Well then, wasn't that something? I can't say that I expected any part of that Ryder Cup, but man, was it riveting to watch.
I'll sum up my thoughts on the Ryder Cup here, and then actually get into the rankings for this week below.
First, captain Keegan Bradley was not up to the task and was completely overwhelmed by the situation. Secondly, Bryson DeChambeau is not a leader for Team USA, and it's clear he is more interested in chasing clout with the President than helping his team. And lastly, the fans at Bethpage Black were obnoxious and reprehensible, and this display being the current representation of American fandom should disappoint everyone. Rory McIlroy was 100% justified to hurl F-bombs back at the crowd; they deserved it.
With that out of the way, let's get back to what everyone is here for: rankings! The PGA Tour returns to the Country Club of Jackson for the Sanderson Farms Championship this week, with the field chasing the giant chicken trophy that goes to the winner. This is the second event in the FedEx Cup Fall series, and the stark drop-off in field quality from the Procore is quite evident.
The Sanderson Farms lends itself to bombers off the tee who can putt well, and Aldrich Potgieter was going to be the clear No. 1 in my rankings before I realized that he was not in the field this week. What a missed opportunity for win number two. However, we are coming off another Scottie Scheffler win at Procore (yes, I am very disappointed in Scottie for his Ryder Cup performance), so let's find another one this week.
Honorable Mentions: Cameron Champ, Matt Wallace, Max Homa, Nicolai Hojgaard, Rasmus Hojgaard
9. Michael La Sasso
The Quad God himself, reigning NCAA individual stroke play national champion Michael La Sasso finds himself in this week's field, only a couple hours south from his dorm room at Ole Miss.
While he didn't have the best week at the Walker Cup, putting up a 1-2-0 record for Team USA, La Sasso's power should set him up for success this week. He can hit the ball a country mile, and if the rest of his game can start to click into place, the 21-year-old is going to be a name to watch moving forward.
8. Jesper Svensson
Swedish star Jesper Svensson is looking to build on a decent debut campaign on the PGA Tour, where he had a strong T16 at The Open. Svensson's length off the tee should give him plenty of chances to attack the course and make plenty of birdies to keep pace with the rest of the field.
The 29-year-old is making his debut at this course, which does worry me a little bit, but for such a high-level golfer, I think the effect of never seeing this particular course before will be too much of a deterrent to Svensson's success this week.
7. Niklas Norgaard
I touched on Norgaard briefly at the Byron Nelson, but all you really need to know about him is that he can hit absolute bombs, and his putting is in the best shape of his professional career right now. Coming off a respectable T14 at the Open de France (French Open was taken already), Norgaard is trying to establish himself on the PGA Tour. A win this week would go a long way for the 33-year-old Dane, and the Sanderson Farms should be a great spot for Norgaard to give it a run.
6. Alex Smalley
Another strong performer at the Mexico Open this past year, Smalley's chances this year are backed up by the fact that he finished T5 in Jackson last season. I have always been higher on Smalley than is probably deserved (he's only had one top-five finish since May), but I just refuse to give up on a guy that has such a solid all-around game. I'm really banking on the good memories he has at this course, but if Smalley does actually come through this weekend, I want to be there for it.
5. Isaiah Salinda
After a third-place finish at the Mexico Open, it seemed like the Isaiah Salinda breakout campaign may be upon us. While thoughts of his breakout were greatly exaggerated, Salinda has shown a few spots of putting everything together, including a T13 at the Procore a couple of weeks ago against a stronger field.
Salinda exploded onto the scene in Mexico by bombing it off the tee, and that skill set will play this week for him once again. I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a top-10 finish at least for Salinda this week.
4. Kevin Yu
Your defending champ this week, Kevin Yu likes to pop up every once in a while just to remind everyone that he does have an elite skill in his driving distance. He hasn't played since the FedEx St. Jude, so Yu has had a nice two-month-long hiatus to rest his body, reset, and start pushing towards 2026. His driving is not going to be an issue (eight straight weeks of plus driving performance), but if he can find a hot week with his putter, we could be in for a repeat of last year's tournament.
3. Akshay Bhatia
The course that is closest to Country Club of Jackson, per DataGolf's course fit tool, is Vidanta Vallarta, host of the Mexico Open (RIP to a fun, if pointless, event). Bhatia played well in Mexico this past year, placing ninth in that week's event against a field of similar quality. He is the best-ranked player in the field by OWGR, and after following up a trip to the Tour Championship with a T11 at the Procore, Bhatia's game is in the right form to threaten to win this week.
2. Michael Thorbjornsen
At the end of this season, it felt like things started to all click into place more consistently for Michael Thorbjornsen. The Stanford product recorded four top-25s in his last six starts, including a T4 at the Rocket Classic. Thor's length off the tee and solid putting will be a major advantage for him this week at a course where he finished T8 last season with a negative approach performance. If his irons can get to at least neutral this week, Thorbjornsen has a great chance to win.
1. Keith Mitchell
Everyone's favorite first-round leader, Cashmere Keith finally found some good vibes in Jackson last season, tying for third at the 2024 edition. Mitchell is looking to find some good form after a very disappointing summer that saw him barely miss out on the FedEx Cup playoffs.
Mitchell has been hanging around on the PGA Tour since 2018, so he is very familiar and comfortable with the ebbs and flows of a season and having to get up for a fall event on the PGA Tour schedule. This is a spot where this veteran presence can shine through above the rest and lead Mitchell to his first win since 2019.