Top 5 sleeper picks for the US Open 2025 ft. Viktor Hovland

The PGA Tour's next stop is the 2025 US Open, which will take place at the Oakmont Country Club over the weekend. It is the third major of the PGA Tour roster, and the tournament venue's challenging terrain will give tough competition to the golfers.

The field includes 156 golfers, and top names on the list include Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka, Xander Schauffele, and more. While there are popular names in the field, some underdogs might surprise with their performance. Here is a list of five such sleeper picks for the US Open:

Five sleeper picks for the 2025 US Open

#1. Viktor Hovland

Viktor Hovland at the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday - Third Round - Source: Imagn

Viktor Hovland missed the cutline at the 2024 US Open by shooting 78 and 68 in the first and second rounds. He finished in T19 at the 2023 US Open with an even-par score, and he missed the cutline at the 2022 US Open by shooting 70 and 77 over the two rounds. Hovland had one victory in the 2025 season, and it came at the Valspar Championship with an 11-under.

#2. Maverick McNealy

Maverick McNealy at the PGA Championship - Practice Round - Source: Imagn

Maverick McNealy didn't play the 2024 and 2023 US Opens. His last US Open appearance was in 2017, when he failed to make it through the cutline. This year, his best finish was at the Genesis Invitational with a T2 after shooting 11-under as the total score. His other top 10 finishes were a T3 at the Valero Texas Open and a T5 at the Memorial Tournament.

#3. Nick Taylor

Nick Taylor at the RBC Canadian Open - Third Round - Source: Imagn

Nick Taylor missed the cutline at the 2024 US Open and the 2023 US Open after scoring 8-over and 4-over, respectively. In 2025, he won the Sony Open in Hawaii with a 16-under and finished in T4 at the Memorial Tournament with a total score of 4-under.

#4. Chris Kirk

Chris Kirk at The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday - First Round - Source: Imagn

Chris Kirk landed in T26 at the 2024 US Open with a 6-over, and he missed the cut at the 2023 US Open. This year, his best finish came at the RBC Heritage with a T18 after scoring 9-under. His last tournament was the Memorial Tournament, where he missed the cutline.

#5. Sungjae Im

PGA: the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday - Final Round - Source: Imagn

Sungjae Im missed cutlines at the 2024 and 2023 US Open editions. This year, he had three top 10 finishes on the PGA Tour, including a T3 at the Sentry Tournament, a T4 at the Farmers Insurance Open, and a T5 at the Masters Tournament.

About the author

Suchita Chakraborty is a senior golf writer at Sportskeeda. She did her post-graduation at St. Xavier's University. For a year now, she has developed a riveting inclination toward golf, with Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy being her top-tier motivational figures to indulge in the sport. She even lives by the words of the Hall of Famer, "You can always become better", which impels her to excel every day. Her strong suit in golf is covering the LPGA Tour, especially the nooks and crannies of the international event, the Solheim Cup. As a pastime amusement, Suchita also engages herself in reading about golf controversies. Her favorite pick is ‘LIV and Let Die’ by Alan Shipnuck, which covers the PGA-LIV beef.

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Edited by Hitesh Nigam