ATLANTA — The superlatives for Scottie Scheffler’s record-breaking PGA Tour season continue to run dry. He made history at TPC Sawgrass, triumphed at Augusta National, and won the gold medal in Paris. His four other Signature Event titles also add to the lore, reaffirming his status as the best player in the world.
So, on Sunday, as Scheffler continued to march to victory at the Tour Championship, Justin Thomas tried to put his season into perspective.
“I don’t even know where to start,” Thomas said.
“I just think how well he plays when he’s the guy to beat every single week. I don’t think people understand how hard that is to do, when you’re expected to win, when you’re the favorite 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.”
In the 19 events Scheffler has played in this year, he arrived as the odds-on-favorite every time. He has had the biggest target on his back week-in and week-out, but instead of folding under pressure, Scheffler routinely delivered. Many top athletes argue that staying on top of the mountain is more difficult than climbing it, but Scheffler has done just that.
He stays in his lane and only pays attention to his faith, family, close friends, and his game. He ignores all of the noise, a challenging but impressive accomplishment in this day and age.
“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,” Thomas said of Scheffler.
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“He’s clearly figured that out very well.”
Scheffler has been the best player on the planet for the past three seasons, but this one has entered historic proportions. His win at the Tour Championship marked his seventh win of the season, thus becoming the first player to win seven times on tour since Tiger Woods did so in 2007. Those comparisons are palpable, even though Scheffler still has a long way to go to match Woods’ accolades.
“All Scottie wants to do is just play the best he can and win as many tournaments as possible,” Thomas added.
“He’s doing a pretty good job of that.”
Earlier this year, critics blasted Scheffler for his putting woes, saying that his issues with the flat stick kept him at bay. But he then changed his putter before the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Scheffler won at Bay Hill and then stormed back on Sunday at TPC Sawgrass to post back-to-back wins in consecutive weeks—a second green jacket followed shortly after that.
Scheffler posted only average putting weeks during that span but still won.
This week, at the restored East Lake Golf Club, Scheffler rolled the rock better than he had all season. He ranked fourth in strokes gained putting, which explains why he held such a massive lead all week. He also had only 82 putts on his 53 greens in regulation, good for first in the field. He took advantage of the opportunities he gave himself, and Thomas recognized that, too.
“His putting has been so impressive,” Thomas said.
But everything about Scheffler has been so impressive. He makes everything look so easy, leaving all of us to shake our heads and say, “I don’t even know where to start.”
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
