After Players’ win, Scheffler’s reign on top of world may last
Everyone in golf knew Scottie Scheffler's rise to world supremacy was probably coming long before he added The Players Championship to his trophy collection Sunday. He's no longer a Scottiecome-lately, but legitimately the game's preeminent player.
Scheffler has been dropping hints about potential stardom for a decade, back when he won the 2013 U.S. Junior Amateur and then matched Jordan Spieth's Texas high school record by capturing three individual state titles.
That same year, as a 17-year-old amateur, he finished tied for 22nd in his PGA Tour debut at the Byron Nelson Championship. In 2017, he finished as the low amateur at the U.S. Open (1-under-par) before he could legally drink, then was part of the U.S. Walker Cup-winning team. Two years later, he won two Korn Ferry Tour events and was named Player of the Year. A year later, he went 2-0-1 at the Ryder Cup and took out Jon Rahm in singles, then captured Player of the Year last season on the PGA Tour.
Notice a pattern here? Scheffler just kept checking box after box until he rose to No. 1 in the world last March, stayed there for seven months, and has now regained that perch after Rory Mcilroy and Rahm briefly took him down a peg.
The Tiger-jack connection
With Scheffler winning his sixth Tour event in 13 months — becoming the only player besides Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus to reign simultaneously as champions of The Players and Masters — this 26-year-old American is officially a golf tornado.
And there's nothing to indicate he won't leave more of the planet's best players helpless in his wake.
“Yeah, he's very impressive. Incredibly consistent,” said Englishman and Players runner-up Tyrrell Hatton, who finished five shots back of Scheffler. “He's had an amazing, what, 15-month stretch of golf. Played with him last Sunday [at the Arnold Palmer Invitational] and it was clear he didn't have his best that day, but he still hung around and had a chance there right at the end.”
No matter how fast a dominant golf figure he's become, Scheffler doesn't get too caught up in his own accomplishments. He remains impeccably grounded for someone who has gone on a Tiger-like run, ever since capturing his first Tour event 392 days ago at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
When asked if he ever thought during his decade-long, meticulous rise that his career would become as special as it is now, Scheffler acts like he's done nothing extraordinary.
“I don't really know,” said Scheffler. “I never really thought that much of myself. I always just tried to stay in my own little bubble. I did a good job of being a good junior, and then I was a pretty good college player, and then I played good on the Korn Ferry Tour, and I just keep trying to get a little bit better.”
A drama-absent Players
You might say Scheffler's stay-in-themoment mindset is working out just fine. At no point Sunday — even when Scheffler's 6-foot par attempt slid by the hole at No. 3 and dropped him into a tie with Min Woo Lee — was there any indication he might lose.
Scheffler became only the third solo third-round leader in the last 15 years (joining Webb Simpson in 2018, Jason Day in 2016) to win The Players.
In 72 holes, Scheffler had only five bogeys, saying it was “probably what I'm most proud of is just playing so solid. Yeah, I think I just like the challenge of kind of harder golf courses.”
Scheffler was also the only player in the field to avoid a three-putt all week. That was a key component in one of the most dominant victories at The Players, where 20 of the last 40 tournaments were decided by one shot.
He avoided the disastrous holes that befell so many competitors, especially Lee on Sunday.