‘Scheffler’s Woods-like mentality should worry chasing pack’

Scottie Scheffler “warming up in a jail cell” on May 17, 2024, as he prepared for his second round of the US PGA Championship.

He became the new US PGA champion on May 18, 2025, by lifting the Wanamaker Trophy.

The most dominant player in the world did a very different US PGA experience this year, marking the day after his shock arrest at Valhalla by doing what he does frequently.

winning a tournament in golf.

Due to his 11-year major drought and the grand prix, Rory McIlroy’s victory at the Masters felt the emotional pull of his career grand prix, but Scheffler’s win on Sunday lacked the opposite.

McIlroy’s Masters Sunday was a rollercoaster of both positive and negative emotions. Scheffler’s US PGA Sunday appeared to be a slog on the way to the end.

Despite that, he consistently performed on the front nine in accordance with his standards. For a hot putter, it would have been even worse if the control and measure we now associate with the world number one had been more common.

However, Scheffler and other players in all sports have the same level of mental strength and ability to bounce back.

He and a charging Jon Rahm were tied at nine under after his ninth-place bogey. Normal people are known to have panicked and fallen.

Scheffler birdied the 10th to respond.

He followed a bogey with an immediate bounce-back birdie on one of the six occasions at Quail Hollow.

It turned out to be a crucial moment, too. At the fourteenth and fifteenth grade, Schuffler suddenly became imperious and effortlessly picked up more strokes.

The chasing Rahm failed, reminding one of Tiger Woods’ struggles with Phil Mickelson, Vijay Singh, and Ernie Els.

There is still a way for him to go before he can match Woods in every way, but Scheffler is unquestionably the most similar in terms of mentality and competitiveness since the 15-time major champion’s heyday.

Even though he did not win the US PGA, that was equally as effective 12 months ago.

Scheffler was detained shortly before the Kentucky second round as he attempted to avoid the heavy traffic that had been caused by an earlier, unrelated accident, which resulted in the death of a pedestrian.

Although he didn’t do much warm-up and had his mind surely scrambled, he still managed to score a respectable five under par on day two despite the image’s viral success.

Despite failing in his weekend challenge, he still managed to finish eighth. In less than 54 hours, from mugshot and jail cell to top-10 overall.

The famous three-hole stretch from the 16th, which is dubbed The Green Mile, was destroyed by Scheffler one year prior to his arrest, in honor of Stephen King’s prison novel, which was later turned into a movie.

He was five under the mark when he was 14 to 18; that prevented him from being cut off from the pack, ensuring that his scrappy front nine on Sunday was not over.

After McIlroy’s victory at the Masters last month, there was swoony talk of a stress-free player winning a second major at his favorite course.

Other than Bryson DeChambeau, the game’s other big names were also in decline. A McIlroy double appeared inevitable.

Scheffler, whose year began slowly as a result of a freak hand injury, was then remembered with an eight-shot victory at the Byron Nelson Classic.

Scheffler was back. He was not content, though.

A player who has been regarded as the world’s top dog for many years has a few majors to return, and frustration may have started to show in his normally calm manner after his first round at Quail Hollow.

He criticized the PGA’s decision to not allow preferred lies, which allows players to remove mud from their balls without paying a penalty after the first round. He was uncomfortably irritable during his post-round press conference.

His criticism came after a “mudball” on the 16th that caused him to suffer a double bogey.

This was a pretty difficult week, according to Scheffler, who said, “I felt like this was as difficult as I battled for a tournament in my career.”

“Sometimes I wish I didn’t care as much as I did, but I’m very appreciative and looking forward to returning home and celebrating.”

After winning on Saturday night thanks to his knowledge of The Green Mile, it was inevitable who would take the Wanamaker Trophy 24 hours later.

Scheffler entered a final round of the US PGA as expected, which was his eighth time coming close to victory since the start of 2024.

After a month of celebrations, DeChambeau, Rahm, and the rest, McIlroy’s – understandably out of sorts at Quail Hollow – will have had a chilling reminder of the 28-year-old’s grinding efficiency.

He now belongs halfway to the Grand Slam club after winning the USPGA title and two Masters titles before retiring.

Next up is the US Open, a mental and physical exam for him that also includes his name in second and third place.

Anyone who finishes in front of Scheffler will have had a good week, and he will be the clear favorite at Oakmont.

An unidentified teenage amateur shot an opening 69 to finish in a share for fourth, which is a wonder if Oakmont will suit Scheffler the last time the classic Pennsylvania course hosted the US Open.