PGA Championship: How Scottie Scheffler adopted Rory McIlroy to main glory and retains exhibiting ‘Tiger Woods ranges’

A yr on from being arrested and brought to jail mid-tournament throughout the PGA Championship, Scottie Scheffler loved a happier expertise on the similar occasion by storming to main victory.

The world No 1 took a three-shot lead into the ultimate day at Quail Hole and bounced again from blowing a five-stroke benefit throughout an eventful Sunday, the place a level-par 71 closed out a 3rd main success.

Scheffler’s five-shot victory over Bryson DeChambeau, Davis Riley and Harris English was his second win of the season, with the most recent triumph seeing him be a part of Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the one gamers – within the trendy period – to win three majors and 15 PGA Tour titles earlier than turning 29.

The victory additionally offers Scheffler the second leg of the profession Grand Slam, having already received The Masters twice, plus it extends his benefit over Rory Mcllroy and Xander Schauffele on the high of the rankings.

What fuelled Scheffler’s newest victory? Why was his win so spectacular? What number of extra majors will he get and the place does he rank in comparison with golf’s all-time greats? We take a better take a look at how Scheffler lifted – and dropped the lid – of the Wanamaker Trophy…

Did McIlroy’s Grand Slam encourage Scheffler?

McIlroy turned simply the sixth participant to finish the profession Grand Slam together with his win the earlier month at The Masters, the place Scheffler completed tied-fourth as he regarded to change into the primary back-to-back winner of the Inexperienced Jacket since Woods.

Scheffler responded by claiming his first PGA Tour win of the yr with an eight-shot victory on the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, earlier than backing it up with the most important PGA Championship win since McIlroy’s eight-shot success in 2012.

“When you see Rory do what he did at The Masters, you get motivated by it,” former main champion Wealthy Beem instructed Sky Sports activities. “I would imagine Scheffler sat there watching and thought ‘I want a piece of that’.

“The one method he will get a bit of that’s by profitable extra majors. I believe what Rory did motivated a number of guys – with Bryson [DeChambeau] and [Jon] Rahm two others excessive on that listing, and Xander [Schauffele] too. These gamers aren’t too far-off from a 3rd leg on the Grand Slam.”

When requested about his profession targets, Scheffler mentioned: “I don’t focus on that kind of stuff. I love coming out here and trying to compete and win golf tournaments, and that’s what I’m focused on. It’s an endless pursuit, and it’s a lot of fun. It’s definitely one of the great joys of my life to be able to compete out here.”

How ‘fool’ caddie helped Scheffler fightback

Scheffler blended one birdie with three bogeys in a front-nine 37 on the ultimate day, the place he struggled off the tee and allowed the chasing pack again into the event, earlier than a dialog with caddie Ted Scott impressed an improved show on the again 9.

“He was hitting everything left [on the front nine], and he asked ‘do you see anything?’,” Scott instructed Golf Channel. “I said the swing looked good, so maybe just aim right? I was just being an idiot… and then he stepped up on 10 and hit a great drive.

“He began hitting it nice, began feeling good and understanding the place the ball was going. It was again to Scottie Scheffler golf and I used to be like ‘right here we go, child!’. It is laborious when popping out with a giant lead, and it is type of quiet, so that you can get much more forward.

“Great players can sometimes maybe play a little too conservative until somebody starts pushing them enough. He [Scheffler] started making some birdies, got ahead again and the rest is history I guess.

“From final yr to this yr, there’s a number of expectations. This recreation is extra concerning the thoughts than anything. So I might say the best reward he has is his psychological thought course of.”

Scheffler’s ‘murals’ closed out main title

The in a single day chief opened his again 9 with a birdie on the par-five tenth and made back-to-back good points from the 14th, giving him full management of the event heading into Quail Hole’s infamous ‘Inexperienced Mile’ closing stretch.

“Everybody was throwing haymakers at him on that front nine,” Beem added. “He sat there and took a couple of them but then, all of a sudden, he just started jabbing his way back into this championship.

“On the very finish he wore out not solely the remainder of the sphere however the golf course as effectively. He simply performed as strong as anyone presumably may over these ultimate 9 holes – it was a murals.”

Scheffler himself mentioned: “I knew it was going to be a challenging day. Finishing off a major championship is always difficult, and I did a good job of staying patient on the front nine. I didn’t have my best stuff, but I kept myself in it and I stepped up on the back nine.”

From jail to Quail Hole glory

Scheffler’s success got here 12 months on from being arrested forward of his second spherical at Valhalla, the place he was detained by police after making an attempt to get round site visitors – attributable to a deadly accident – outdoors of the course.

A mugshot of Scheffler rapidly unfold over social media final Might, with the American ultimately launched in time for him to make his second-round tee time and all expenses subsequently dropped later that month.

“I definitely have a few jokes that I want to say that I’m probably going to keep to myself,” Scheffler joked after his victory, having completed tied-eighth the earlier yr. “Last year sometimes, still doesn’t almost feel real. It really doesn’t.

“It is simply a kind of offers that I actually do not know methods to describe it. However I can let you know it’s extremely candy sitting right here with the trophy this yr.”

How shut is Scheffler to Tiger ranges?

Scheffler’s newest victory moved him above McIlroy to the highest of the PGA Tour’s FedExCup standings, the place he has ended every of the earlier three common seasons, with Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee believing he continues to carry out at ranges not seen since Woods.

“Scheffler is on his way to becoming one of the greatest players of all time,” Chamblee mentioned. “There has been no other player that has blended this level of proficiency and consistency in the strokes-gained era, besides Tiger Woods.

“For the third yr in a row he leads strokes gained strategy, gaining greater than a stroke per spherical on the sphere – solely Tiger Woods has carried out that. For the third yr in a row, he leads strokes whole – selecting up greater than 2.3 strokes per spherical on the sphere -only Tiger Woods has carried out that.

“Other notable aspects of his game are, that he, not Rory McIlroy, is the best driver of the golf ball on the PGA Tour. He accomplishes not with jaw-dropping power, but with a combination of power and precision.”

Extra majors to come back for ‘actual deal’ Scheffler?

Scheffler will return to Oakmont for the US Open as a heavy favorite to win back-to-back main titles subsequent month, stay on Sky Sports activities, the venue the place he made his debut as a 19-year-old novice in 2016 and a event he has completed inside the highest seven in three of the previous 4 editions.

“This guy can go anywhere and win, any championship,” Sky Sports activities’ Wayne ‘Radar’ Riley mentioned. “He is not one-dimensional. He is such a shot-maker. He is an incredibly-talented, sensible participant, and he misses the ball in the appropriate spot on a regular basis.

“Rory has completed the career Grand Slam at The Masters and I always thought he’d end up with eight [majors]. We also have a young man in Scheffler who has three majors – has he got a 10-major career in him? He’s the real deal mentally.”

US Open victory would see him have the chance to finish the profession Grand Slam at The Open later this summer season at Royal Portrush, whereas Scheffler will play a key function in Group USA’s hopes of regaining the Ryder Cup on American soil at Bethpage Black in September.

“He [Scheffler] continues to be the bar we all are chasing,” mentioned Justin Thomas, a probable team-mate of Scheffler in New York, having described the win as “another dominant and inspiring performance”. The wave of Scheffler success exhibits no signal of stopping any time quickly.

Watch Scottie Scheffler in motion all through the season stay on Sky Sports activities. Scheffler returns to motion on the Charles Schwab Problem, stay from Thursday on Sky Sports activities Golf. Get Sky Sports activities or stream with no contract on NOW.