Xander the Great! Schauffele wins the British Open for his 2nd major this year

Xander the Great! Schauffele wins the British Open for his 2nd major this year
Xander Schauffele of the United States holds the Claret Jug trophy aloft after winning the British Open Golf Championships at Royal Troon golf club in Troon, Scotland, Sunday, July 21, 2024. (AP)
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Updated 22 July 2024
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Xander the Great! Schauffele wins the British Open for his 2nd major this year

Xander the Great! Schauffele wins the British Open for his 2nd major this year
  • Schauffele closed with a 6-under 65 with a final round that ranks among the most memorable in British Open history, particularly the 31 on the back nine

TROON, Scotland: Xander Schauffele went from the most nerve-wracking putt of his career to the coolest walk toward an 18th green he ever imagined.
He won a nail-biter at the PGA Championship in May. He delivered a masterpiece Sunday in the British Open. Two different finishes, two different feelings.
One major conclusion.
Schauffele has more than enough game and all the confidence in the world to win the biggest championships. Questioned at the start of the season whether he could win a major, he now has two of them.
Schauffele closed with a 6-under 65 with a final round that ranks among the most memorable in British Open history, particularly the 31 on the back nine. It matched the best score of the week at Royal Troon with nothing less than the claret jug riding on the outcome.
He played bogey-free in a daunting wind and turned a two-shot deficit into a two-shot victory for his second major of the year.
It also gave the Americans a sweep of the four majors for the first time since 1982.
“It’s a dream come true to win two majors in one year,” Schauffele said. “It took me forever just to win one, and to have two now is something else.”
He won the PGA Championship at Valhalla by making a 6-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 65. In a final round set up for high drama at Royal Troon — six players one shot behind, nine players separated by three shots — Schauffele made a tense Sunday look like a nice walk along the Irish Sea.
“I think winning the first one helped me a lot today on the back nine,” he said. “I had some feeling of calmness come through. It was very helpful on what has been one of the hardest back nines I’ve ever played in a tournament.”
It sure didn’t show. Standing on the 18th tee, Schauffele said he turned to caddie and longtime friend Austin Kaiser and told him that he had felt calm down the decisive back nine.
“He said he was about to puke,” Schauffele said.
In the 90-year history of four majors, Schauffele became the first player to win two majors in one season with a final-round 65. Jack Nicklaus is the only other player to do that in his career.
And he never looked more calm, oozing that cool California vibe even as the wind presented so much trouble at Royal Troon.
Schauffele pulled away with three birdies in a four-hole stretch early on the back nine to go from two shots behind to leading by as many as three.
He won by two shots over American Billy Horschel and Justin Rose, the 43-year-old from England who had to go through 36-hole qualifying just to get into the field. They were among four players who had at least a share of the lead at one point Sunday.
They just couldn’t keep up with Schauffele. No one could.
“He has a lot of horsepower,” Rose said. “He’s good with a wedge, he’s great with a putter, he hits the ball a long way, obviously his iron play is strong. So he’s got a lot of weapons out there. I think probably one of his most unappreciated ones is his mentality. He’s such a calm guy out there.
“I don’t know what he’s feeling, but he certainly makes it look very easy.”
Even with so many players in contention early, the engraver was able to get to work early on those 16 letters across the base of the silver claret jug.
Schauffele kept staring at golf’s oldest trophy in his press conference, looking forward to gazing at it in private, wondering what kind of drink to pour from it. He said he’d leave that up to his father, Stefan, who missed his son’s first major title and was blubbering on the phone with him.
As to where that final round ranks — Henrik Stenson shot 63 when he won his duel with Phil Mickelson at Royal Troon in 2016 — Schauffele left no doubt where it stood in his own career.
“At the very tip-top,” Schauffele said. “Best round I’ve played.”
Playing in the third-to-last group, he matched the round of the championship with a score that was just over eight shots better than the field average.
The final birdie was a pitch over a pot bunker to 4 feet on the par-5 16th. The grandstands at The Open are among the largest, lining both sides of the fairway as Schauffele walked through and soaked up the cheers.
“I got chills,” he said.
The 30-year-old from San Diego became the first player since Jordan Spieth in 2015 to win his first two majors in the same season. And he extended American dominance on this Scottish links as the seventh Open champion in the last eight visits to Royal Troon.
It was the 11th straight year for a first-time British Open champion, tying a tournament record.
Rose started one shot behind and closed with a 67. That was only good for second place. He had a chance to set a record by going the longest time between majors after his 2013 US Open win.
“Gutted when I walked off the course and it hit me hard because I was so strong out there today,” Rose said. “Xander got it going. I hit a couple of really good putts that didn’t fall, and then suddenly that lead stretched. I left it all out there. I’m super proud of how I competed.”
Horschel, who started the final round with a one-shot lead in his bid to win his first major, dropped back around the turn and birdied his last three holes for a 68.
“I’m disappointed. I should feel disappointed. I had a chance to win a major,” Horschel said. “I just made a few too many mistakes today when I didn’t need to.”
The player Schauffele had to track down was Thriston Lawrence of South Africa, who birdied three of four holes to end the front nine with a 32.
Schauffele was two shots behind when it all changed so suddenly. Schauffele hit a wedge out of the left rough on the difficult 11th and judged it perfectly to 3 feet for birdie. He hit another wedge to 15 feet for birdie on the 13th, and capped his pivotal run with a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-3 14th.
Lawrence finally dropped a shot on the 12th and didn’t pick up any shots the rest of the day. He closed with a 68 and earned a small consolation — a trip to the Masters next April, his first time to Augusta National.
Scottie Scheffler, who got within one shot of the lead briefly on the front nine, lost his way with a three-putt from 6 feet for a double bogey on the ninth hole. Scheffler finished his round by topping a tee shot on the 18th and making another double bogey. The world’s No. 1 player closed with a 72 and tied for seventh.
He stuck around to share a hug with Schauffele, the two top players in golf. Schauffele was the only player this year to finish in the top 10 in all four majors.
He finished at 9-under 275 and earned $3.1 million, pushing him over $15 million for the season.
Schauffele went from the heaviest major trophy at the PGA Championship to the smallest and oldest, the famed claret jug.
“I just can’t wait to drink out of it,” he said, smiling as wide as ever.


