NASSAU, Bahamas — Scottie Scheffler returns from a two-month hiatus and nothing has changed. He won the Hero World Challenge on Sunday with a 9-under 63 to tie the tournament record at Albany Golf Club and win by six strokes.
Scheffler, the first player since Tiger Woods in 2009 to spend an entire calendar year ranked No. 1 in the world, won for the ninth time in 21 starts, a total that included a second Masters title, an Olympic gold medal and the FedExCup.
He started the final round one shot behind Justin Thomas, took the lead at the par-5 third hole, stayed in front with a 50-foot birdie putt at No. 4 and never looked back.
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Tom Kim tried to stay close until he missed a 19-inch putt at the par-5 11th. He birdied the final hole for a 68 and finished second when Thomas, whose faint hopes ended by a bogey on the 18th, threw himself into the water on the 18th for another bogey. He shot 71 and finished third.
Scheffler finished at 25-under 263 to tie the tournament record at Albany first set by Bubba Watson in 2015, and his six-shot victory was the most in the nine years that Tiger Woods’ holiday tournament has took place in the Bahamas.
Jordan Spieth holds the tournament records for 72-hole score (262) and margin (10 shots) during the year it was held at Isleworth in 2014.
“Very satisfying,” Scheffler said. “I did a lot of good things today on the course. It’s nice to take a break, come back and continue to play really solid golf.
Already the best in golf, Scheffler has brought a new “brand” to the Hero World Challenge in an effort to improve further. He used the grip on putts from around 15 feet and longer, and he finished the week third in key stats against a field of 20 players.
“He’s really not doing anything wrong,” tournament host Tiger Woods said in the NBC booth during the final round.
Tiger Woods joins the NBC booth and Scottie Scheffler almost misses an approach photo
As soon as the tournament host joined the broadcast of the Hero World Challenge, the world number 1 provided action.
What reminded Woods of his excellent run – and there were many for Woods – was how few mistakes Scheffler made during the course of a round or tournament. Albany was another example. He made only two bogeys over 72 holes.
Thomas, whose last victory was the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills, started off pretty well. He also dropped two early shots on the par 3s and twice missed chips, including one on the par 5 ninth, which prevented him from making a birdie in an attempt to trail Scheffler.
Scheffler was three shots ahead with three holes to play when he made a rare error off the tee, finding a sandy area to the right of the fairway. He made clean contact out of the sand from 12 feet for birdie, while Thomas went just over the green, leading to a bogey.
There’s more to come as Scheffler will team up with Rory McIlroy in a televised match at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas on Dec. 17 to take on LIV Golf stars Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka.
Scheffler won $1 million for winning the unofficial tournament. It was his smallest payday for a win all year, outside of the Olympics: The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee paid gold medalists $37,500.
He joined Viktor Hovland as the only consecutive winners at Albany. Woods won consecutively, and a total of five times, when the tournament was held at Sherwood Country Club.
Kim lives in Dallas and played with Scheffler all the time before Scheffler’s wife gave birth to their first child. Kim knows what to expect.
“It’s not where we come in and we even shoot par, 1 over, and he comes out here and wins,” Kim said. “He does it all the time. I think the biggest thing I see is he’s always trying to get better. Although he’s won nine times this year, he always finds little ways and I think that’s really, really cool to see and you can get a lot out of it.
Over the past 40 years, Scheffler’s winning rate of 43% worldwide places him third behind Woods in 2006 (nine wins in 19 starts) and Woods in 2002 (10 wins in 22 starts).
And then?
“Continue to work on these things in the offseason and get ready for next season,” Scheffler said.
