The CJ Cup Byron Nelson: 5 key facts as Scottie Scheffler targets his first win of 2025
The PGA Tour is back in Texas with this weekend’s CJ Cup Byron Nelson, a return to normality following the weekend’s team event.
This week, the action moves to McKinney, where TPC Craig Ranch, a private club with a par-71 course, will host round 16 of the 2025 season.
Established in 2004, the modern 7,438-yard TPC Craig Ranch has built a reputation for low scoring and high drama with generous fairways, reachable par 5s and soft putting surfaces, making it a player favourite on the circuit.
Lee Kyoung-hoon’s course record of -26 highlights the field’s potential to go low, with Taylor Penrith the defending champion having claimed a one-stroke -23 victory in 2024 to claim the $1.78 million winners’ share.
Another fiesta of low scoring is expected this weekend, spearheaded by World Number One, Scottie Scheffler, an undeniable favourite to claim his first event win of 2025.
With another tantalising shootout expected, let’s take a deeper look at the five crazy facts about The CJ Cup Byron Nelson…
Wild weather in Texas
The Texas spring often delivers adverse weather, with the event having seen more than its fair share of thunderstorms and consequent delays in play.
Over the past decade, multiple renditions of the event have been suspended and some pushed into Monday – but the weather won’t stop the party with concerts, Texas BBQs and fan zones with over 200,000 fans attending the week, making it a staple of the PGA Tour.
The risk and reward drama on 18
The 18th hole at TPC Craig Ranch is a signature par-5 finishing hole measuring 552 yards and ensuring riveting drama.
It’s easily reachable in two, but the ominous water hazards around the green make it a true question of risk and reward.
Often players will lay up and eliminate the risk, but an event win on Sunday, the ultimate reward, means we could be in for a climax of the ultimate uncertainty.
Last place more than Byron Nelson’s career earnings
Byron Nelson won 52 titles on the PGA Tour and finished his successful career with around $180,000 in earnings.
In his tournament this weekend, a solo 15th-place finish would be enough to overtake the five-time Major title winner’s career fortune.
Biggest greens on Tour
While the fairways are wide and generous at TPC Craig Ranch, it’s the large targets that set the course apart, with some of the largest greens on the PGA Tour.
Some of the putting surfaces cover over 835 square metres which is nearly twice the Tour average meaning players can hit the greens and still face 80 foot putts for birdie.
On many courses, hitting the green on an approach is the aim – on this golf course, players will need to be more aggressive in their pursuit of the flagstick if they want to be in contention down the stretch.
Lee Kyoung-hoon’s playground
South Korea’s K.H. Lee has a special connection with this tournament, having won back-to-back Byron Nelsons in 2021 and 2022 and becoming the only player to complete the feat since Tom Watson completed the three-peat in 1978 to 1980.
Having won the event twice in a row, Lee explained “whenever I’m here I feel more confident, this place just suits my game”, adding “being at TPC Craig Ranch gives me extra confidence”, as he conveyed the playability of the venue.
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