Justin Thomas ends 3-year drought with playoff victory in RBC Heritage

Justin Thomas ends 3-year drought with playoff victory in RBC Heritage
Updated 21 April 2025
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Justin Thomas ends 3-year drought with playoff victory in RBC Heritage

Justin Thomas ends 3-year drought with playoff victory in RBC Heritage
  • In the playoff, Novak missed from just inside 35 feet, setting the stage for Thomas
  • The putt was so pure that Thomas dropped his putter before the ball dropped, stooping over and clutching both arms to celebrate a win that felt long overdue
  • His previous win was the PGA Championship at Southern Hills in May of 2022

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C.:Justin Thomas ended nearly three years without a victory Sunday by making a birdie putt from just outside 20 feet in a playoff at Harbor Town to beat Andrew Novak in the RBC Heritage.

Thomas played bogey-free in dry, fast conditions for a 3-under 68, making a 25-foot birdie putt on the 16th that looked like it might be the winner until Novak, who grew up in South Carolina, matched him with a big birdie of his own for a 68.

Novak, who has had three good chances to win in his last 14 tournaments, had an 8-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole in regulation that was left all the way.

In the playoff, Novak missed from just inside 35 feet, setting the stage for Thomas. The putt was so pure that Thomas dropped his putter before the ball dropped, stooping over and clutching both arms to celebrate a win that felt long overdue.

His previous win was the PGA Championship at Southern Hills in May of 2022. His game slipped and he missed the FedEx Cup playoffs for the first time in 2023, and he was left off the Presidents Cup team a year ago.

His game was back in order — he cracked the top 10 again — and needed only a victory to confirm his game was back among the elite.

“I didn’t realize how much I missed winning,” Thomas said on the 18th green as he stood next to wife Jill and 5-month-old daughter Molly.

Thomas and Novak finished at 17-under 267, three shots clear of anyone else.

Novak was a runner-up in Bermuda last fall. He was right there at Torrey Pines in the Farmers Insurance Open. He was in the mix at the Valero Texas Open. And this looked like it might be his moment to break through until Thomas refused to be denied.

“Winning is hard. It’s really, really hard,” Thomas said with a tinge of emotion in his voice. “I’ve worked my butt off and stayed patient, stayed positive.”

He won for the 16th time on the PGA Tour, and to his recollection, he has never had to make a putt of length on the 18th hole to win by a shot.

“That was as fun as I thought it would be,” Thomas said.

