Collin Morikawa is the one participant inside 4 photographs of Scottie Scheffler on the Tour Championship.
Keyur Khamar/PGA TOUR through Getty Photos
World No.1 Scottie Scheffler has been one of the best golfer on the planet and the favourite to win the FedEx Cup all season lengthy. By way of two rounds on the Tour Championship that hasn’t modified, and the remainder of the PGA Tour’s greatest are beginning to sound the alarm about their possibilities to cease him… if not readying their white flags for waving.
To recap how we bought right here, Scheffler pulled off an historic stretch of golf within the first half of 2024, profitable six PGA Tour occasions together with his second Masters title. If not for his weird arrest on the PGA Championship, he could have gained extra.
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It appeared like no different participant may contact him, and the FedEx Cup was his to lose. However then Xander Schauffele went and gained two majors, the PGA and extra just lately the Open, to all of a sudden make a run on the Participant of the 12 months and FedEx Cup titles.
Would Scheffler as soon as once more fail to win the Cup after an early-season blitz, as has occurred previously?
Scheffler shut the door on that principle shortly with a dramatic gold-medal win on the Olympics in August. However nonetheless, because the FedEx Cup Playoffs started, some folks questioned whether or not Schauffele may nonetheless win the Cup, and Participant of the 12 months, with a playoff cost.
Heading into this week’s Tour Championship, Scheffler was nonetheless in first, which earned him a beginning rating of 10 below. Beating the world’s greatest participant when additionally giving him strokes appeared like a tall activity for any participant, Schauffele included.
After Scheffler blitzed East Lake within the opening spherical for one of the best spherical of the day to extend his lead from two photographs to seven, all hope appeared to have vanished for the opposite gamers within the discipline.
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Even after his lead shrunk barely on Friday, the remainder of one of the best sounded uncertain that anybody may catch him.
“He’s one of the best golfer on the planet. He’s actually good with leads,” professional Sam Burns stated after the second spherical at East Lake. “It’s not an important factor for us.”
Burns began the Tour Championship at 4 below, six photographs behind Scheffler. Regardless of spectacular rounds of 67 and 68 to start out the match, he finds himself 10 photographs again on the midway level.
He Burns was trustworthy in regards to the probabilities of Scheffler loosening his grip on the lead.
“I’m not anticipating him to come back again within the slightest. Any individual goes to should go chase him down,” Burns stated Friday. “I believe when you drive the ball properly round right here, get your self in place sufficient and you’ve got a very good day with the irons and make some putts, I believe a low rating is available. Whenever you get the ball out of place on this golf course, particularly with firmer greens, it makes it fairly powerful.”
Wyndham Clark, the 2023 U.S. Open champion, offered an analogous perspective, saying, “It’s going to be very powerful to meet up with him. He’d should not play his greatest and I’d should play unbelievable.”
Collin Morikawa really beat Scheffler on Friday by three photographs. However he’s nonetheless 4 photographs off the tempo heading into Spherical 3. When requested if it helped to be within the closing pairing with Scheffler, Morikawa stated solely “somewhat bit.”
“He’s such a very good participant that you just simply know he’s going to maintain going low and making birdies,” Morikawa stated Friday night. “I noticed that firsthand. I’ve seen it for years.”
Schauffele, the one man with an opportunity to steal POY honors from the World No. 1, additionally made it clear that the match is in Scottie’s arms.
“It’s actually as much as him, to be trustworthy. I’ve to play out of my *beep* to smell,” Schauffele joked. “Being two again after which capturing one below yesterday and him capturing low spherical of the day, it’s simply not the beginning I wanted. A way of urgency at the moment to attempt to decide some up.”
However it’s not all dangerous information for the various gamers making an attempt to chase down Scheffler at East Lake. The 2024 FedEx winner solely will get $25 million of the $100 million bonus pool, which suggests there’s nonetheless $75 million up for grabs, even when a win looks as if much less and fewer of a risk, as Clark acknowledged.
“There’s nonetheless loads of nice issues to ending second, third or fourth, or fifth even.”
