RSM Classic 2025: Which Rising Stars Could Shake Up the Tournament and Claim Glory?

Football season’s in full swing, but let me ask you this—when the final full-field PGA TOUR event of 2025 rolls into town, how could I possibly resist? The RSM Classic at Sea Island Resort in St. Simons Island, Georgia, isn’t just another tour stop; it’s got that quirky twist where players alternate between the Seaside and Plantation Courses before finishing on Seaside. It’s like a tactical chess match spread across two stunning layouts. What’s more, with the “Sea Island Mafia” of PGA TOUR regulars calling St. Simons home, this event usually outshines the FedExCup Fall Series field—but hold on, 2025’s edition feels different. The top dogs from the American Ryder Cup squad are off tuning elsewhere, and the last couple of champs won’t be defending their turf. So here’s my angle: I’m betting on those golfers with untapped potential who’ve been grinding through the Fall Series, ranking high in my models, and I’ve got a quartet of contenders who fit the bill perfectly. Will one of them finally break through? If you’re curious about who’s poised to light up Sea Island’s fairways, buckle up. LEARN MORE.

It’s the heart of football season, but there is no way I’m missing out on betting the final full-field PGA TOUR event of 2025: The RSM Classic at Sea Island Resort in St. Simons Island, Georgia. The RSM Classic has a unique setup with each golfer alternating between the Seaside and Plantation Courses for the first two rounds, and playing the final two rounds on the former.

Since several St. Simons Island residents play on the PGA TOUR, aka the “Sea Island Mafia,” the RSM usually has a stronger field than the rest of the FedExCup Fall series events. But this year is different because the American Ryder Cup team played at the Procore Championship as a tune-up for the Ryder Cup, and the last two RSM Classic winners aren’t in the field.

There is a common theme on my 2025 RSM Classic betting card: Golfers with unrealized potential who have been playing in the FedExCup Fall Series and rank high in my models. The last two RSM champions check all three boxes, as do my four horses for the course at Sea Island Golf Club. Here they are.

The following odds are from when I bet on the golfers listed below, and they may have changed since then.

Between talent and recent form, Thorbjornsen should be the betting favorite to win the 2025 RSM Classic. He is the 2024 PGA TOUR University valedictorian with three top-five finishes this year, including a third at the Baycurrent Classic last month. Thorbjornsen has played in five of the six FedExCup Fall events this season.

The last two RSM champions, Ludvig Åberg in 2023 and Maverick McNealy last year, were also studs who broke through for their first PGA TOUR win at Sea Island. Ludvig was the PGA TOUR University valedictorian in the Class of 2023. McNealy won the 2015 Haskins Award for the best collegiate male golfer in the United States.

More importantly, I’ve bet Thorbjornsen so many times this season that I couldn’t live with myself if I missed out on his first victory in an obvious spot. For what it’s worth, he is third in my model at Betsperts Golf and fourth in my 32-round model at BetTheNumber. Thorbjornsen hits the ball long and straight, lights up easy courses, and finished T8 at the 2024 RSM.

Whaley has made the cut in all six FedExCup Fall Series events this year, highlighted by T3s at the Sanderson Farms Championship and the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. He has a good short-game (putting and chipping), but his ball-striking (driving and APP) is inconsistent. Yet, Whaley was T8 and T13 in the last two RSMs while gaining strokes in ball-striking and on the greens.

Nevertheless, this is a good price for Whaley, who is a local that’s peaking and underrated, according to DataGolf.com, a respected website in the golf betting community. The Georgian is 59th in DataGolf.com’s rankings but 107th in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) and 73rd in the 2025 FedExCup standings.

Over the last 32 rounds, Meissner leads this field in Par 5 scoring, and ranks seventh in Strokes Gained (SG): Approach (APP), and 17th in APP shots from 100-175 yards, per BetTheNumber.com. APP-play is the most predictive stat in golf; most of the APP shots at Sea Island come from 100-175 yards, and Par 5 is predictive because it uses the most clubs in the bag. Golfers have to beat up on the Par-5s in their only round at the Plantation Course, which is a Par-72.

Furthermore, Meissner is 12th in this field for SG: Putting over his last 24 rounds on Bermudagrass greens and third in total SG on comp courses to Sea Island, including a second at the 2025 Wyndham Championship. He has made the cut in his four FedExCup Fall Series starts and has gained strokes with his driver and irons in all four.

Maybe Rodgers will be the second consecutive golfer to pop his PGA TOUR cherry after Adam Schenk won last week’s Butterfield Bermuda Championship. Rodgers is five months younger than Schenk with a better pedigree and ranks higher on DataGolf.com, the OWGR, and the 2025 FedExCup standings.

Rodgers’ game is sharp, and he has continued to grind after the PGA TOUR’s 2025 season. He played in three DP World Tour events since and played in five of the six FedExCup Fall events. Rodgers was T6 at the World Wide Technology Championship earlier this month and T15 at the Wyndham. Those tournaments are on crossover courses to Sea Island.

The Stanford Cardinal hasn’t realized his potential, but Rodgers flushes it, ranks fifth on my 32-round model at BetTheNumber.com, and has played well at Sea Island. He was the No. 1-ranked amateur in the world in 2014 and tied Tiger Woods’ record of 11 wins at Stanford. Rodgers has finished T17 and T10 at the last two RSM Classics, second in 2018, and T10 in 2016.

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Follow me on X (or Twitter, whatever) @Geoffery-Clark, and check out my OutKick Bets Podcast for more betting content and random rants. I’ll add bets to my PGA Tour 2025 betting record via X throughout the entire season.