The PGA tour remains in Texas for the 2024 Valero Texas Open. Some golfers will use it as a tune-up for the Masters while others who have not qualified will use it as a last-ditch effort to win and get their invitation to Augusta.

Last year Akshay Bhatia defeated Denny McCarthy in a playoff. There was plenty of drama down the stretch as Denny birdied eight of nine holes coming in. Akshay made a birdie to force a playoff and his shoulder popped out. He went on to birdie the first hole in the playoff after Denny chunked a wedge. The two of them looked as though they were playing a different course shooting 20 under while the next closest golfers were Rory Mcllroy at 11 under and Russell Henley at 10 under.

Corey Conners has won two times on tour, both of which were at the Valero Texas Open. His most recent win was in 2023 when he shot 15 under gaining just under ten strokes on approach. He also won in 2019 and gained 11.6 strokes on approach. The winds were rather tame that year and Conners finished with a score of 20 under par.

In 2022 J.J. Spaun won the Valero Texas Open for his first career win. He shot back-to-back rounds of 69 on the weekend to hold off Matt Kuchar and Matt Jones; who shot six under on Sunday. Spaun was consistent in all facets gaining over two strokes off the tee, on approach, around the green, and putting.

The Valero Texas Open is played at the Oaks Course at TPC San Antonio.

The Oaks Course is a 7,438 yard par 72 with Bermuda greens that are overseeded with Poa and velvet Bentgrass. The course was designed by Greg Norman with the help of Sergio Garcia.

There are only three water hazards on the course but bogey or worse scores are very prevalent here. There are 58 bunkers on the course. Most of which are very large and sloped which will lead to awkward lies. There’s also a number of native areas that consist of desert, rocks and trees that will need to be avoided.

The course generally plays as one of the ten hardest courses on tour. A lot of that is weather dependent. The winds can cause absolute carnage like they did in 2015 when seven players withdrew in the first two rounds. Or it can be a bit more tame like in 2019 and last year where the winning score was 20 under par.

There are four par threes, four par fives and ten par fours on the course. The par fives are long and difficult. Three of them play right at or just under 600 yards. They aren’t reachable in two by most but are still some of the easier holes on the course.
The 553 yard 14th hole is the easiest hole on the course boasting a 42% birdie rate.

Two of the par threes are 170-185 yards while two play over 200 yards. The 13th hole plays 241 yards and has the lowest birdie rate on the course at only eight percent.

Five of the six most difficult holes on the course are par fours. There are five par fours from 400-450 yards, three from 450-500 yards and the 347 yard 17th hole plays as the 2nd easiest hole on the course boasting a 31% birdie rate while the 481 yard 4th hole plays as the most difficult and has 26% bogey rate.

Driving accuracy comes in well below tour average with only 56% of fairways being hit. However, driving distance matters a bit more at TPC San Antonio given the length of many of the holes. The average drive is longer than tour average at 284 yards. Missing fairways isn’t a death sentence but missing wildly could cause serious problems if golfers find the native areas.

The greens are average in size but are some of the most difficult to hit on tour. Greens in regulation percentage is only 58 percent. Approach shots with mid to long irons are fairly even with 20% coming from 150-175 yards, 18% coming from 175-200, and another 18% from 200+ yards.

The greens themselves are multi-tiered with  undulations. The edges are tightly mowed which adds to approach shots often rolling off to collection areas or bunkers. Obviously, missing the greens place an emphasis on around the green play.

Ball striking is key here and a little distance certainly helps. It will likely come down to hitting greens and hitting putts but around the green and scrambling will also come into play especially if the winds pick up.

The field consists of 156 golfers with the Top 65 and ties making the cut after 36 holes to play the weekend.

2025 Valero Texas Open: Key Stats and Figures

• Strokes Gained Ball Striking
• Driving Distance
• Par 5 Scoring
• Opportunities Gained

Historical Cut Line

• 2025: +2
• 2023: +1
• 2022: Even
• 2021: +3
• 2020: Covid

Previous Winners

2024: Akshay Bhatia -20
2023: Corey Conners -15
2022: J.J. Spaun -13
2021: Jordan Spieth -18
2020: Postponed due to COVID
2019: Corey Conners -20

Golfers to Consider

Corey Conners

When all of your career wins are at one course it’s probably safe to say you’re comfortable there. Conners has won the Valero twice. Most recently in 2023 and also in 2019. He gained over 14 strokes tee to green both years. He’s never missed the cut here in six appearances at the Oaks Course and has gained strokes on approach in all of them.

It also helps that Conners comes in as one of the hottest golfers on tour. In his last three events he’s finished 3rd at the Arnold Palmer, 8th at the PLAYERS and 8th most recently at the Valspar. He’s gained strokes in every strokes gained metric in all of those events. The putter can limit Conners’ upside but he’s actually gained strokes putting in four straight tournaments.

Jordan Spieth

Spieth won the Valero Texas Open in 2021 gaining 7.4 strokes in approach. He gained another 5.4 strokes putting that year. He’s only missed the cut once in eight appearances here. He has finished inside the top-10 four times including last year despite an opening round of one over par.

Last year was tumultuous due to Spieth’s wrist injury but 2025 has been a bit better since he’s returned from offseason surgery. He’s only missed one cutnin six appearances this year. He has two top-10 finishes at the Waste Management and a 9th place at the Cognizant. He’s been driving the ball well gaining strokes off the tee in all but one tournament this year.

Denny McCarthy

Denny has played well at the Oaks Course. He lost in a playoff to Bhatia last year last year. He was on absolute fire making birdie on eight of his last nine holes. He’s only missed the cut once here in five appearances and also has three total top-20 finishes.

Denny has been very consistent this year making the cut in all eight of his tournaments. He has five finishes of 18th or better with his best finish coming at the Genesis where he finished in 5th place. Denny is one of the best putters on tour but has been heating up with his irons lately. He’s gained strokes on approach in five straight tournaments.

Bud Cauley

Cauley has some mixed results at the Valero but he has finished top-20 twice in six appearances here. His best finish was a 10th place in 2017. He’s gained four or more strokes on approach three times at the Oaks Course.

Cauley has looked great his last two times out finishing 6th at the PLAYERS and 4th most recently at the Valspar. He gained 8.1 strokes on approach at the Copperhead Course and has gained on approach in four straight tournaments. Over the last 24 rounds he’s 8th in ball striking, 12th around the green, 19th in scrambling and 20th in opportunities gained.