PGA Profile: Dallas Resident Scottie Scheffler Wins Phoenix Open

One of the Lone Star State‘s brightest stars on the PGA Tour earned his first victory last weekend at the Phoenix Open. Scottie Scheffler emerged with an emotional playoff win over Patrick Cantlay with a final score of 268 (-16) to break through with his maiden PGA Tour win.

Scheffler barely made it heading into the weekend but shot 62 on Saturday and 67 Sunday to complete an impressive comeback. Once three strokes down on the back nine, he forced the playoff with Cantlay, the No. 3 ranked player in the world and last year’s FedEx Cup champion.

Scheffler’s earned a hefty payday of $1,476,000 after topping a star-studded leaderboard that included Cantlay, Brooks Koepka (-15), Xander Schauffele (-15), Justin Thomas (-14), John Rahm (-12), Bubba Watson (-11), and Louis Oosthuizen (-11).

After making four birdies down the stretch to close his round on Sunday, Scheffler said:

“If you would have told me on 13 tee I was going to be in a playoff, I would have been pleased. I felt a little bit out of it at that point.”

Q: What does it feel like to finally breakthrough?

“I kept telling Teddy (caddie) on Thursday and Friday I was scoring really poorly but I was playing fantastic golf, my swing felt great, short game felt good, putting felt good, everything felt really good and I was only 3 under. To kind of put things together Saturday and get through all the mistakes I made today and still pull it out is pretty amazing.”

This week, Scheffler joins the other nine players ranked in the top-10 of the OWGR for the $12 million prestigious event at Riviera Country Club just outside Los Angeles.

The Genesis Invitational has attracted golf’s elite players. Golf’s greatest modern-day player, Tiger Woods, is the tournament host.

Update: Scheffler shot 5-under par 66 in Round 1 of the Genesis Invitational, and was tied for second position with fellow Dallas resident and Texas Longhorn alumni Jordan Spieth.

Scottie Scheffler’s rise to PGA Tour champion

Scottie Scheffler is just 25 years old, and he’s now among golf’s elite and ranked No. 9 in the world. The Dallas resident has made major strides in his PGA Tour career over the last three years, posting 18 top-10 finishes, including four in major championships.

Scheffler played high school golf at Highland Park in Dallas, and he won the 2013 US Junior Amateur. He continued his golfing passion playing for the University of Texas in Austin.

From 2014-2018, Scheffler helped the Longhorns win three Big 12 championships and was named Phil Mickelson Freshman of the Year in 2015.  He was also part of the US team that won the 2017 Walker Cup.

Scheffler was the Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year in 2019 and earned a fully exempt PGA Tour card for the 2020 season.

Ted Scott join forces with Scottie Scheffler

Scheffler made a caddie change late last year and joined forces with Ted Scott, who previously caddied for Bubba Watson. He met Scott in a bible study class in 2020, and finding a fellow Christian with a calming influence felt most comfortable for him.

The golfer and caddie did a trial run at the RSM Classic in November. Scheffler shot 63 in the first round.

“Literally, I had nothing to do with it,” Scott said. “The next day was like the hardest day caddying in my life. I don’t know his game and there were 25 miles per hour winds. It was wild. He handled it with such maturity. I learned a lot about him.”

Less than three months later and just their eighth start together, Scheffler is a PGA Tour winner for the first time.

Scheffler’s schedule and 2022 Masters Tournament

Following the Genesis Invitational, Scheffler will play in a few tournaments in the Florida Swing.

Sports betting is not yet legal in Texas, Florida, or California. Three of the biggest markets for the rapidly growing industry that now has more than 20 states offering legal sports betting and six others with legislation passed.

But millions of sports fans and golf bettors are checking the odds for the 2022 Masters starting April 7. Scheffler is now +2000, or 20-1, to win a green jacket at Augusta National. Scheffler has finished top-20 in his two Masters appearances the last two years.

Ahead of the Masters is the World Golf Championships (WGC) Match Play event at Austin Country Club. Last year, Scheffler advanced to the finals in the head-to-head match-play event before losing 2 and 1 to Billy Horschel.

Scottie Scheffler will be a popular pick and player to watch the rest of the 2022 PGA Tour season and beyond. The golf journey for one of the Lone Star’s finest players is on a path of fairway’s and green’s ahead.

You can bet on it.

Update: Scottie Scheffler won his second PGA Tour title in less than a month, capturing the prestigious Arnold Palmer Invitational in tougher scoring conditions and a final score of 279 (5 under par). Scheffler is up to No. 5 in the world golf rankings, and one of the leading favorites at THE PLAYERS Championship. Scheffler’s odds to win the 2022 Masters have dipped to as low as 22/1 at BetMGM.