The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Xander Schauffele making a name for himself with his golf
MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA — Steve Stricker cared only about securing a spot in the first U.S. Open in his home state of Wisconsin. Still, there was something about the PGA Tour rookie in his group during a 36-hole qualifier that intrigued him.
It wasn’t just the name: Xander Schauffele.
It certainly wasn’t the resume. Schauffele had missed the cut in half of the 18 PGA Tour events he had played and was No. 345 in the world ranking. And it wasn’t the pedigree. He played at San Diego State, hardly a college golf power.
Stricker didn’t know any of that in early June of 2017, except that he liked what he saw.
“I just remember he had a ton of game and he was a good kid, fun to be around,” Stricker said. “It’s kind of cool to see how his career has taken off.”
That day was the turning point for Schauffele that took him from relative obscurity to four-time PGA Tour winner to top 10 in the world and his debut for the Americans in the Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne.
Schauffele earned the final spot from that U.S. Open qualifier in a 5-for-2 playoff, opened with a 66 at Erin Hills and tied for fifth in his first major. Three weeks later, he won his first PGA Tour event. Since then, he won the Tour Championship, a World Golf Championship and the Tournament of Champions, each time coming from behind on the final day. At Kapalua, he shot 62 to rally from five back.
Results came quickly. Recognition is still catching up.
That should change at the Presidents Cup, the first time Schauffele is on the same team with players he has admired, and players he has beaten. When the group texts began, there were numbers that popped up on his phone he didn’t recognize. Popular among his peers, Schauffele doesn’t get wrapped up in the social life on tour, nor does the 26-year-old from San Diego spend time worrying whether he gets his due.
“At no point do I feel like I’ve done that much, which is a weird thing. But it’s great that I think that way,” Schauffele said. “It’s all relative what you compare yourself to. If you want to be a good golfer, a great golfer, I think I’ve done a lot so far. If you want to compete with the best, I’ve got a lot more to do.”
He’s part of the high school class of 2011, but it took winning more than once for anyone to mention him alongside others in his age group like Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth, Patrick Rodgers, Ollie Schniederjans and Daniel Berger. Thomas, the NCAA player of the year as a freshman at Alabama, conceded that he didn’t know much about Schauffele when he got on tour. He shared this at East Lake, where Schauffele beat him by one at the Tour Championship.
Spieth didn’t know much about Schauffele in college. He only recognized the name because it was unique. Now he raves about him.
“I still think he’s one of the underrated players in the world, even with what he’s done,” Spieth said. “Overall, tee-to-green, everything is solid.”