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Scheffler Dominating the TOUR

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DUBLIN, Ohio – The Memorial, presented by Workday was Scottie Scheffler’s 11th career PGA TOUR title and fifth this season. He joined four different players (on six instances) who have won the Memorial Tournament and THE PLAYERS Championship or a major championship in the same season as Scheffler now captured the 2024 Memorial, the 2024 PLAYERS Championship, and 2024 Masters Tournament. The other players to accomplish the feat are Raymond Floyd (1982), Curtis Strange (1988), Paul Azinger (1993) and Tiger Woods (1999, 2000, 2001).

Scheffler became the seventh player (16th instance) with five or more TOUR wins in a season since 1983 and first since Justin Thomas in 2016-17 (5). Scheffler has won five of his last eight starts on TOUR and has finished outside the Top 10 only once in 13 starts this season (T17/The American Express).

He became the second player since 1950 with five TOUR victories including a major, before the U.S. Open (Arnold Palmer/1960, 1962) which is this week at Pinehurst.

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The last five instances of a player winning five times in a calendar year on the PGA TOUR before June 10:

  • Scottie Scheffler, 2024
  • Tom Watson, 1980
  • Johnny Miller, 1974
  • Arnold Palmer, 1962
  • Arnold Palmer, 1960

Collin Morikawa recorded his third Top-5 finish in as many starts (T4/PGA Championship, 4th/Charles Schwab Challenge). He was seeking a fourth victory on a Jack Nicklaus-designed venue – 2019 Barracuda Championship (Montreux G&CC), 2020 Workday Charity Open (Muirfield Village), 2021 WGC-Workday Championship at The Concession.

The Memorial 2024 | Final Leaderboard

1 Scottie Scheffler 67 68 71 74 280 (-8)

2 Collin Morikawa 68 74 68 71 281 (-7)

3 Adam Hadwin 66 72 72 74 284 (-4)

4 Christiaan Bezuidenhout 72 67 74 72 285 (-3)

Final Leaderboard (link)

Morikawa Gets Second Chance at Jack’s

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DUBLIN, Ohio – (Staff and Wire Service Report – Collin Morikawa recalled that he was nearly moved to tears when he had to withdraw from the 2023 Memorial Tournament on the morning of the final round because of a back injury.

But Morikawa has returned for this year’s edition of the Memorial, which starts on Thursday at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Ohio.

Morikawa will be trying to capture the victory that eluded him a year ago while also going for a handshake from the event’s longtime host, golf legend Jack Nicklaus, on the 18th green.

“I felt gutted last year,” said Morikawa, who was tied for ninth at 4-under par and two shots behind the leaders after three rounds when he suffered back spasms during a workout that Sunday morning.

“I hurt myself on Sunday and I felt like I had a chance,” Morikawa said Wednesday. “I went in there and I was nearly sobbing because I had to go tell (Nicklaus) that I had to withdraw. It sucks because you show up to certain events and you just, you have this thing about an event that you just love, and I love this golf course.”

Morikawa, 27, is a two-time major champion since turning pro in 2019, having won the PGA Championship in 2020 and The Open in 2021. Among his six victories on the PGA Tour is his win at the Workday Charity Open held at Muirfield Village in 2020, but that didn’t come with a handshake from Nicklaus.

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Another shot to win the Memorial came in 2021, when Morikawa lost to Patrick Cantlay in a playoff.

“Oh, it would be so special,” Morikawa said of getting a handshake from the 84-year-old Nicklaus, an 18-time major champion. “Look, what Jack has done for this game, what his voice does, what he represents, it’s a lot. You can’t replace history, you can’t replace someone like that, so to have that chance hopefully come Sunday, it would mean the world. …

PGA Tour: The Memorial

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THE MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT
Location: Dublin, Ohio, June 6-9
Course: Muirfield Village Golf Club (Par 72, 7,571 Yards)
Purse: $20M (Winner: $4M)
Defending Champion: Viktor Hovland
FedEx Cup Leader: Scottie Scheffler

HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday: 2-6 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday: 12:30-2:30 p.m. (GC), 2:30-6 p.m. (CBS)
Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday-Friday, 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m. ET; Saturday-Sunday, 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
X: @MemorialGolf

PROPS
–Collin Morikawa to beat Xander Schauffele (+105 at DraftKings): Schauffele claimed his first major title in his most recent start and has been a top-10 machine with nine through 11 2024 events. But Morikawa has also rediscovered elite form, posting consecutive fourths and five top-10s over his past five starts. It has been a whirlwind few weeks for Schauffele since his breakthrough major victory, while Morikawa hunts for his first win since October.