They pulled away in the middle of the round from a tight leaderboard — a four-way tie at one point as they were joined by 54-hole leader Si Woo Kim and Maverick McNealy.

Daniel Berger closed with a 65 to tie for third with McNealy (70), Mackenzie Hughes (67) and Brian Harman (69).

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler even got in on the act, just briefly. He started four shots behind and was even for the round through eight holes. But he ran off three birdies in a four-hole stretch around the turn to pull within two.

Scheffler was running out of hole when he took on a high-risk shot needing eagle to have a legitimate chance. That found the water, leading to double bogey. He still shot 70 and tied for eighth, his third straight top 10 while contending into the final hour.

“I think I’m really close,” Scheffler said. “I feel like I did a lot of things well this week, just a few of the important shots I just didn’t pull off. Outside of that it was a pretty solid week.”

Thomas won the tournament with a birdie in a playoff. He saved his chances toward the end of the front nine when he made four straight putts starting on the fifth hole — 7 feet for birdie, 7 feet for par, 8 feet for par and just inside 15 feet for birdie on No. 8, where he took on the trees with a 7-iron to give himself a chance.

Novak had tree trouble and battled away, getting a few good bounces and a remarkable par save from a sandy lie amidst a forest on No. 11.

He moves high enough in the world ranking — inside the top 35 — that he should be a lock for the US Open and now needs to stay in the top 50 the next month for the British Open.

“I’m not as frustrated as I thought I would be.” Novak said. “I feel like I did a lot of good things. I’m pretty proud of putting myself in that position when I really felt like I wasn’t swinging it that great this week.

“I thought I was a little more comfortable down the stretch than maybe I have been in the past. Justin just went out and won it. There’s nothing you can really do about it.”


Justin Thomas makes 11 birdies for a 61 to take the lead at Harbor Town

Justin Thomas makes 11 birdies for a 61 to take the lead at Harbor Town
Updated 18 April 2025
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Justin Thomas makes 11 birdies for a 61 to take the lead at Harbor Town

Justin Thomas makes 11 birdies for a 61 to take the lead at Harbor Town
  • Fifty players in the 72-man field broke par on a course that yielded an average score of 69.2
  • Justin Thomas makes 11 birdies for a 61 to take the lead at Harbor Town

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C.: Justin Thomas had a round to match the immaculate weather Thursday at Harbor Town with 11 birdies that allowed him to tie the course record with a 10-under 61 to lead the RBC Heritage.

The best shot he hit all day was an 8-iron that dropped near the pin and settled 5 feet away. He missed that birdie putt, one of the few chances he didn’t convert.

There was little to complain about on a day of hardly any wind, a course in mint condition and warm sunshine that added to the RBC Heritage being the ideal place to decompress from the hectic week at the Masters.

Defending champion Scottie Scheffler, coming off a tie for fourth at the Masters, had very little stress at Harbor Town in a round of 64 that looked easy — which is not to say it felt that way.

“I will never say that golf is easy, ever. Golf is hard,” Scheffler said with a laugh.

But he was out of position only once off the tee and one other time when he went long of a green and both times he saved par. Otherwise, he putted for birdie or better on the other 16 holes and converted enough chances for a start that only looked good — not great — because of Thomas with the lowest score at Harbor Town in 10 years.

Bay Hill winner Russell Henley also had a 64, while Wyndham Clark was another shot back at 65. The group at 66 included former Hilton Head winner Matt Fitzpatrick and Gary Woodland, on the road back from brain surgery and building momentum from a runner-up finish in Houston.

Fifty players in the 72-man field broke par on a course that yielded an average score of 69.2

“I felt like if you compared my four rounds last week to today, today would be a much less stressful round of golf in terms of scrambling for a par,” Scheffler said. “A lot of the stuff I had to do last week I felt like I didn’t have to do today to shoot a good score. The golf course is obviously a bit different, but I was in position most of the day today.

“Overall, yeah, I would say stress-free day.”

Thomas is winless since capturing his second PGA Championship title in 2022, though his game has been trending enough in the right direction that he is No. 8 in the world. The Masters was a disappointment — no round lower than 70, 13 shots behind in a tie for 36th — but he put in some good work at Hilton Head for two days and made it pay off.

Six of his birdie putts were inside 10 feet, and he threw in three birdies from the 35-foot range, one of them on the 17th hole that put him in range of the course record.

