Even with a stiff neck, Scottie Scheffler made history Sunday at THE PLAYERS Championship.
Trailing by five shots entering the final round, Scheffler torched TPC Sawgrass' Stadium Course for a bogey-free 64 that left him one shot ahead of Brian Harman, Wyndham Clark and Xander Schauffele. The result etched Scheffler’s name in the record books as the first to successfully defend a title on the 50th anniversary of the tournament’s inception.
“It’s good to be back sitting here again,” Scheffler said after the win. “Today was another battle. It was a hard-fought week.”
Scheffler holed out for eagle from the fourth fairway and had four birdies in a five-hole stretch around the turn, sending him to an 8-under 64 and a one-shot victory that wasn’t decided until the final putt.
Xander Schauffele, Brian Harman and Wyndham Clark all had a chance to force a playoff with a birdie on the daunting 18th hole at the TPC Sawgrass' Stadium Course.
Clark had the last shot, a putt just inside 18 feet that dipped into the cup on the left side and came out on the right side, leaving him stunned as he placed his hand over his mouth.
Scheffler, who started the final round five shots behind, was on the practice range preparing for a three-hole playoff when he got the word and showed more emotion than usual for someone who is getting used to winning.
This was no ordinary week. He struggled to take the club back early in his second round because of a neck issue and battled to a 69. He looked to be out of it Saturday afternoon until finishing with three straight birdies. Scheffler finished the PGA TOUR’s flagship event without a bogey over the final 31 holes during a tense final hour involving four of the top 10 players in the world.
All of them had their chances.
Schauffele, who started the final round with a one-shot lead, was still in control until he missed tee shots to the right on the 14th and 15th holes and couldn’t salvage par. He had a 6-foot birdie chance on island-green 17th — the toughest hole at TPC Sawgrass on Sunday — and didn’t come close to a reasonable birdie chance hitting out of the pine straw on the 18th. He finished with a 70.
Harman hung around long enough to have a chance, but he missed out on a birdie chance at the par-5 16th and couldn’t convert birdie chances over the last two holes in his round of 68. Clark also made late push. He narrowly missed a 12-foot eagle putt on the 16th. He rode the slope to 4 feet for birdie on the 17th. And his birdie to force a playoff looked good all the way until it wasn’t. Clark shot a 69.
Scheffler finished at 20-under 268 and won $4.5 million from the $25 million purses, pushing the 27-year-old from Dallas over the $50 million mark in his career. Scottie Scheffler is the best golfer on the planet and it isn't even close. I want to announce I hit my first outright winner of the 2024 PGA season. Yeah, as I mentioned in my picks and preview blog below:
I wasn't happy to bet the odds on favorite, but in gambling, nothing sweeter, than a repeater. Onto the Valspar Championship this weekend.
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