(Image by: scottie.scheffler)
Upon the conclusion of the Tour Championship on Sunday evening it was Scottie Scheffler who stood alone at the top of the golfing world.
The undisputed world number one, Scheffler’s Tour Championship victory was his seventh of the season and not since the heyday of Tiger Woods has any player been able to dominate in a fashion that Scheffler has been able to achieve.
Long off the tee and astonishingly accurate from the fairways, his woes with the putter seem to have been solved and it isn’t surprise that the best all-round player in the game has tasted success at signature events such as the Masters, Players Championship, RBC Heritage and in the pressured surroundings of Eastlake.
When on his game, Scheffler is clearly the man to beat and his dominance looks set to continue for some time yet.
Scheffler’s mental strength wins the day
Although there are very few flaws in the Texan’s game, one area where he has excelled this year is with his mental strength and during the final round of the Tour Championship Scheffler’s strength between the ears is what got him over the line.
With Collin Morikawa making a charge and Scheffler starting to feel the pressure of winning his first ever Tour Championship, his five shot lead was quickly whittled down and after a disaster of a chip which saw him shank it from the bunker to the run off area, all of a sudden the Tour Championship was alive and the lead was down to two.
Scheffler, who had been in this position in each of the last two seasons but found himself pipped to the post by Viktor Hovland and Rory McIlroy, could have easily felt that a sense of deja vu, but this year Scheffler is a different beast.
Able to keep calm and composed, any internal doubts that he was experiencing was quickly kicked to the long grass and the Texan was able to rattle off three birdies in a row. Reestablishing his five shot lead, Morikawa could clearly see that Scheffler wouldn’t be for moving and with holes and time running out, Scheffler was able to canter the finish line and soak up every winning moment.
Scheffler’s ability to bounce back from moments of misfortune is what helps set the great champions apart, Scheffler knows he has the class to come through the biggest moment and Sunday’s reignition wasn’t the first time that Scheffler was able to win the day thanks to his mental strength.
He found himself in a similar position at the Masters with both Ludvig Aberg and Max Homa nipping at his heels. With the tournament on the line, Scheffler was able to distract himself from the noise and played his best golf of the week. Unable to match his consistency, both Aberg and Homa’s challenges would come off the rails and it was Scheffler who was able to take home a second green jacket.
There was perhaps no better sign of his mental fortitude than when at the PGA Championship, arrested in the morning for driving through a coned off traffic area, a morning in prison wasn’t enough to halt the Texan. Somehow able to put the dramatic events of the morning behind him, Scheffler shot a stunning five under 66. Whilst ultimately Scheffler would end up falling back through the field, his superb play after such a difficult incident left the golfing world in awe and shows just how strong a player and competitor he is.
(Image by: scottie.scheffler)
The dawn of a new era of dominance?
With his seven PGA victories, not since the days of Tiger Woods has one man been able to have such a strong grip on the PGA Tour. Seemingly in contention each and every time that he tees it up, when you look at the stats it's easy to see why Scheffler has become the best player on the planet. He currently tops the tour rankings in the following fields.
- Strokes gained total
- Strokes gained from tee to green
- Strokes gained in approach to the green
- Overall distance from the edge of the fairways
- Greens in regulation that are hit
- Approaches from 150 - 175 yards
- Approaches from 50 - 125 yards
- Approaches from 100 - 125 yards
- Putting average
- Scoring average
- Birdie average
- Par 4 birdies
- Round 1 scoring average
- Round 2 scoring average
- Par 4 scoring average
- Par 5 scoring average
- Front 9 scoring average
- Back 9 scoring average
As you can see, the stats are as well rounded as you would wish to see. A major factor off the tee, Scheffler is simply a class apart in his approach play and just knows how to score birdies and make the most of the scoring positions that he finds himself in.
With no real weaknesses in his game, it’s hard to see how anyone can remove him from the strong position that he currently finds himself in. With so many skills to rely upon, if his driving isn’t firing he can make amends with his irons, as this year has shown, with the putter in his hands he always has a chance of finding the cup.
If Scheffler can keep his consistency and accuracy alive, more of the game’s biggest prizes will await.
(Image by: scottie.scheffler)
2025 will see a hungry Scheffler determined for more
Although Scheffler has been the top dog on the PGA Tour for the last few seasons, his dominance hasn’t been replicated with the number of majors that he has won. The Masters is a place where he has enjoyed success, but outside of the heavenly confines of Augusta Scheffler has found winning majors difficult.
In today’s game success is ultimately defined by the majors and in order to be considered an all-time great, Scheffler will need to increase his major haul. He will want to prove to the world that he can win on every type of course and you feel that once the world number one wins his first major outside of the Masters many more will follow.
Worryingly for his rivals, Scheffler will head into 2025 with a major point to prove and his exploits this year could just set him up for bigger and better things next season.
Jack Hartman
A keen golfer and huge fan of the game, Jack has been covering golf for the last five years. Bringing you all the latest coverage and news from the PGA, LIV, LPGA and DP World Tours, never before has golf been so popular and Jack can’t wait to bring all the excitement to his readers.