He thought he had it with that 8-iron to a front pin on the 18th, which runs along the Calibogue Sound, only to miss the putt. He also missed a 4-foot par putt on the 10th.

“I’ve been playing really well, really solid. Felt good about things,” Thomas said. “I just didn’t play well last week. Put some really good work in the couple days leading into the start today, and I felt prepared. It was just about going out and doing it, and it was nice to do so.”

Among those who played later as the breeze — and nothing more than a breeze — began to pick up was Justin Rose, who lost in a playoff last week. He birdied his last two holes for a 67 to join a group that included Jordan Spieth, Patrick Cantlay and Tommy Fleetwood.

Masters champion Rory McIlroy decided to skip this signature event even before the Masters got started. Hilton Head was not a course he felt suited him with its tight, tree-lined angles.

Thomas felt differently.

“I love it. I wish we played more places like it,” Thomas said. “I think more architects should design places like this. It kind of stands of test of time, I think. Especially if we continue to get weather like this and if these fairways get firm — the greens are already getting firm — it’s going to be everything we want by the end of the week.”

He got everything he could have wanted — save for that birdie putt on the 18th — at the start of the week.


Mixed-team golf event approved for 2028 Olympics

Mixed-team golf event approved for 2028 Olympics
Updated 16 April 2025
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Mixed-team golf event approved for 2028 Olympics

Mixed-team golf event approved for 2028 Olympics
  • Like the men’s and women’s individual events, the 36-hole mixed-team competition will take place at the Riviera Country Club
  • Each country will be limited to a maximum of one team, according to the IGF

NEW YORK: The International Golf Federation (IGF) announced on Tuesday that the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles will see the debut of a mixed-team golf event, with each team composed of a male and female athlete from the individual competitions.

Like the men’s and women’s individual events, the 36-hole mixed-team competition will take place at the Riviera Country Club. It will consist of an 18-hole alternate shot format followed by 18 holes of best ball. Each country will be limited to a maximum of one team, according to the IGF.

“We’re absolutely thrilled to see a Mixed-Team Event added to the program for Los Angeles 2028,” Antony Scanlon, executive director of the IGF, said in a statement. “Golf was incredibly successful at Paris 2024, and as we continue building on the momentum from Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, we’re excited to bring even more attention to our sport through this additional format.

“The athletes were very enthusiastic about their desire to play with their compatriots, and we look forward to watching them compete together in Los Angeles.”

Golf made its return to the Olympic games in 2016, its first appearance since 1904. It now joins archery, athletics, gymnastics, rowing coastal beach sprint and table tennis as the lone sports to feature a mixed-gender competition for the 2028 Olympics.
 


Rory McIlroy wins Masters in dramatic fashion, completes career Slam

Rory McIlroy wins Masters in dramatic fashion, completes career Slam
Updated 14 April 2025
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Rory McIlroy wins Masters in dramatic fashion, completes career Slam

Rory McIlroy wins Masters in dramatic fashion, completes career Slam
  • It marked the fifth major championship for McIlroy, and his first since capturing the PGA Championship for the second time in 2014

