Scheffler on another big run

the world.

Scheffler is on another big run, this one getting far more attention.

He won the WM Phoenix Open for the second straight year on a Sunday that featured Rahm, Justin Thomas and Nick Taylor. He was one foot away from a close birdie chance on the 18th to tie for the lead at Bay Hill.

And then against the strongest field so far this year at the TPC Sawgrass, Scheffler seized control with a 65 on March 11 and really showed his mettle by turning The Players Championship into a runaway with a five-shot victory.

Of the final four groups, his 69 was the only score under par.

“I think the team around him and the way he’s wired … he’s extremely grounded,”

Jordan Spieth said. “He’s got really good parents, great family structure. Randy Smith has been around for a long time — his coach — and he’s been with him forever. So I don’t see it changing. He’s in a good position to be able to continue to do this for awhile.”

Scheffler was easy to forget last year even while staying atop the world ranking from March to October because the Masters was his last win of the year. Easily overlooked was that he lost in a playoff at Colonial to a 45-foot putt by Sam Burns and was one putt away from a potential playoff at the U.S. Open.

More memorable was losing a six-shot lead in the final round of the Tour Championship at East Lake to McIlroy, which cost Scheffler the FedEx Cup.

“I had put myself in a position all year to where I had a chance to win the FedEx Cup, and I wasn’t able to get it done,” Scheffler said. “And by the time I got home, I was worn out. I was mentally, physically drained, emotionally drained.

“But the hard times make the good times that much sweeter.”

Now he has six wins in his last 27 starts, and 16 finishes in the top 10 during that span.

“His top 10s are off the charts,” Spieth said.

This stretch of golf could be traced to the Ryder Cup in the fall of 2021 at Whistling Straits. Steve Stricker was torn between Scheffler and good friend Sam Burns for his last picks, which doesn’t seem like much of a debate now.