Scottie Scheffler shares his honest first impression of TPC Sawgrass - “I just thought it was really hard”
Scottie Scheffler will be back at TPC Sawgrass this weekend. When the PLAYERS Championship tees off there, the world number one golfer will be its defending champion, looking to earn a second consecutive title. He won it by five strokes, making him the widest victor since 2006.
The course, though, is not one he anticipates familiarity with. TPC Sawgrass is a difficult one for many golfers, so his win there doesn't beget another excellent performance.
Scheffler was asked about the first time he played there by the PGA Tour website. He responded:
"I just thought it was really hard. I mean, you just have to hit it so good around this place to play well, and I think that's why you don't see the same winners every year is because it doesn't really suit one type of player."
Scheffler described the course and how it presents unique challenges:
"If you look at the golf course, No. 1 requires a fade (off the tee), No. 2’s a draw. Four is a fade, No. 5’s a fade, No. 7’s a draw. No. 9, you’ve got to hit a fade, then a draw; No. 10’s a draw, No. 12’s a draw, 13 is a draw. Then you get to No. 15, it’s a cut, 16 is a draw and 18 is a draw."
He went on to add that it's "interesting how the course works" which is why one player hasn't seemed to master TPC Sawgrass and routinely put in good outings there.
That five-stroke margin of victory is exactly the same as his most recent outing at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Not many players have won two consecutive PGA Tour events in recent memory, so it will be difficult for Scheffler to defend his crown as the PLAYERS winner and as the most recent winner on Tour.
Scottie Scheffler reflects on PLAYERS win
Scottie Scheffler did extremely well at the PLAYERS Championship last year. Winning it gave him the current PLAYERS title and the current Masters title, which he eventually lost to Jon Rahm the month after. The only two golfers to ever hold both titles are Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus.
Scheffler said via the PGA Tour website that he remembers the last round in which he cemented his victory best:
"I remember a lot of the final round. I don't really remember too much of the three rounds before that. I feel like I did a good job of staying patient and then when things started going well, I capitalized on that... I definitely used that momentum for good, and I kept pushing ahead and was able to make things fairly comfortable down the stretch, which was good."
It's difficult to win and do it in such a dominating fashion in this tournament. It's often considered golf's fifth unofficial major, so the best golfers are out. Winning it means more than winning a standard event like the WM Phoenix Open or even a Signature Event like the Genesis Invitational.