Scottie Scheffler’s path to surpassing Tiger Woods’ record detailed
Scottie Scheffler has just completed the best season of his career to date. What he has achieved is so extraordinary that more than a few fans and pundits have compared it to Tiger Woods' best.
However, when the subject is discussed, it is always remembered that Woods' greatness was not limited to one season. A post on X (formerly Twitter) outlined what Scheffler would have to do to match one of the Big Cat's most spectacular records.
It's the total number of weeks Woods spent at the top of the world rankings (683). According to Golf Digest's calculations, Scheffler would have to remain the world's number one golfer for 11 consecutive years to equal this extraordinary record.
Scheffler has been ranked number one in the world by the Official World Golf Ranking for 108 weeks, so to equal Woods' record, he would need to hold the position for a further 575 weeks. That amounts to a staggering 11 years.
Tiger Woods has another incredible record related to his time as the world's number one golfer. Between June 12, 2005, and October 30, 2010, Woods remained atop the world rankings for a total of 281 consecutive weeks. As if that were not enough, he was the world number one for another 264 consecutive weeks between 1999 and 2004.
To put that in perspective, Scottie Scheffler's longest reign as world number one has been 75 weeks, between May 22, 2023, and the present (October 2024).
Scottie Scheffler's performance as world number one at a glance
Although he is far from Tiger Woods' record, Scottie Scheffler's performance as world number one has been more than remarkable. Suffice it to say that he has won seven PGA Tour events since May 2023, plus an Olympic gold at the Paris Olympics and the (unofficial) Hero World Challenge 2023 title.
In that time, Scheffler has played in 29 official PGA Tour events without missing a cut. In addition to his eight wins, he registered three second-place finishes, five third-place finishes, and seven other top-10s. His worst finish of the period was a tie for 41st at the 2024 US Open.
During the same period, Scheffler also closed in on another Woods record, that of consecutive rounds of par or better on the PGA Tour. Woods' record stands at 52 rounds while Scheffler's stands at 41.
Scheffler's streak began in the third round of the 2023 TOUR Championship in August of that year and ended in the third round of the 2024 PGA Championship in May.
Fans might recall that Scheffler was arrested on his way to his tee time for the second round of the PGA Championship at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. After his release, he shot a 65, the final under-par round of his streak.