As Scottie Scheffler prepares to place the ending touches on one other Tiger-like season, he mirrored on a crucial lesson he discovered from Tiger Woods.
“I’ve solely performed one spherical of match golf with Tiger Woods, and it utterly modified the best way I have a look at how I play tournaments,” Scheffler informed reporters at Atlanta’s East Lake Golf Membership, the place he’ll try to defend his Tour Championship this week in opposition to 29 of the PGA Tour’s high skills.
Scheffler was paired with Woods throughout the last spherical of the 2020 Masters, which had been moved from April to November and was performed with out spectators as a result of COVID-19 pandemic.
ALSO READ: Tiger Woods to guide PGA committee focussed on bringing ‘vital’ change
Scheffler remembered how Woods responded after carding a ten on the par-13 twelfth gap at Augusta on that Sunday. Woods birdied 5 of the final six holes, displaying a degree of focus and competitiveness that has caught with Scheffler all through his personal reign because the world’s No. 1 golfer.
“(I) was like, what’s this man nonetheless taking part in for? He’s received the Masters 4 or 5 instances. Finest end he’s going to have is like twentieth place at this level,” Scheffler mentioned.
“I simply admired the depth that he introduced to every spherical, and that’s one thing that I attempt to emulate. If I’m going to take time to come back out right here every week — prefer it’s not a simple factor to play a golf match. If I’m going to take per week off, I’d as effectively simply keep residence. I’m not going to come back out right here to take per week off. If I’m taking part in in a match, I’m going to provide it my all. That’s actually all it boils right down to.”
Scheffler, 29, continued his outstanding season with a victory final week on the BMW Championship. Together with his wins on the PGA Championship and The Open Championship, he turned the primary PGA Tour golfer since Woods in 2006-07 with 5 or extra titles in back-to-back seasons.
Scheffler has 18 profession wins on the PGA Tour. He was the Rookie of the 12 months in 2020 however didn’t win his first tourney till 2022.
“The rationale I felt like I hadn’t received but is I hadn’t put myself in place sufficient instances. I’d solely performed in a pair last teams. I at all times discovered myself just a bit bit on the surface wanting in, and that’s one of many issues I discovered from taking part in with Tiger,” Scheffler mentioned.
“It was like, we’re in twentieth place or no matter going into Sunday on the Masters, Tiger has received 5 Masters, he’s bought no probability of successful the match. Then we confirmed up on the primary gap and I used to be watching him learn his putt, and I used to be like, ‘Oh, my gosh, this man is in it proper now.’
“That was one thing that I simply considered for a very long time. I felt like a change I wanted to make was bringing that very same depth to every spherical and every shot. And I really feel like the explanation I’ve had success in these tournaments is — I don’t hit the ball the furthest. The issues that I do on the golf course, different folks can do. I feel it’s simply the quantity of consistency and the depth that I convey to every spherical of golf is just not taking photographs off, not taking rounds off, not taking tournaments off.”
The teachings discovered in Augusta in 2020 have Scheffler in place this week to do one thing even Tiger Woods didn’t accomplish: turning into the primary to win back-to-back Fed Ex Cups.
Revealed on Aug 20, 2025