2025 RBC Heritage Day 1: An inside the ropes look at the pairings, top players
RBC Heritage spectators who want to maximize their Harbour Town golf stargazing this week need a plan of attack — for not only who to watch but how to get the most out of the fewest number of steps in between the action.
For those fans, they may want to start their day on the first tee at 8:30 with PGA Tour and social media favorite Max Homa as he’s paired with Denny McCarthy, who currently has one of the hottest putters on tour. His putting stats showing him solidly in 7th place in that game-changing category.
Homa can be a refreshingly free spirit off the course and after he did his press availability in the RBC Heritage media tent last year, he wasn’t shy about gathering two handfuls of oatmeal and chocolate chip cookies on his way to the locker room.
Forty minutes after that pairing heads down the first fairway you can catch a glimpse of 38-year-old Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley and 23-year-old Akshay Bhatia who, at The U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 last year, finished tied for 16th against a stacked field. If you lean in close enough around the green you may hear Bhatia lobbying hard for one of the captain’s picks for Bethpage in the fall.
At 10:15 a.m. the featured pairing of defending champion Scottie Scheffler and Victor Hovland tee off on #1. After Scheffler’s 2024 record-setting season, he needs no introduction and even casual golf fans will recognize Hovland as the always-smiling product of the college golf powerhouse of Oklahoma State by way of an early life in Norway.
The next pairing to watch will be on the tee at 10:40 a.m. with Irishman Shane Lowry and Texan Jordan Spieth. Spieth has had some health challenges battling through a recovery from wrist surgery in the offseason but is rounding into form. He and Lowry are two of the more talkative players at the tournament so there won’t be a quiet moment in that group.
Other midday groups to watch are 12:25 p.m. with Jason Day and Tony Finau and an hour later at 1:30 p.m. with the powerhouse duo of Ludvig Åberg and Xander Schauffele. Åberg, 25 much like Bhatia, is seen as future top tier players and Schauffele was nominated for The PGA Tour Player of the Year in 2024 and the only person that stood between him and winning the award was Schleffler’s all-world season.
With the limited field event, the first pairing tees off at 8:00 a.m. and the last group in the afternoon session at 2:10p.m. Harbour Town is one of the flatter courses to walk and follow your favorites but at more than 7,000 yards from tee boxes to greens it is still likely to be at least five-mile walk around all 18 holes.
Spectator pro tip #1: Walking between tee box #1, #9 green and tee box #10 provides access to not only the shortest distance of three key viewing spots but it also allows for views of the players warming up on the practice putting green. And, as a bonus, your path will take you near some locally staffed refreshment stands.
Spectator pro tip #2: #18 green, sitting nearly alone on Calibogue sound and can be a formidable walk from places like #14 and #6. If you want to catch players as they finish and maybe get an autograph after they sign their cards in the scoring tent, planning ahead and having some comfortable shoes are both good choices.