This week’s American Express boasts a strong field: five top-10ers and 12 of the top 25 in the World Ranking. Scottie Scheffler is the headliner, while Sepp Straka will look to successfully defend his title (last pulled off by Johnny Miller in 1974-75). But surprisingly, some big names are going to be sitting this one out.

Rory McIlroy

At the 2025 HSBC Abu Dhabi Championship, Rory McIlroy made his intentions on future schedule clear: “If anything, playing even less than I have this year.” Add to that his desire to grow the game on a global stage, and it makes sense why McIlroy is absent from the field at The American Express. That is not to say McIlroy isn’t playing at all this week.

The Northern Irishman will be present in the United Arab Emirates for the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, taking place at the same time as The American Express. And he’s going to be a hit there as well; his shot (see below) from two years ago is proof.

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The Hero Dubai Desert Classic will be his second DP World Tour event of this month, with his first being at the Dubai Invitational. McIlroy finished T3 there.

As per his schedule, McIlroy will play his first PGA Tour event of the season at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-AM as a defending champion. But this gap is hardly surprising. Historically, McIlroy has switched focus to the DP World Tour events from the PGA Tour. That means we will likely get to see him defend his title in Ireland and England this season.

Tommy Fleetwood will also be playing the Hero Dubai Desert Classic this week.

Xander Schauffele

Xander Schauffele, for his part, has enjoyed pretty good finishes at The American Express. Schauffele’s last three American Express showings average a third-place finish and a 26-under score. In 2024, he nabbed third at a ridiculous 27-under. Regardless, Schauffele is absent from the field this year.

His official schedule shows that the World No. 4 will start his PGA Tour season at the Farmers Insurance Open at the end of the month. It’s the same event where Brooks Koepka will officially play his first Tour event after his LIV exit.

Meanwhile, Schauffele was absent from The American Express field last season, too. But at that time, the pro had withdrawn from the event at the last minute, citing medical reasons.

Justin Thomas

Back in November, Justin Thomas announced he underwent a microdiscectomy for a disc problem. Since then, the pro has many updates regarding his health, especially after missing out on TGL’s season opener.

At that time, Thomas said, “Bummed I won’t be able to play today, but it will be great to be back in SoFi Center as @AtlantaDriveGC celebrates last year’s championship. Looking forward to rooting on the boys!”

Following that, Thomas showed signs of improvement. Then, dropped an Instagram update where he made a full swing. Now, Thomas hasn’t given a return timeline, so it’s hard to say what event he will open his season with. But that is likely to take time.

Regardless, when Thomas played The American Express last year, he finished as a runner-up. He followed the same energy when he finished second at the Valspar Championship before finally ending his winless drought at the RBC Heritage.

So, these are your top three pros absent from the field. But there are still plenty of attractions. Ludvig Aberg and Patrick Cantlay will make their season debut. Meanwhile, three past champions, Si Woo Kim, Nick Dunlap, and defending champ Sepp Straka are present in the field.