It was finally Rory McIlroy’s time, even if it took a little longer than perhaps was necessary.
McIlroy birdied the first playoff hole with a short putt after missing a chance to win in regulation, capturing the Masters and completing the career Grand Slam on Sunday in Augusta, Georgia
“This is my 17th time here, and I started to wonder if it would ever be my time,” the Northern Irishman said. “I think the last 10 years coming here with the burden of the Grand Slam on my shoulders and trying to achieve that — yeah, I’m sort of wondering what we’re all going to talk about going into next year’s Masters.”
McIlroy’s 1-over-par 73 left him tied with England’s Justin Rose, who posted 66 and waited for McIlroy to finish. They both shot 11-under 277 for the week.
Re-playing the 18th hole at Augusta National Golf Club, McIlroy’s approach shot rolled back toward the hole and inside Rose’s ball. After Rose missed a birdie attempt and notched a par, McIlroy didn’t flub another chance for a victory.
He dropped his putter, put his hands on his head and fell prostrate on the green, sobbing.
“There was a lot of pent-up emotion that just came out on that 18th green,” McIlroy said. “A moment like that makes all the years and all the close calls worth it.”
It marked the fifth major championship for McIlroy, and his first since capturing the PGA Championship for the second time in 2014.
McIlroy needed par at No. 18 to win in regulation, but after blasting from a greenside bunker on the 18th hole he rolled a 5-foot par putt too far to the left.
It was a starkly different reaction from when he departed the 18th green following Thursday’s first round, which included a pair of backside double bogeys and dodging the media on the way to the practice area.
Rose spoke briefly to McIlroy after the playoff and later added perspective to what just happened.
“This is a historic moment in golf, isn’t it — someone who achieves the career Grand Slam,” Rose said. “I just said it was pretty cool to be able to share that moment with him. Obviously, I wanted to be the bad guy today, but still, it’s a momentous occasion for the game of golf.”
The new champion — who gave away his two-shot lead through 54 holes with a double bogey at No. 1 — also recovered from a disastrous stretch on the back nine to birdie the 17th hole for a brief one-stroke lead. McIlroy’s bogey on No. 11, double bogey on No. 13 and bogey on No. 14 appeared to send him on track for another final-round collapse at a major.
McIlroy said sending his ball into the creek on a wedge shot on the par-5 13th could have doomed his chances.
“I did a really good job of bouncing back from that,” he said.
McIlroy recovered for a birdie on the par-5 15th hole by drawing a tremendous second shot around a tree, over a water hazard and to 6 feet of the pin, where he two-putted for birdie.
Then he stuck his approach on No. 17 and sank the putt to take the lead.
Rose, seeking his first Masters title, had six birdies and two bogeys across the last eight holes, finishing with a 20-foot birdie putt.
“To make the putt on 18, the one you dream about as a kid, to obviously give myself an opportunity and a chance was an unbelievable feeling,” Rose said.
Rose was the leader after the first and second rounds, and after a tough 75 on Saturday he made a major final-round push. He had only four pars on his card — countering four bogeys with 10 birdies.
Patrick Reed (69 on Sunday) was third at 9 under. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler (69) placed fourth at 8 under, giving him four consecutive top-10 finishes at the Masters.
“I was just proud of the way we hung in there and put up a good fight,” Scheffler said.
Bryson DeChambeau, who figured to be McIlroy’s biggest threat and in the final pairing, took the lead after the second hole before stalling with back-to-back bogeys and a string of pars to skid off the path. By the time he double-bogeyed No. 11, he was tied for ninth and seventh strokes back.
DeChambeau’s 75 left him at 7 under, tied for fifth place with South Korea’s Sungjae Im (69).
DeChambeau said his troubles began with a putt on the third hole that scooted well beyond the cup.
“There’s no way that putt goes that far by,” he said. “I just didn’t realize how firm and fast it could get out here. It’s great experience. Won’t let that happen again.”


McIlroy leads Masters after electric start to third round

McIlroy leads Masters after electric start to third round
Updated 13 April 2025
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McIlroy leads Masters after electric start to third round

McIlroy leads Masters after electric start to third round
  • A glittering leaderboard has fans buzzing about the possibility of a classic finish on Sunday and many patrons are pulling for McIlroy to finally win the Green Jacket

AUGUSTA, Georgia: Rory McIlroy reached the midway point of the third round at the Masters on Saturday with a two-shot cushion over Bryson DeChambeau after a blistering start that saw him leapfrog overnight leader Justin Rose after just two holes.
Grand Slam-chasing McIlroy started birdie-eagle-birdie en route to becoming the first player to begin a round at the Masters with six consecutive threes on a partly cloudy day that offered pristine scoring conditions.
Rose started the day atop a star-studded leaderboard but by the time he made the turn, he was looking up at McIlroy and DeChambeau after going one-over through his first nine holes.
Popular American DeChambeau started hot with back-to-back birdies but a narrowly missed par putt on the third forced him to settle for the first of two bogeys he collected on the front nine.
A glittering leaderboard has fans buzzing about the possibility of a classic finish on Sunday and many patrons are pulling for McIlroy to finally win the Green Jacket and become only the sixth player to claim all four of the sport’s majors.
Augusta National has been the site of painful collapses for McIlroy and that gut-wrenching run threatened to repeat itself when he stumbled late in his opening round with two double bogeys.
But the Northern Irishman bounced back admirably on Friday with a thrilling round of 66 to climb back into contention and that momentum appears to have carried over into Saturday’s round.
A heavyweight battle between McIlroy and defending champion Scottie Scheffler could still materialize after the world number one went even through his first nine on Saturday to sit four-back of McIlroy.