It seems like just yesterday I shared my 2025 Bold Predictions for what those 12 months would look like. Like most predictions, though, most were wrong—some hilariously inaccurate.
Sure, I got some things right. In fast forward: I correctly predicted Scottie Scheffler would win the PGA Championship and PGA Tour Player of the Year; no formal agreement between the PGA Tour and LIV would take place; Alabama did get its revenge on Vanderbilt; Liverpool won the Premier League; and the Oklahoma City Thunder were NBA champions. The NCAA also failed to make any real progress on NIL or the transfer portal.
Most of everything else, though—wrong. The Masters did not finish on Monday, though it did go to a 73rd hole before Rory completed the Career Grand Slam.
I did not have a good showing in my Section’s Professional Championship (84–74), the USA did not win the Ryder Cup, and my hometown New Orleans Saints finished 2025 at 6–11 (losing in Week 18 for one last loss in early 2026), and never seriously contending for the playoffs.
Tiger Woods did not play all year, Liverpool did not win the Champions League, and I even got a few basic things wrong: Boise State vs. Penn State was played on New Year’s Eve 2024, not New Year’s Day 2025.
With all that said, in fast forward—what will 2026 look like?
Scottie Scheffler wins The Masters with one amateur making the cut. Sepp Straka wins the PGA Championship, but no PGA Professionals make the cut. Viktor Hovland takes the U.S. Open, Robert MacIntyre wins The Open Championship, Ben Griffin wins The Players, and the USA wins the Presidents Cup.
The PGA Tour and LIV continue to get nowhere on an agreement. Brooks Koepka becomes a PGA Tour member again at the end of 2026 but spends the season playing majors and events in distant corners of the globe. LIV events are approved for Official World Golf Ranking points, but at a very low points scale, drawing mixed reactions throughout the golf community.
I’ll expand on this in a future article, but I predict the PGA Tour creates another competitive tier in some fashion—signature and non-signature events—helping alleviate complaints about reduced membership sizes and limited tournament access.
On the women’s side, Ingrid Lindblad wins the Chevron Championship; Lottie Woad the U.S. Women’s Open; Brooke Henderson the KPMG Women’s PGA; Madelene Sagström the Amundi Evian Championship; and Nelly Korda the AIG Women’s Open. Megha Ganne wins the Augusta National Women's Amateur.
The R&A announces Muirfield will host a future AIG Women’s Open. Trump Turnberry returns to the rotation for The Open, and despite being located in the Republic of Ireland, Portmarnock is awarded an R&A event as a test run for a future Open Championship.
For the over-50 set, Justin Leonard wins the Regions Tradition; Ernie Els the Senior PGA Championship; Stewart Cink the Kaulig Companies Championship; Steve Stricker the U.S. Senior Open; and Thomas Bjørn the ISPS Handa Senior Open.
In other sports…
Indiana and Ole Miss meet in the College Football National Championship—Indiana wins. The Denver Broncos lift the Lombardi Trophy, giving head coach Sean Payton his second ring. The 2026 New Orleans Saints are much improved, sitting at 9–7 on New Year’s Eve and needing a Week 18 win in early 2027 to claim the NFC South and a home playoff game.
Aston Villa win the Premier League after a long unbeaten run in early 2026, followed by Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool, and Newcastle. Bayern Munich win the UEFA Champions League, Lyon the Europa League, and Crystal Palace the Conference League. The USA reaches the quarterfinals before bowing out; Mexico exits in the Round of 16; Canada in the Round of 32; and Brazil wins it all.
In basketball, the Detroit Pistons win the NBA Finals, San Antonio captures the NBA Cup (2026–27 season), and Houston defeats Gonzaga to win the college national championship. In hockey, Canada wins Olympic gold, the USA bronze, the Colorado Avalanche lift the Stanley Cup, and North Dakota wins the Frozen Four.
Happy New Year!