AUGUSTA, Ga. — Scottie Scheffler has been stating his claim as the No. 1 player in the world for three years. Sunday, Scheffler declared himself the dominant force of his era.
Scheffler, 27, won the Masters by four strokes over a star-studded leaderboard for his second green jacket in three years. He becomes the fourth-youngest golfer to win the Masters twice, following Jack Nicklaus, Seve Ballesteros and Tiger Woods. He joins Nicklaus and Woods as the only three players with two Players Championship wins and two green jackets.
For some time on a picture-perfect Sunday afternoon at Augusta National, it appeared an all-time race for the Masters championship was coming into form. The four men playing in the last two groups — Scheffler, Collin Morikawa, Max Homa and Ludvig Åberg — were all tied at 6-under at one point on the front nine.
But then Scheffler, who shot a final-round 68, put his foot down, and everyone else got out of the way.
As he stood in the fairway on the ninth hole, Scheffler unfurled a shot so good it’ll have a chance to become part of Masters lore — hitting it just high of the flag stick from 89 yards away and watching it spin back to six inches. A foot away from the hole, it looked like it was rolling in for eagle, patrons leaping out of their chairs in anticipation. He “settled” for birdie and took the lead at 8-under.
Scheffler then birdied the par-4 10th, a hole he had double-bogeyed on Saturday, to get to a two-stroke lead over Homa and Åberg.
Morikawa, playing with Scheffler, was the first to drop from contention. He doubled-bogey the 9th hole, parred the 10th and then put his second shot in the water on No. 11, venting his frustration as he watched the Masters slip from his grasp with a second double bogey.
Åberg was next, also finding the water on Augusta National’s treacherous 11th hole and scoring a double bogey to drop four shots behind Scheffler.
Last was Homa, still within reach of Scheffler until his tee shot on the par-3 12th flew the green, took a nasty bounce into the greenery on the hill behind it, and forced Homa to take an unplayable lie penalty. He had a double bogey after a poor chip, and was three shots behind even after Scheffler’s bogey on No. 11, his second of the day.
From there it became clear there could only be one, Scheffler adding birdies on holes Nos. 13, 14 and 16 to keep the rest of the field hopelessly chasing. Åberg finished second (7-under) in his first Masters appearance, followed by Morikawa, Homa and Tommy Fleetwood (tied at 4-under).
Two years ago, Scottie Scheffler held a three-stroke lead the morning of the Masters and broke down in his wife Meredith’s arms, confiding in her that he did not feel ready for what was about to come. He was. He is, even though he did not have Meredith with him this week, as she stayed behind at their home in Dallas to await the birth of their first child. Scheffler had promised to withdraw from the tournament should she go into labor (she’s due later this month). It wasn’t necessary. Nothing was stopping him from this Masters win.
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He now has nine PGA Tour wins with two majors, compiling a resume of excellence unmatched this decade. Those nine wins include two Masters, two Players Championships, two Arnold Palmers Invitationals, two Phoenix Opens and a WGC match play win. But maybe more telling has been Scheffler’s unprecedented consistency. He’s played 15 majors as a tour player, and he’s been top 25 in all but one. He’s been top 10 in 10 of them. The last time he finished a professional tournament outside the top 31 was in October 2022.
Scheffler’s been world No. 1 for 83 of the last 107 weeks, and his win Sunday further solidifies the belief that nobody is reaching him any time soon. The only question left for Scheffler was if he could stabilize his putting to ensure he added more majors and had a trophy room to match his special level. Now, he’s on a four-event run of winning the Players, the Arnold Palmer and the Masters as a 4-to-1 favorite.
Suddenly, the question is not whether Scheffler can truly operate like golf’s biggest star. It’s if anyone can stop him.
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(Photo: Andrew Redington / Getty Images)
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