Scottie Scheffler looks like he’ll be hard to catch in this year’s Player of the Year race.
It hasn’t been a slow start by any means, with Rory McIlroy already winning at Torrey Pines and Scottie picking up a win at The American Express. And that second one came in a head-to-head playoff against 2024’s second-best player, Xander Schauffele.
What was maybe more telling was Scheffler’s performance the following week at the WM Phoenix Open, where he finished in a tie for second despite not really looking sharp until the final day. Even when he isn’t at his best, Scheffler just finds ways to be near the top of leaderboards.
Rory McIlroy explains what it will take to catch Scottie Scheffler
The 29-year-old bounced back from a poor opening round to not only make the cut but also finish just one shot away from being in the playoff at TPC Scottsdale.
Scheffler’s preparations for 2025 were disrupted by a hand injury over Christmas, so it feels significant that he’s now won in January for the first time in his career.
And speaking ahead of the first signature event of the year at Pebble Beach, McIlroy outlined just what it will take for anyone to catch Scheffler.
“If I had a critique of myself last year is that I didn’t bring the consistency that I maybe would have wanted post The Masters. I think some of that is sort of understandable, but Scottie just had his 17th top 10 in a row,” he said.
“Even you look at him last week, he shoots two over in the first round and he just pieces it together again, finds a way, has a chance to win on Sunday.
“He’s relentless. And I’ll never stop singing Scottie’s praises because he’s incredible at what he’s doing and the way he does it.”
“I’ve had nice runs like that, but I’ve always been a little more up and down. I think anyone who wants to catch Scottie or get anywhere close is going to have to consistently bring that sort of game week in and week out like he does. He’s really the first one since Tiger who’s doing this.”
Comparing Scottie Scheffler’s current ranking lead with Tiger Woods’ biggest gap
Scheffler’s current lead over McIlroy in the world rankings is more than double, a significant gap, though still short of Tiger Woods’ record.
Tiger was averaging 32.33 points just after his Tiger Slam in 2001. Scheffler is currently averaging 17.04.
No other player has reached an average of 20 points in the modern era, and while today’s fields are stronger overall, Woods faced legends like Phil Mickelson, Ernie Els and Vijay Singh at their peaks.
It will be interesting to see where Scheffler’s career fits into the larger picture once it’s all said and done. At his current pace, he looks set to leave a lasting impact on the sport.
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