chance that the 82-time PGA Tour winner might recover just in time to tee off at the tournament he hosts. Last year, Woods kept one spot free and announced himself as the last player two weeks before the tournament. Besides, the 15-time major champion has made a comeback at his own tournament several times in his career. 

What about Justin Thomas and Viktor Hovland? Thomas will become a first-time dad at the end of November. Yes, Jon Rahm made a Europe trip after his wife gave birth to their third child, but for the Spaniard, it was a necessity to keep his Tour card and Ryder Cup hopes alive. That’s not the case for Justin Thomas. So, there is reason to believe he would prefer family time over the 2024 Hero World Challenge.

On the other hand, two-time winner Viktor Hovland is also likely to sit out of the Hero World Challenge. The Norwegian has sustained an injury and will not tee off again this year. He will also miss the closing stretch of the DP World Tour season. The Hero World Challenge will start on December 5. Golf Channel will broadcast the rounds in Stateside.