–Viktor Hovland as top Scandanavian (+140 at BetMGM): After a rough start to 2024, Hovland reconnected with his previous swing coach and immediately contended until the 72nd hole at the PGA Championship. He also won at Muirfield in a playoff last year, but does have to fend off stiff competition in this prop. Ludvig Aberg (+150) has skyrocketed to sixth in the world with five top-10s already this year, while Alex Noren (+275) has displayed strong recent form that includes six top-20s in his past nine starts.

PGA Tour: Riley Wins at Colonial

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FT. WORTH – Davis Riley accomplished a lot on his final day, five stroke cruise to victory at the 2024 Charles Schwab Challenge:

  • He secured his second PGA TOUR victory in his 90th start at the age of 27 years, 5 months, 9 days.
  • He earned his first individual victory on TOUR with the other being a team match play tournament at the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans with partner Nick Hardy.
  • He earned 500 points to move to No. 55 in the FedExCup standings and entry in the two remaining Signature Events this season (Memorial Tournament presented by Workday and the Travelers Championship).
  • He moved from No. 250 to No. 78 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
  • He won $1,638,000 and a new Chevy Corvette
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Charles Schwab Challenge | Final Leaderboard

1 Davis Riley 66 64 66 70 266 (-14)

T2 Keegan Bradley 68 66 70 67 271 (-9)

T2 Scottie Scheffler 72 65 63 71 271 (-9)

4 Collin Morikawa 68 69 67 68 272 (-8)

Final Leaderboard: (link)

PGA Tour: Murray Died by Suicide

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FT. WORTH – (Wire Service Report) – PGA Tour member Grayson Murray died by suicide, his parents confirmed in a statement Sunday morning.

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The death of Murray was announced by commissioner Jay Monahan on Saturday, one day after the 30-year-old golfer cited illness following his withdrawal from the Charles Schwab Challenge at Fort Worth, Texas.

On Sunday morning, his parents, Eric and Terry, provided the following statement:

“We have spent the last 24 hours trying to come to terms with the fact that our son is gone. It’s surreal that we not only have to admit it to ourselves, but that we also have to acknowledge it to the world. It’s a nightmare.

“We have so many questions that have no answers. But one. Was Grayson loved? The answer is yes. By us, his brother Cameron, his sister Erica, all of his extended family, by his friends, by his fellow players and — it seems — by many of you who are reading this. He was loved and he will be missed.

Schauffele, Morikawa in Front at PGA

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LOUISVILLE – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – It was moving day at the PGA Championship. And there were plenty of top golfers that made a move up the leaderboard during the third round of the event on a sun-drenched day at Valhalla Golf Club.

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Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa are at the top of the leaderboard at 15-under-par, but six players are within two shots of the lead and 15 will begin Sunday’s round at 10 under or better.

Schauffele overcame a double-bogey at No. 15 and finished his round with back-to-back birdies to post a 3-under-par 68. He’s tied with Morikawa, who shot a 67.

“A lot of guys took it low to climb their way up,” Morikawa said. “I assume tomorrow is going to be the same.”

Sahith Theegala shot 67 and is one shot back at 14 under, while Shane Lowry tied the course and PGA record with a 62 and is at 13 under along with Bryson DeChambeau and Viktor Hovland. Another shot back at 12 under heading into the final day are Justin Rose and Robert MacIntyre.

“There’s blood in the water,” said Schauffele, who led after his opening round 62 and after the second round.

