LOUISVILLE, KY. There are no two words in golf that carry a heavier weight than the following: talent and potential.
Until this week’s PGA Championship, the name Xander Schauffele embodied both attributes but with no major championship titles linked to his name.
That changed forever with his win at Valhalla.
Schaufelle demonstrated past successes with two runner-up finishes and 12 top-ten finishes. But the anchor around his neck was the inability to finish off events and to be absent at crunch time in the biggest of moments.
At the 2023 U.S. Open, Schaufelle fired a record-tying 62 to share the first-round lead. From that point onward, he simply faded from view.
Just last week during the final round at the Wells Fargo event it was Schauffele who was blitzed by the brilliant mid-round play of winner Rory McIlroy.
To Xander’s credit his golf form was on display right from the start of this week’s PGA Championship — matching the 62 he scored at last year’s U.S. Open and becoming the first golfer to have accomplished the feat twice.
This time Schauffele exhibited a level of play ratifying the talent and potential long associated with him. His play was consistent throughout the event and he became the 11th golfer to have led wire-to-wire in the championship.
In addition, his final score of 263 (-21) is the lowest cumulative score in any major championship, besting the previous mark of -20 shared by several others.
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Lowest winning scores at a major championship in relation to par |
| -21, Xander Schauffele, 2024 PGA Championship (Valhalla)
-20, Cameron Smith, 2022 Open Championship (St. Andrews) -20, Dustin Johnson, 2020 Masters -20, Henrik Stenson, 2016 Open Championship (Royal Troon) -20, Jason Day, 2015 PGA Championship (Whistling Straits) |
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No march to a major championship title is ever stressless and Schauffele faced a number of tense situations. When he double-bogied the 15th hole during Saturday’s third round, he regrouped with closing birdies at the 17th and 18th holes to maintain a share of the lead.
In Sunday’s final round he faced a 15-foot putt for par at the demanding par-4 6th and sank it. That result provided a clear spark as he birdied the 7th and 9th holes finishing the outward side with a 31 score.
On the inward half a debatable decision with a fairway metal from the right fairway bunker at the 10th prompted his lone bogey during Sunday’s play. He quickly regrouped with a birdies at the 11th and 12th before sealing the championship with birdie at the closing hole from just under seven feet.
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Lowest final round scores, in relation to par, by winners of the PGA Championship: |
| -7, Steve Elkington (1995, Riviera), won in a playoff versus Colin Montgomerie -6, Xander Schauffele (2024, Valhalla), won by 1 -6, Collin Morikawa (2020, TPC Harding Park), won by 2 -6, Rory McIlroy (2012, Kiawah), won by 8 -6, Jeff Sluman (1988, Oak Tree), won by 3 |
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Schauffele stated his success came from “staying in my lane” even when it became “hard to stay in my lane.” Winning a major championship is unlike any other golf event. The pressure is more intense because the status conveyed pushes players from being a member of a larger pack of talented players to ascending to a higher level where only the most gifted of players reside.
Some had questioned whether something was lacking in Xander’s game and Schaufelle was quick to refute that.
“I don’t think I’d ever look at it as lacking. I looked at it as someone that is trying really hard and needs more experience. All those close calls for me, even last week, that sort of feeling, it gets to you at some point. It just makes this even sweeter. I told Todd Lewis (Golf Channel), he asked me how I felt about the week, I said, it’ll make my next win even sweeter. I know it’s a major, but just winning in general this is as sweet as it gets for me.”
Xander’s last win came in 2022 during the Scottish Open. He also claimed the gold medal in the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Being a consistent player was certainly noted by his peers but going one step beyond and attaining a win in a major championship proved elusive. To his considerable credit he stayed the course – no pun intended.
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Wire-to-wire for first major win |
| Xander Schauffele led or co-led in capturing the 106th PGA Championship. Over the last 20 years, there have been only four other players to lead or co-lead all four round of their first career major victory:
Jimmy Walker 2016 PGA Championship (Baltusrol) Jordan Spieth 2015 Masters Rory McIlroy 2011 U.S Open (Congressional) Trevor Immelman 2008 Masters |
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“I’ve felt like I’ve been on this sort of trending path for quite some time. I really had to stay patient and keep the self-belief up, and I was able to do both those things.”
The pathway for victory in this year’s PGA Championship became a three-man battle between Schauffele, Bryson DeChambeau and Viktor Hovland.
Both DeChambeau and Hovland had birdie putts at the final hole to get to -20 and a tie with Schauffele. DeChambeau converted from just under 11 feet while Hovland missed.
When Schauffele made a deft chip to save par at the penultimate hole that meant a final birdie at the closing hole would decide the championship. Xander’s tee shot narrowly missed a fairway bunker on the left side and with his feet in the sand and ball above him he played a low iron shot just to the left of the green. For many the awkward stance could have proven to be off-putting. Not for Xander.
“I just kept grinding. I get up there and just kind of chuckled. I was like, if you want to be a major champion, this is the kind of stuff you have to deal with. So I dealt with it, and happily was able to push that thing up.”
Another superb chip left a putt just over six feet for the title. Schauffele looked up to the sky as the ball spun around before finally settling into the bottle of the cup.
For a number of years, the 30-year-old has had to deal with persistent questions from media on being the best player not to have won a major. That dubious honor is now on someone else’s shoulders.
Related: Scottie Scheffler ‘running on fumes’ after strong finish
Will other majors now be doable for Schauffele? That’s hard to say as the talent level in professional golf is incredibly high. Xander himself admitted what he faces.
“At the top of the mountain is Scottie Scheffler. I won this today, but I’m still not that close to Scottie Scheffler in the big scheme of things. I got one good hook up there in the mountain up on that cliff, and I’m still climbing.”
Sunday’s final round had plenty of key question marks and several clearly centered on how Schauffele would handle such a critical moment. Xander was straightforward in is feelings.
“Definitely a chip on the shoulder there. It just is what it is at the end of the day. You guys are asking the questions, probing, and I have to sit here and answer it. It’s a lot easier to answer it with this thing (Wannamaker Trophy) sitting next to me now, obviously.
The “X” factor in professional golf comes front and center when championships are decided. Some have it – many don’t. The win at Valhalla removed any questions concerning how much of a fight resides within Xander Schauffele.
The test was there.
The perseverance unwavering.
The “X” factor came alive at Valhalla with a new champion having that specific letter in the leadoff position to his name.
“Winning is a result. This is awesome. It’s super sweet,” said Schauffele. “But when I break it down, I’m real proud of how I handled certain moments on the course today, different from the past.”
Indeed, Xander you most certainly did.
