The 2025 U.S. Open will be held at Oakmont Country Club, which is known as one of the best golf courses in the world. Oakmont and the USGA will make the course even tougher for U.S. Open week because they are proud of the fact that it is one of the hardest courses in the world.

The winner of the U.S. Open on Sunday night will have earned the title, but going into the event, people were wondering if we would keep seeing big-name stars win majors.

For the second straight major and a third leg of the career grand slam, Scottie Scheffler (11/4 at BetMGM) is the clear favorite. Eight-time winner Bryson DeChambeau has won two U.S. Opens, including an exciting win at Pinehurst No. 2 in 2024. He is second in the odds, just ahead of Rory McIlroy (11-1), the man he beat that Sunday.

McIlroy’s odds have dropped a lot since he missed the cut so badly at the RBC Canadian Open last weekend. His recent performance suggests that he might not be as much of a threat at Oakmont as we thought earlier this year. Jon Rahm (12-1) is the last player on the odds board before the breakaway. He finally got back to being a big threat at Quail Hollow, pushing Scheffler all the way through the back nine holes before losing it all on the last three holes.

Even though those four are the clear favorites this week, Oakmont is a very tough test. If they don’t bring their best to western Pennsylvania, someone further behind will be able to.

Oakmont is interesting because it really does let all kinds of players do well if they bring their best. One of the winners at the 2016 U.S. Open was Dustin Johnson, who was the second-longest driver that year. Jim Furyk, who was ranked 190th in that area, came in second. Distance is a weapon at Oakmont, as it is at any course, but it doesn’t mean much if you can’t hit the ball straight because the rough is so punishing, and players who regularly split the fairway, even if they’re further back, can still win.

So, let’s take a look at five players with lower chances who could get to the top of the leaderboard on Sunday and compete with the game’s best players.

Top picks for the 2025 U.S. Open

Ben Griffin (55-1): If you’re not going to back the hottest player on the PGA Tour after Scheffler, I don’t see why you wouldn’t. Griffin has placed tied for eighth, first, and second in his last three events (the PGA Championship, the Charles Schwab Challenge, and the Memorial). It was his performance at the Memorial that stood out the most. That was a very tough golf course, but he was able to keep his score low (65 on Thursday) and avoid making huge mistakes, which helped him stay in the running all weekend. But Scheffler beat him in the end, so it wasn’t a win. But at 55-1, it’s hard to beat a guy in this kind of form who has been doing well in big events.

Ronald Maverick McNealy (80-1): With six top 10s, McNealy is having a great season. He’s never been considered for the majors, but I think Oakmont would be a great fit for him, as it would be for anyone. I say that because he keeps a cool head, plays a full game, and comes in off a good T5 at the Memorial, which I think was the most like a U.S. Open test these guys have seen all season. That should help him do well, but we’ll see. I think he’ll be in the running on the weekend.

Harris English (100-1): Consistency, accuracy, and hitting the ball hard. These are the three qualities I’m looking for this week at Oakmont. English has a lot of them. Putting the ball down the middle is one of his best skills, he hits the ball straight off the tee, and he has the right attitude to handle some of the bad breaks that are bound to happen at Oakmont. Besides that, he has a history of success and good form right now, having finished in the top 10 three times at the U.S. Open and second at the PGA Championship last month.

Daniel Berger (125-1): Berger has been going in the right direction all year. He’s 12th on the PGA Tour in driving accuracy this season and still hits the ball more than 300 yards on average off the tee. At Oakmont, that’s a great mix, and Berger might be at the top of the list by the weekend. At that point, it comes down to who can keep their cool at Oakmont. Like English, Berger has the attitude to handle things as they come and keep his eye on his game plan.

Nick Taylor (150 and 1): He finished fourth at the Memorial and tied for 13th at the RBC Canadian Open, which is held in his home country. Taylor is in great shape going into this week. I like how his game is improving. He’s one of the PGA Tour’s shorter hitters, but he hits the ball very straight off the tee. Taylor has been great all year at hitting the ball. He can give himself a chance on the weekend if he can stay in the short grass all week.

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