“There’s so many guys on that leaderboard there,” Hovland said.

The third round will begin at 7:45 a.m. local time on Sunday, and the final pairing of Schauffele and Morikawa will tee off at 2:35 p.m.

It marks just the second time since 2005 that six players were within two shots of the lead at the PGA. There were also six players within two shots after 54 holes during the 2020 event at TPC Harding.

And, according to Elias Sports Bureau, it will mark the most players to start the final round of a major that are double digits under par. The previous record was seven, which was done three times, the latest at the 2022 Open Championship at St. Andrews.

“Look, I’ve played against all these guys; it’s not like any of these guys are new,” Morikawa said. “They all have their accolades within themselves, and really anyone can go low.”

Schauffele, who had nine birdies during his opening-round 62, had it to 15 under with three birdies in his first 14 holes. But he flew it over the green on the par-4, 15th hole and into the deep rough.

It led to a double-bogey 6, but he recovered with a wedge shot to about 2 feet for birdie on No. 17. A third shot chip on the par-5 18th hole led to another birdie.

“I mean, you summed it up for me; it was easy going there the first round,” he said. “Everything felt super easy. Felt like I’ve had to work for a lot of my birdies the last two days. Haven’t been able to make many putts. I feel like I’m still hitting the ball pretty nice. If I can just get the putter going a little bit, it should free me up.”

Morikawa got his one bogey out of the way on the second hole. He then made birdies on Nos. 3, 5, 10, 15, and 18. The two-time major champion had a chance at the Masters last month but finished tied for third.

“I’m going to tap in just kind of that mental state I’ve been in, not only those two, but in other tournaments I’ve played well in,” he said. “I think the goal for me tonight before my tee time is just to be as mentally sharp by that first hole. I think looking back at a month ago at Augusta, I felt sharp in everything, but I feel like I could have had a little bit of self-talk before I went out on that first tee and really just not got ahead of myself. Not that I did, but two holes really cost me back there. Tomorrow is just going to put everything I have out there and see how it plays out.”

Theegala made bogey at Nos. 5 and 6 but recovered. He made six birdies in his final 10 holes to post a 67. His birdie at No. 18 pulled him to within one shot of the lead.

Lowry, the 2019 Open champion, matched the lowest round ever in any of the four majors. Four players had previously posted 62s in the majors, including Schauffele, who did it in the U.S. Open last year and the first round this week.

Lowry was 29th heading into the third round and quickly jumped up the leaderboard. He shot a 29 on the front nine, reeling off four straight birdies at Nos. 2, 3, 4, and 5. It was the first time anyone had shot a 29 over nine holes at Valhalla during four PGAs.

But the round could have been better. He had three birdies on the back nine and could have added another at 18. Lowry hit his drive into the right rough at the par-5 hole and then his second shot went to the left rough. He then missed an 11-foot putt for a birdie that would have given him a 61.

“Yeah, it was pretty good; I enjoyed it,” Lowry said. “I enjoyed every minute of it, obviously. … Look, I went out there with a job to do today, and my job was to try to get myself back in the tournament, and I definitely did that.

“Probably the most disappointed anyone can ever be shooting 62. I knew what was at stake (at 18). Just didn’t hit the ball hard enough. Had it on a good read and just broke away from the hole.”

DeChambeau chipped in for eagle at No. 18 to get to 13 under, while Hovland made birdies at Nos. 17 and 18.

The weather is expected to be in the 80s and sunny on Sunday, setting the stage for a frantic finish.

–Field Level Media

PGA Tour: Third Round at CJ CUP

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McKINNEY, TEXAS – PGA TOUR rookie Jake Knapp shot (64-64) over the opening two rounds, becoming the third player to shoot 64 or better in first two rounds of THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson. The others? Scottie Scheffler/64-64/2023, Tiger Woods/64-64/1997). Pretty good company to keep.

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Knapp, the 2024 Mexico Open at Vidanta winner, seeks to become the first rookie to win twice on TOUR in the same season since Xander Schauffele(2017 Greenbrier Classic, 2017 TOUR Championship).

