The second stop on the PGA Tour's Florida Swing lands in Orlando for the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill Club & Lodge. It's one of the sport's most prestigious, challenging, and, literally, Signature Events.

An exclusive field of 69 players — including all of the PGA Tour's best — will vie for a chunk of the $20 million purse. First place gets $4 million and 700 FedExCup points. 50 players plus anyone within 10 strokes of the lead will make the cut. The defending champion is Kurt Kitayama.

Tiger Woods, an eight-time winner at Bay Hill, will not participate. We could see him at TPC Sawgrass next week for THE PLAYERS Championship.

The Florida Swing got underway with Austin Eckroat's rain-delayed first-career win at the Cognizant Classic in the Palm Beaches.

Before you mix iced tea and lemonade and settle in for some golf, here's what to know for the 2024 Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay HilI.

Course notes

Bay Hill is not for the meek. It's one of the tougher stops on tour, with water lurking on nine holes. The Bermudagrass rough eats the ball up, so ball-striking accuracy will be paramount. The expected gusty weekend (~20 m.p.h. winds) won't make things easier. The greens are firm, so sticking the ball close to the pin, in regulation, is critical.

The 7,466-yard, Par 72 course (13th longest on tour) is built for bombers and ball-strikers. The fairways are wide (a bit deceptively). Par 3s are long and tricky. Tee-to-green play — particularly with the long iron — is more important than putting.

How to watch (all times ET)

  • Thursday-Friday: 2 – 6 PM (Golf Channel/Peacock)
  • Saturday-Sunday 12:30 – 2:30 PM (GC/Peacock), 2:30-6PM (NBC/Peacock)

Tee times

Notable groupings:

Sam Burns, Scottie Scheffler: The Texas Longhorns and good pals are two of the top contenders.

Viktor Hovland, Rickie Fowler: Should be all sorts of creativity coming from this group.

Justin Thomas, Jake Knapp: The rookie's first start after his win at the Mexico Open was alongside Rory McIlroy at the Cognizant (he finished T4, impressive). Now, he'll spend two rounds with another multiple-time major champion.

Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffle, Jordan Spieth: It's safe to say everybody invested in the PGA Tour would love to see one of these stars go on a heater, beginning at the API.

Nick Dunlap & Nobody: Feels like they just could have let a 70th person in the tournament.

The favorite: Scottie Scheffler (+650, according to FanDuel)

The World No. 1 happens to have a game tailor-made for Bay Hill. Nobody strikes it better from tee to green. He won the 2022 API and finished T4 last year. He's the logical favorite, and my pick to win. (We'll see if he whips out the new putter.)

Ludvig Åberg outright (+1800): The 24-year-old Swede is going to notch his first big-time win on the PGA Tour soon. Why not here? He's maybe the most formidable driver and long-iron player on the circuit. Coming out party?

Jordan Spieth outright (+2200 ): Spieth has kept things well under par throughout his 2024 season. He's finished in fourth in two career starts at Bay Hill. May the annual Masters hype begin.

Rory McIlroy Top 5 (+190): McIlroy should be primed to contend. He's been excellent at Bay Hill in his career —three top 5s, one win, no worse than T27 in nine starts — which makes sense considering his prowess off the tee (his high-arcing ball lands more snugly on the firm grass). He just needs to avoid the one big mistake.

Will Zalatoris Top 10 (+280): Zalatoris' runner-up finish at the Genesis Invitational dispelled any concerns about his recovery from back surgery. Willy Z is an expert ball-striker. He's a popular pick this week.

Sahith Theegala Top 10 (+500 ): Theegala can sling it off the tee, and he thrives in the scrambling department. Creative up-and-downs could help him stay in the mix.

Jason Day Top 20 (+110): Day won this event in 2016. He's quietly posted three top-10s in 2024.

Keegan Bradley Top 20 (+170): The Full Swing Season 2 star has never missed the cut at Bay Hill in 11 starts. He's sniffed contention each of the past three years.

One and Done – Tommy Fleetwood (+500): I would not be surprised if Fleetwood's elusive first PGA Tour win came this week. He's an expert long-iron hitter and one of the better scramblers in golf. He's made six of seven cuts at Bay Hill and owns a T3 and two T10s.

Other plausible contenders: Sam Burns, Matt Fitzpatrick, Collin Morikawa, Max Homa, Cameron Young, Corey Conners, Adam Scott, Adam Hadwin,

Other Storylines

Bay Hill should provide a welcome venue for Viktor Hovland to find a groove. He's an outstanding driver and long-iron player, with an excellent track record on Florida Bermudagrass. He's finished runner-up and T10 in Orlando.

The trend of longshot winners has been at the center of the discourse. In the wake of stars jumping to LIV Golf, the tour's stars have let it down thus far in 2024. All nine winners on tour this season have been at least 40-1 odds to win heading into the tournament.

The API — in stature, difficulty, and eyeballs — is a perfect forum for a star to step up and generate some much-needed momentum heading into major season.