The PGA TOUR is heading to Florida for a run of tournaments in the Sunshine State. The Cognizant Classic tees off on Thursday at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.
Cognizant Classic
The Cognizant Classic will be played at PGA National in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. PGA National is a Jack Nicklaus-designed par 71 golf course and ranges 7,054 yards. The Cognizant Classic field is solid but not as good as it has been in past years, despite being at such an elite course. The course features Bermudagrass greens and is famous for holes 15-17, dubbed the “Bear Trap,” which is one of the hardest three-hole runs on the PGA TOUR schedule. Going low will be a challenge at this tournament between the tough course conditions and the brutal wind that is almost always a factor on this course.
Here is a look at my two picks to lead after the first round of the Cognizant Classic:
Russell Henley FRL +4500
Russell Henley is one of the most talented players in the Cognizant Classic field. In fact, at No. 17, Henley is the highest-ranked player in the OWGR in this field. PGA National only has two par-5s on the course, which makes par 4 success even more important. That is good news for Henley, who ranks second in the field in par-4 scoring average over their past 24 rounds. Henley does a lot of the things needed to perform at PGA National. This season on the PGA TOUR, Henley ranks 12th in driving accuracy, second in proximity, 12th in putting average and seventh in birdie average. Those numbers are compared to the entire PGA TOUR and since this field is missing most of the Tour’s best players, that makes Henley really dangerous this week.
After a phenomenal 2024 season, Henley is off to a strong start in 2025. He finished T-10 at the Sony Open and T-5 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. That makes two top-10 finishes in his first four starts of the season. Henley has also had tremendous success at this tournament, once called the Honda Classic. Henley won the Honda Classic in 2014, finished T-8 in 2020 and finished T-3 in 2021. He has always played well at this style of course, ranking third in this field in strokes gained in Florida over his past 36 rounds. Russell Henley is in great form and has a solid course history at PGA National. He was the first-round leader after the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and could break out to an early lead again in this weaker field.
Luke Clanton FRL +5500
While Henley is very experienced, Luke Clanton is a very inexperienced player who could also contend this week. In 2024, Clanton rose to No. 1 in the world golf amateur rankings. This season, he is looking to cement his place on the PGA TOUR and he can do so this week at the Cognizant Classic. To earn his PGA TOUR card, Clanton just needs to make the cut at this tournament. He has already shown that he can compete with the best players in the world when his game is on by finishing T-15 at the Farmers Insurance Open in January. In just eight PGA TOUR events last season, Clanton had four top-10 finishes.
Clanton is still playing college golf and won both individually and as a team with Florida State last week, so his game is in a great spot. He is from Florida and plays his college golf in Florida so he should feel very comfortable in these types of course conditions. Clanton is 13th on the PGA TOUR in driving distance this season so he can hit it with anybody off the tee. More importantly for this course, Clanton is a great ball striker. He should be able to avoid the punishing penalty areas at PGA National and could set the tone early in such an important tournament for his career.