After equaling his career low round on TOUR with a bogey-free 8-under (63), 18-hole leader Matt Wallace (T2/-13) carded a 5-under (66). The 2023 Corales Puntacana Championship winner and four-time winner on the DP World Tour is making his second start at this event (MC/73-73/2022).

At 16 years, 7 months, 3 days, Kris Kim (T36/-7) became the youngest player to make a cut on the PGA TOUR since Kyle Suppa at the 2015 Sony Open in Hawaii and youngest in tournament history with the previous being Jordan Spieth in 2010.

The top five FedEx Cup points earners from the Corales Puntacana Championship, Zurich Classic of New Orleans, and THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson will earn spots in the Wells Fargo Championship via the Aon Swing 5, while the Top 10 players in the FedEx Cup standings not otherwise exempt through THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson will qualify via the Aon Next 10.

Aon Swing 5:

  1. Billy Horschel — 300.000
  2. Matt Wallace T2 247.85
  3. Troy Merritt T2 247.116
  4. Chad Ramey MC 167.167
  5. Kelly Kraft 4 165.531

Spieth, the world No. 20 and Dallas native (MC/-4), missed the cut for the second time in 12 appearances (MC/2017). Other notables to miss the cut (at -6) include: Thomas Detry, Matt Kuchar, Robert McIntyre and Kevin Eisner.

CJ CUP Byron Nelson Leaderboard | Round 2

1 Jake Knapp 64 64 128 (-14)

T2 Troy Merritt 67 62 129 (-13)

T2 Matt Wallace 63 66 129 (-13)

4 Kelly Kraft 64 66 130 (-12)

Full Leaderboard: (link)

Scheffler Masters Augusta (Again)

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AUGUSTA – In professional golf, there’s Scottie Scheffler, and then there’s everybody else.

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The No. 1 player in the world won his second Masters in three years on Sunday in Augusta, Ga., by firing a final-round 68 to finish the week at 11-under 271.

Six of Scheffler’s seven birdies came over his final 11 holes at Augusta National as he pulled away for a four-stroke win over Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg, who posted a 69. Collin Morikawa struggled to a 74, tying Englishman Tommy Fleetwood (69) and Max Homa (73) for third at 4 under.

It marks Scheffler’s second major victory and his 10th win on the PGA Tour in the past 26 months. He has won three tournaments in his last four starts

After a short birdie putt at No. 3, Scheffler suffered bogeys at Nos. 4 and 7 to drop to 6 under with Morikawa, whom he led by one after 54 holes. Aberg and Homa soon joined them for a four-way share of the lead, but Scheffler and Morikawa each birdied the par-5 eighth to sneak ahead to 7 under.

But after Scheffler’s approach at No. 9 spun back and narrowly missed the cup, setting up a birdie, each of his three competitors carded a double bogey to drop down the board. First was Morikawa, who failed to get out of a greenside bunker on his third shot at No. 9 before two-putting.

Aberg’s misstep came at the par-4 11th, where his approach landed well short of the green and hit the water. And Homa went backwards at the par-3 12th after his tee shot over the green bounced into bushes and forced him to take an unplayable lie.

Scheffler made it three birdies in a row at No. 10, absorbed a missed par putt at No. 11 and rebounded with consecutive birdies at Nos. 13 and 14. The latter was the final nail in the coffin, as his approach shot landed on the green’s back ridge and slowly rolled to 2 feet of the cup.

–Field Level Media

’24 Masters Preview

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AUGUSTA – (PGATourBrunch) – The 2024 Masters Tournament is the first major championship of the ‘24 professional golf season. Scottie Scheffler enters the Masters as the No. 1 player in the FedEx Cup standings and No. 1 on the Official World Golf Ranking for the second time in the last three years. Scheffler has two victories this season, winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and THE PLAYERS Championship in consecutive weeks.

