By Paolo Uggetti
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Jon Rahm walked the 16th fairway at Quail Hollow Country Club with his head down, a stern expression hidden under his pink hat. The sounds from the nearby 14th green, where Scottie Scheffler had just made birdie to extend his lead to two shots, effectively sealed the fate of the major championship.
“Even if you don`t want to look at leaderboards,” Rahm noted, “the crowd lets you know.”
For a brief period, Rahm seemed poised to achieve the unlikely: chase down the world`s No. 1 player, who had started the final day five shots ahead of him. After drawing even on the 11th hole, fueled by Scheffler`s unusual 2-over front nine, Rahm appeared to have seized control and was ready to make a run for the Wanamaker Trophy.
However, defeating Scheffler requires more than just a short burst of excellent play. The now three-time major champion is known for his steady performance and remarkable composure in the face of errors. He subtly pressures opponents; his game is so fundamentally solid that rivals understand overcoming the best player in the world will demand an extraordinary effort.
Scheffler`s eventual victory felt increasingly certain throughout Sunday in the humid Charlotte air. It`s why, by the time Rahm bogeyed the 16th and Scheffler birdied the 14th and 15th, the Spaniard felt compelled to take aggressive risks. His tee shot on the par-3 17th found the water. The contest was effectively decided.
“This back nine will be one that I remember for a long time,” Scheffler commented. “To step up when I needed to the most, I`ll remember that for a while.”
Nineteen years ago, during the 2006 PGA Championship, Luke Donald witnessed a similar scenario. Donald, then ranked 10th, shared the lead after 36 holes and shot a 66 at Medinah Country Club to reach 14 under. The challenge was Tiger Woods, who carded a course-record 65 that day to tie Donald for the 54-hole lead. At that point, Woods had an undefeated record (11-0) when holding at least a share of the lead after three rounds in a major.
“Tiger had this sort of aura that you just feel like you need to do more, you need to really elevate your game to beat him,” Donald said Sunday after finishing his final round at Quail Hollow. “And I think he understood that.”
That Sunday, Woods and Donald played together in the final pairing, with Woods shooting 68 to secure his 12th major victory by five shots over the runner-up. In Charlotte, Scheffler, who is now 3-0 when leading a major after 54 holes, finished with the same margin of victory: five strokes.
“He just sort of played his game, didn`t make too many mistakes and wore you down, and I certainly experienced that in 2006,” Donald reflected on Woods. “I think Scottie is a similar kind of player when he gets the lead.”
A lot has changed since Scheffler won the 2024 Masters and solidified his position atop the sport. Xander Schauffele has claimed two majors, Bryson DeChambeau has been in contention for two, and Rory McIlroy finally completed his career Grand Slam by winning the green jacket.
Scheffler has remained highly relevant during this time, winning six tour events and achieving three more top-10 finishes in majors. However, a subtle question had begun to emerge: When would Scheffler win a major *other* than the Masters?
It felt appropriate that Rahm was Scheffler`s closest competitor on Sunday. They have exchanged major wins, and both entered the tournament with two major titles each. Now, Scheffler moves ahead not just of Rahm, but also DeChambeau, Schauffele, Collin Morikawa, and Justin Thomas. He is clearly the dominant player of his generation, with everyone else striving to close the gap.
“There were times where I feel like I pressed,” admitted DeChambeau, who finished tied for second place. “I`ve got to be more precise and fix what I can fix to make myself more consistent and get up there, the likes of what Scottie is doing right now.”
Over the past two years, no player has received more praise from his peers than Scheffler, as they attempt to explain his greatness while simultaneously marveling at it.
“I`ve played a lot of golf with him, and it seems like every shot has a magnitude of force and just finds its way up there,” said Sam Burns.
With Scheffler, nothing feels chaotic. Even after making three bogeys on the front nine and struggling with a left miss, he appeared unflustered. He had been working with his coach, Randy Smith, on improving his hip movement towards the target, and briefly, it seemed old habits were resurfacing. But then, Scheffler adjusted on the 10th tee at the suggestion of his caddie Ted Scott, ensuring a full body turn. Something clicked. After three more birdies through the 15th hole, Scheffler`s victory once again felt inevitable. His driver was also deemed nonconforming before the tournament, forcing him to adjust to a new one this week.
“I felt like this was as hard as I battled for a tournament in my career,” Scheffler stated. “Finishing off a major championship is always difficult. I didn`t have my best stuff, but I kept myself in it. I was battling my swing the first couple days.”
Scheffler`s elite ballstriking has already led to comparisons with Woods over the last couple of seasons. His ability to win even when not playing his absolute best, and then win by a significant margin when he is, also mirrors Woods in his prime.
“He just doesn`t get too high or low, but his game speaks for himself,” Donald observed. “And he hates to lose.”
As Scheffler`s success has grown and he has become a central figure in golf, he has increasingly shown how much winning means to him. At the 2024 Masters, he admitted being extremely nervous and wished he didn`t want to win quite so desperately. On Sunday, Scheffler wiped away tears walking up the 18th fairway before celebrating ecstatically after sinking the final putt. At 27, he is no longer just a two-time Masters winner but now a three-time major champion, halfway to the career Grand Slam.
“Sometimes I wish I didn`t care as much as I did — or as I do,” Scheffler reiterated after his final round. “It would be a lot easier if I could show up and be like, eh, win or lose, I`m still going to go home and do whatever. Sometimes I feel that way. But at the end of the day, this means a lot to me.”
“He wants to win every time he goes out here, regardless if it`s golf, pickleball, whatever it is, he wants to win,” his coach, Randy Smith, stated. “I keep equating it to other sports. You got the basketball guy, you always know who it is on a team, who wants the ball with one second left, and that`s the way he is.”
If McIlroy`s emotional Masters win this year represented the conclusion of one storyline, Scheffler`s victory at Quail Hollow served as a powerful reminder of the narrative that continues to strengthen. McIlroy might be having an exceptional year, but the title of the world`s best player still belongs undeniably to Scheffler.
Marcus Blakely