In a year filled with greatness, these three shined brightest on their respective tours.
Scottie Scheffler, Jeeno Thitikul and Stewart Cink, all multiple tournament winners on professional tours last year, were voted by members of the Golf Writers Association of America as 2025 Players of the Year in their respective divisions.
Scheffler, a 29-year-old from Dallas and the world’s No. 1-ranked golfer, won six times last year, including major titles at the PGA Championship and Open Championship. He recorded a PGA Tour-best 17 top-10 finishes in 20 starts and led the circuit in scoring average by nearly a full shot en route to repeating as the GWAA’s Male Player of the Year.
“I am extremely honored to win the GWAA Player of the Year Award for the third time,” said Scheffler, who also won the GWAA honor in 2022. “The 2025 season was a year I will never forget. From winning the PGA Championship and the Open Championship to breaking through at my hometown event, the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, it was truly a special year.”
Scheffler received 62.7 percent of the vote. The other male nominees were Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy.
Thitikul capped a historic season on the LPGA by successfully defending her title at the season-ending CME Group Tour Championship. Thitikul, 22, of Thailand, won three times and set the LPGA’s season scoring-average record at 68.681 strokes per round while leading the 2025 money list and ascending to the women’s No. 1 ranking in the world.
“This award means a lot to me,” Thitikul said. “I’m incredibly thankful to the golf writers and to my team and family who believed in me all year. It’s special to be recognized for a season that challenged and shaped me.”
Thitikul received 68.2 percent of the vote for Female Player of the Year. The other nominees were Minjee Lee and Miyu Yamashita.
Stewart Cink won three times in 21 starts on the PGA Tour Champions, capped with a victory at the season-ending Schwab Cup Championship to propel his being voted the GWAA’s Senior Player of the Year. Cink, a 52-year-old resident of Duluth, Georgia, led the 50-and-older tour in points.
“I am so honored to be named Player of the Year by the GWAA,” Cink said. “It means a lot when journalists who have been covering our sport for so long are the ones deciding, and I certainly value their thoughts and opinions. I have high goals and expectations as I continue my career, and it’s been a joy making the transition out to the PGA Tour Champions. I’m very excited to continue in 2026 and beyond.”
Cink received 38.2 percent of the vote. The other senior nominees were Steve Allan, Angel Cabrera, Padraig Harrington and Miguel Angel Jimenez.
The three player of the year recipients will be recognized on April 8 during the 52nd annual ISPS Handa GWAA Awards Dinner at Augusta, Georgia, on the eve of the Masters Tournament.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Scheffler, Thitikul and Cink win GWAA's 2025 Player of the Year awards
Category: General Sports