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This is the third consecutive year that Scheffler is entering the Masters with multiple wins on TOUR since January 1, the longest such streak since Tiger Woods did so from 2005-2008 (four straight). Scheffler is the only multiple winner on TOUR this season has finished in the top 10 in seven of his eight starts this season, the most of any player on TOUR. He led the TOUR in that category with 17 last season.

The Big News: Living Legend and 82-time PGA TOUR winner and five-time Masters Tournament champion Tiger Woods is making his second start of the season and first since The Genesis Invitational, where he withdrew during the second round due to illness.

Woods made the cut at the 2023 Masters and withdrew during the third round due to injury. He tied Gary Player and Fred Couples for most consecutive starts making the cut at the Masters with 23, and would break the tie with a made cut in 2024. With a win, Woods would break a tie with Sam Snead for most PGA TOUR wins in history and tie Jack Nicklaus for most wins at the Masters (6). This is Woods’ seventh start on TOUR since his February 2021 car accident and third at the Masters. He has three WDs in the previous six starts (2022 PGA Championship, 2023 Masters Tournament, 2024 Genesis Invitational), with his best result in that span coming at the 2023 Genesis Invitational (T45).

There are 89 players in the field, including 20 players making their tournament debut. Among the 20 first-timers in the field, 16 are PGA TOUR members and four are amateurs. Two of the top 10 players in the Official World Golf Ranking are making their first start at the Masters Tournament: No. 4 Wyndham Clark and No. 9 Ludvig Åberg.

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Clark, who earned his first major title at the 2023 U.S. Open, has won three times on TOUR in the last 12 months, most recently winning the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He is making his ninth career start in a major (3 PGA Championship, three U.S. Open, two Open Championship). Åberg, who turned professional in June of 2023 and joined the PGA TOUR as the No. 1 player in the 2023 PGA TOUR University Ranking, is making his first career start in a major.

In 19 starts on TOUR since turning professional, Åberg has recorded a win (2023 RSM Classic) and six additional Top-10s, including a runner-up to Clark at the 2024 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. He has finished in the top 25 in each of his last six starts.

At No. 5 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Xander Schauffele is the highest-ranked player that has not won a major. Schauffele has six top-10s on TOUR this season, the second-most of any player (7, Scottie Scheffler).

Schauffele has 19 Top 25s in majors since joining the PGA TOUR at the start of the 2016-17 season, the most of any player in that span.

Akshay Bhatia defeated Denny McCarthy in a playoff to win last week’s Valero Texas Open, earning the final spot in the Masters. The last player to win a major after winning on TOUR the week prior was Rory McIlroy in 2014 (WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, PGA Championship) and the last to do so at the Masters was Phil Mickelson in 2006 (BellSouth Classic).

McCarthy is also making his tournament debut. The last player to lose in a playoff on TOUR and win the following week was Patrick Cantlay, who lost in a playoff at the 2022 RBC Heritage and then won the Zurich Classic of New Orleans with partner Xander Schauffele.

The last player to lose in a playoff on TOUR and win a major the following week was Jordan Spieth in 2015 (lost in a playoff at the Texas Children’s Houston Open and won the Masters the following week).

2021 Masters Tournament winner Hideki Matsuyama has finished T12 or better in each of his last four starts, including a win at The Genesis Invitational. Matsuyama is one of only two players, along with World No. 1 and FedEx Cup leader Scottie Scheffler, that has finished in the top 20 in each of the last four years at the Masters.

2023 Open Championship winner Brian Harman is making his sixth start at the Masters (best result: T12/2021) and first as a major champion. The last player to win consecutive majors was Jordan Spieth, who won the Masters and the U.S. Open in 2015. The last reigning Open Championship winner to win the Masters was Tiger Woods in 2001.

Stephan Jaeger won the Texas Children’s Houston Open in his most recent start, earning his first PGA TOUR title in his 135th start. In the first 128 starts, Jaeger’s best finish was solo-fifth at the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic. But, in his last seven, he has recorded three finishes of T3 or better (T3/Farmers Insurance Open, T3/Mexico Open at Vidanta, Won/Texas Children’s Houston Open). He is making his fifth career start in a major and first at the Masters.

