British Open champion Scheffler says comparisons with Tiger ‘a bit silly'

Winnipeg Free Press

5 days ago

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland (AP) — Another comparison between Tiger Woods and Scottie Scheffler surfaced during the final round of the British Open. This one wasn't about numbers or trophies, but a fist pump.
And it was for par.
Scheffler only needed one hour to expand his four-shot lead to seven shots with a steady diet of fairways and greens at Royal Portrush on Sunday, along with three birdie putts. But he missed his tee shot on the par-3 sixth and his chip was weak, leaving him a 15-foot par putt.
Scheffler fiercely pumped his fist when it dropped, evoking memories of Woods and his 15-shot win at Pebble Beach in the 2000 U.S. Open.
Woods had a 12-foot par putt on the 16th hole of that final round, and it was the most emotion he showed all day when he made it. He wanted a clean card and wound up going his final 26 holes bogey-free. Woods was so utterly dominant his only competition came from himself.
That's how it felt with Scheffler when he won the claret jug for the third leg of the career Grand Slam at Royal Portrush.
Scheffler went 32 holes without a bogey until he took two shots to get out of a fairway bunker on No. 8 and made double bogey. What stood out to Scheffler in his four-shot victory was the lack of bogeys, the DNA of his dominance.
'To only have one double — really one one over-par hole in the last 36 holes of a major championship — that's how you're able to win these tournaments,' he said.
He won the British Open by four shots. He won the PGA Championship in May by five shots. He won by four in the 2024 Masters. Scheffler was five shots ahead on the final hole in his first Masters win in 2022 when he four-putted while simply trying to finish.
There are plenty of numbers to consider, starting with his position at No. 1 in the world. No one has held it longer since Woods.
Scheffler and Woods are the only players in the last 50 years to win two majors in the same year by at least four shots. Researchers with time on their hands at the PGA Tour discovered Scheffler and Woods each went 1,197 days between winning their first and fourth majors.
Enough of the comparisons, Scheffler said.
'I still think they're a bit silly,' he said. 'Tiger won, what, 15 majors? This is my fourth. I just got one-fourth of the way there. I think Tiger stands alone in the game of golf. He was inspirational for me growing up. He was a very, very talented guy, and he was a special person to be able to be as good as he was at the game of golf.'
For majors alone, a better comparison would be with Rory McIlroy. He also won four majors in three years, including two of them in 2014. McIlroy won a U.S. Open and a PGA Championship by eight shots, the latter a record margin.
And then he went 11 years without a major. Greatness in golf is also about longevity.
Scheffler won for the fourth time this year and now has 20 victories worldwide. He has won 11 straight times with the 54-hole lead.
The 29 year old from Texas was introduced as champion golfer of the year, a title the R&A has used for more than a century. Scheffler at this rate might be champion golfer of his generation.
And to think he was slowed at the start of the year recovering from a puncture wound on his right hand from trying to cut ravioli with a wine glass.
The year's top highlight still might be McIlroy winning the Masters amid tense drama to finally complete the Grand Slam. That was his third win of the season, following The Players Championship and Pebble Beach. McIlroy, however, sounded almost dismissive about them Sunday evening.
'I also had the three wins when Scottie wasn't quite on his game,' he said.
Also driving the comparisons with Woods are high praise from just about everyone who has had to face Scheffler since that first win in 2022.
'He is the bar that we're all trying to get to,' McIlroy said.
'I don't think we thought the golfing world would see someone as dominant as Tiger come through so soon, and here's Scottie sort of taking that throne of dominance,' Xander Schauffele said. 'You can't even say he's on a run. He's just been killing it for over two years now.'
Any hesitation about comparisons — besides the 15-4 tally in majors, as Scheffler is quick to point out — is their style of play. Woods was as dynamic as he was relentless, especially with recovery shots. Scheffler doesn't have that many because he's rarely out of position.
Woods was groomed for stardom when he appeared on the Mike Douglas Show at age 2. Scheffler never cared about anything other than playing golf and getting better at it.
'He doesn't care to be a superstar. He's not transcending the game like Tiger did. He's not bringing it to a non-golf audience necessarily,' said Jordan Spieth. 'He doesn't want to go do the stuff that a lot of us go do, corporately, anything like that.'
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He works. He competes. He wins. That's what Woods did, and that's what matters to Scheffler.
'I don't focus on that kind of stuff,' Scheffler said of the comparisons. 'That's not what motivates me. I'm not motivated by winning championships. I don't look at the beginning of the year and just say, 'I want to win X amount of tournaments.' I don't do that.
'When I wake up to practice, what motivates me is getting to live out my dream,' he said. 'I get to play professional golf, and I feel like I'm called to do it to the best of my ability.'
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf