Scottie Scheffler is making his first start at the RBC Heritage this week but a landmark 100th PGA Tour start of what’s been an extraordinary career of two parts.
Overall, Scheffler’s PGA Tour career is already a superb one, with one Masters Green Jacket tucked away and spells as world number one all mixed in with six tournament victories and $33.5m of official prize money in the bank.
All of Scheffler’s wins and the bulk of his prize money has come during a sparkling last 29 events, starting and including his playoff victory over Patrick Cantlay at the 2022 Phoenix Open.
Starting with that victory at TPC Scottsdale, Scheffler has played 29 PGA Tour events, winning six of them, finishing runner-up in three, with an incredible 17 top 10s overall – missing the cut just three times.
Contrast that to Scheffler’s first 70 starts on the PGA Tour, which still saw him play well at times but yielded two second places and the exact same number of top 10s (17) as he managed in his following 29.
The 26-year-old only official joined the PGA Tour in 2020 and it’s been a remarkable illustration of just what a win can do in terms of confidence for a golfer.
Plenty of players have won a tournament and not gone on such a ride as Scheffler did in 2022, winning four events in six starts including The Masters, becoming the first player since Arnold Palmer to win that many events including at Augusta National to start the season.
Scheffler remains low key about it all as usual, saying that “I did not know that until now” when told this week’s RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Links would be his 100th PGA Tour start.
“Yeah, I'm now in my fourth year,” he added. “100 tournaments went by pretty quick.”
Who knows how different things might have turned out had Cantlay got the better of him in Phoenix, but there's been no looking back since and the two parts of his career since then show that perfectly.
Scottie Scheffler career stats
Before his first PGA Tour win
Played: 70
Majors: 0
Wins: 0
Runner-Up: 2
Top 10s: 17
Missed Cuts: 16
Including & after his first PGA Tour win
Played: 29
Majors: 1
Wins: 6
Runner-Up: 3
Top 10s: 17
Missed Cuts: 3
