Scottie Scheffler earns 2 back-to-back in Players Championship

The world’s No. 1 ranked male golfer, Scottie Scheffler of the U.S., won the Players Championship for the second consecutive time, which is the first record set by any golfer during the 50-year history of the championship. Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, with three and two wins of the championship under their belt, respectively, failed to defend their title. The Players Championship, which is referred to as the fifth major championship of the PGA Tour, offers the highest prize money in the Tour.

Scheffler won the championship with the final score of 20-under 268 by recording one eagle and six birdies without a bogey in the final fourth round of the championship held in TPC at Sawgrass near Ponte Vedra in Florida on Monday. He won prize money of 4.5 million dollars by beating the players in a tie by one stroke and earning his eighth win. The total prize money for the championship was 25 million dollars. The American golfer won 8.5 million dollars in prize money in just one week with another win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, which ended on March 11.

Scheffler, who began the final round tied for six with five strokes behind Xander Schauffele in first position, had a great come-from-behind victory with an eagle at the fourth. After the golf ball he hit with a wedge 92 yards away, bounced twice, and fell into the hole, he raised his fist in confidence. With multiple birdies later, Scheffler tied for first place with Schauffele after a birdie at the 16th. Then, as Schauffele, Brian Harman, and Wyndham Clark tied for second, all failed to shave strokes at the 18th hole, and the winner was decided without overtime. With Clark’s birdie putt failing to find the hole, Scheffler’s win was confirmed.

“It’s tough enough to win one Players,” Scheffler said during a post-championship press conference. “So, to have it back-to-back is extremely special. Yeah, really thankful.” He played wearing a tape on the back of his neck due to a sprain during the second round. He added that he was having a hard time reading the incline before a putt.


Hong-Gu Kang windup@donga.com