TOUR rookie Nick Dunlap is making his third career start in a major (MC/2022 U.S. Open, MC/2023 U.S. Open) and first at the Masters. Dunlap won The American Express in January, becoming the first amateur to win on TOUR since Phil Mickelson in 1991.

PGA Tour: Houston Open

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HOUSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The PGA Tour shifts from its Florida Swing to Texas for this week’s Texas Children’s Houston Open, which begins today at Memorial Park Golf Course.

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World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler seeks his third consecutive victory against a solid field. Our golf experts preview the event and provide their favorite prop picks along with best bets to win this week.

TEXAS CHILDREN’S OPEN
Location: Houston, March 28-31
Course: Memorial Park Golf Course (Par 70, 7,435 yards)
Purse: $9.1M (Winner: $1.638M)
Defending Champion: Tony Finau (2022)
FedEx Cup Leader: Scottie Scheffler

HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday, 4-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday, 1-3:30 p.m. (GC), 3:30-6 p.m. (NBC); Sunday, 1-2:30 p.m. (GC), 2:30-6 p.m. (NBC)
Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday-Friday, 8:15 a.m.-7 p.m. ET; Saturday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
X: @TXHouOpen

PROP PICKS
–The Field vs. Scottie Scheffler (-400 at BetMGM): There is little question that Scheffler is the best — and hottest — golfer on the planet. There’s also a good reason why it has been seven years since anyone has won three consecutive starts on tour — it’s really hard to do. It’s certainly not the strongest field of the year, but there is enough talent lurking around Memorial Park to believe Scheffler will have a difficult time making it three straight ahead of the Masters.

–Si Woo Kim to Beat Tony Finau (-110 at DraftKings): Kim is coming off a T6 at the Players in his most recent start and has a pair of other top-15 results in his past five starts overall. Finau is the defending champion, but that came in the Fall of 2022 on a much firmer golf course. He believes his hard work off the course will translate into quality results soon, but his recent track record includes a missed cut last week after a T45 at the Players.

–Wyndham Clark Top 10 (+130 at BetMGM): The only player better than Clark in each of his past two starts has been Scheffler, and he also won at Pebble Beach earlier this year. A career-best fourth in the world rankings, Clark is in excellent form and knows Memorial Park well from his T16 in the Fall of ’22.

2024 Prop Picks Record: 18-17-1

BEST BETS
–Scottie Scheffler (+275 at BetMGM) is trying to become the first player to win three consecutive events on tour since Dustin Johnson in 2017. He has a T2 and a T9 in Houston the past two seasons. He opened at +300, but those odds have shortened slightly with Scheffler third in both total bets (7.0 percent) and money (19.5 percent) backing him to win this week.
–Wyndham Clark (+1200) has finished runner-up to Scheffler in each of his past two events. He’s the second biggest liability at BetMGM, where Clark is second with 18 percent of the money supporting him to win. A caution flkag, as Clark is battling an injured back, suffered Monday when he was lifting weights.
–Sahith Theegala (+1600) is a Spring, Texas resident and has consecutive top-10s entering the week. Those factors have contributed to Theegala being the book’s biggest liability as he leads the field with 19.5 percent of the total money backing him since opening at +2200.
–Will Zalatoris (+1800) makes his tournament debut while coming off consecutive top-5s in his past two starts. He’s the third biggest liability at the book this week.
–Tony Finau (+2500) won by four shots in 2022 but has a lone top-10 in eight starts this season.

NOTES
–The event returns to a spring date after being contested in the fall each of the past four seasons. It was not played in the 2023 calendar year.
–This is the fourth playing at Memorial Park, which first hosted the tournament in 2020.
–The top 50 players in the Official World Golf Ranking after this event will qualify for the Masters if not already exempt. The highest-ranked players in this week’s field who are not yet exempt are No. 57 Tom Hoge, No. 63 Mackenzie Hughes and No. 66 Alex Noren.
–Padraig Harrington, who won on the Champions Tour last week, is in the field on a sponsor exemption.

–Field Level Media