$62m and a Tiger-like season: Scheffler’s ‘lifetime in a year’

Scottie Scheffler said he had “lived almost a full lifetime this one year” after securing FedExCup victory, capping off a ‘nuts’ season – both on and off the golf course – for the world No 1.

Scheffler closed out a four-stroke victory at the season-ending Tour Championship, where he never relinquished top spot at any point during the four days and became the first player since Tiger Woods in 2007 to register seven or more victories in a year on the PGA Tour.

It completes a remarkable few months for Scheffler, who became a father for the first time shortly after winning The Masters for a second time in three years, was arrested ahead of his second round at the PGA Championship in May and also won Olympic gold in Paris.

“If you can describe it in words, more power to you, because I don’t think I can,” Scheffler told reporters as he reflected on his 2024 efforts, following his Tour Championship win. “It has been a long year.

“I think emotionally right now I’m pretty drained. It has been a very eventful year but it’s been really fun. You had the one weird spot there at Valhalla (the PGA Championship arrest), but everything else has been pretty special.”

Scheffler had topped the FedExCup standings since winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March, then added further victories the The Players, The Masters, RBC Heritage, Memorial Tournament and Travelers Championship during the regular season.

The 28-year-old American earned an $8m bonus for leading the Comcast Business Tour Top 10 heading into the FedExCup Playoffs, where he claimed $25m for his Tour Championship victory to take his season earnings – including bonuses – to a staggering $62,228,357 (£47.4m).

“I felt like I was kind of gradually building towards something,” Scheffler said. “I had some decent starts to the year. I had a couple top 10s to start and I was close to winning in Phoenix. Then overall I was playing really solid, so I knew I was close.

“I made some putts this year when I really needed to, and that’s why I’m sitting here with a lot of wins instead of a few. Last year I was playing good golf and I wasn’t able to make the key putts at the right time, and this year I was. That’s really just the difference.

“I’m proud of the results. It’s something I try not to focus too much on, but at the end of the day, being able to win tournaments is a great feeling, and it’s what we work towards, and to be able to have as many wins as I have this year is really special.”

Scheffler added: “I feel like I’ve lived almost a full lifetime in this one year. It has been nuts. I think it just always comes back to my faith. I think that’s the thing that just keeps me grounded, keeps me in the right frame of mind.”

How Scheffler keeps his focus

Scheffler took a two-shot lead into the Tour Championship and was seven ahead during the early stages of the final round, before recovering from seeing his advantage cut to two strokes by playing his next six holes in five under to reclaim control of the tournament.

“Just nothing fazes him,” said Collin Morikawa, who played alongside Scheffler for the final three rounds at East Lake. “Whether I was close in gaining some ground or he was gaining ground, it didn’t change how he walked or how he played or how he went through every shot.

“I think his mental game is a lot stronger than a lot of people know. It’s amazing what he’s been able to do for this entire season and honestly this past three years now. It’s been really cool to watch him.”

Scheffler had previously squandered a six-shot advantage to McIlroy on the final day of the 2022 Tour Championship, although his latest win is the third event in a row and eighth time in 14 attempts on the PGA Tour that he has converted a 54-hole lead into a victory.

“Just think how well he plays when he’s the guy to beat every single week,” former FedExCup champion Justin Thomas said. “I don’t think people understand how hard that is to do.

“When you’re expected to win, when you’re the favourite to win, when every single thing you’re doing is being looked at, good and bad, on the golf course, and how hard it is to get in your own little zone and own little world and truly just quiet the noise.

“It’s something that is just as much of a skill as being able to hit a driver in the fairway or an iron on-line. He’s clearly figured that out very well. All Scottie wants to do is just play the best he can and win as many tournaments as possible, and he’s doing a pretty good job of that.”

Consistency key for Scheffler?

Scheffler has been the best player in the world from tee-to-green, with his 2023 total the best seen since Woods in 2006 and his 2.456 strokes gained in that metric last season nearly a stroke better than any other player on the PGA Tour.

Only inconsistency on the greens prevented him from being a more prolific winner during the second half of 2023 and the early part of this year, before a switch to a mallet-style putter in March helped add another element to Scheffler’s game.

“It just seems like he’s basically doing what he did last year, just putting probably a little bit more consistently,” former FedExCup champion Viktor Hovland said. “When you hit it as good as he does every single week and you start making some putts, you’re going to be very difficult to beat.”

The switch of putter was initially suggested by Rory McIlroy earlier in the season, with the four-time major winner impressed by Scheffler’s low scoring and ability to limit mistakes.

“The one thing I’ve always admired about Scottie is the amount of bogey-free rounds he shoots,” McIlroy said. “You just go back over the last two, three years and you look at how many rounds that he’ll shoot like four under par, no bogeys.

“It doesn’t look spectacular at all, but it’s just so solid. He doesn’t really put himself out of position. When you don’t make a ton of bogeys, the field has got to do something really special to keep up.”

A Tiger-esque season from Scheffler?

Scheffler has been quick to play down comparisons with Woods at multiple points this season, but his sustained brilliance has produced numbers and consistency not seen since the 15-time major champion in his prime.

On whether Scheffler’s 2024 performance is the best seen since Woods, former world No 1 Adam Scott said: “I think that’s fair. I think all the stats back that up. I think that the results back it up. It has been pretty incredible.

“I think it is on par with those great years of Tiger’s. It’s very hard today for anyone to separate themselves as much as Scottie has. I don’t think we’ve seen that in a long time.”

Scheffler’s FedExCup success came after entering the Tour Championship top of the standings for the third consecutive year, with his 13 PGA Tour wins to date coming in just over a two-and-a-half-year period.

“I think by the definition of dominance, I think that’s literally where he’s sitting,” said Xander Schauffele, who started the Tour Championship as his closest challenger for FedExCup victory after two major victories in 2024.

“Since I’ve been out [on the PGA Tour], I think Dustin [Johnson] had a run, Brooks [Koepka] had a run, Jon [Rahm] had a run, Rory [McIlroy] had a run. But they were kind of punching back and forth between one, two and three.

“Scottie has been at the tip-top of the mountain for two full years now it seems.”

Woods’ dominance lasted a generation. Scheffler still has some way to go if he’s going to match those efforts, but he’s on the right trajectory to continue his dominance for many seasons to come.

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Source : Sky Sports