Scottie Scheffler joins Tiger Woods in history, wins Memorial for 5th victory of 2024

It wasn’t easy and it went all the way to the 72nd hole.

But in the end, Scottie Scheffler got the job done again.

He won the Memorial Tournament by one stroke over Collin Morikawa despite a difficult day at Muirfield Village with a 2-over 74. The average final round score on Sunday was 74.93, and only 11 players finished under par this week.

The drama unfolded on the 18th hole, when Scheffler smashed an 8-iron from the fairway onto the green. Due to the hard surface, players struggled to find a good putting surface all day.

Morikawa, who was trailing by one stroke at the time, hit the same shot from a fairway bunker, setting up a chipping showdown that would decide the winner. Morikawa went first, and his third shot looked like it would be a great birdie.

“I don’t know how it looked on TV, but from my perspective it didn’t look that close,” Scheffler said of Morikawa’s third shot on the 18th hole.

“I was just trying to stay in my own little world and concentrate on getting the ball up and down. I was in a bit of a dicey lie in the rough, so [Morikawa’s] The chip was rolling towards the cup, but I wasn’t really paying attention. I was coming from about the same angle and just trying to gauge its speed down the hill.”

Morikawa was also asked about this shot.

“To be honest, I thought it was going to turn right,” Morikawa said.

“It totally whiffed and went left, but it was a really tough chip shot. I just had to get it on the green. It went right where I wanted it to and when you hit a shot like that and do something like that at the end, you can’t complain.”

Scheffler read Morikawa’s shot well and hit a chip shot about five feet in front, landing just outside Morikawa’s mark and giving him the chance to win. Scheffler, who was ranked number one in the world at the time, Made the winning puttmarking his fifth win of the season.

Scheffler’s first win of the year came at the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill. The following week he won at The Players. Then in April, Scheffler won again in consecutive weeks at Augusta National and the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head.

Now Scheffler has won at the Memorial, a week before the U.S. Open. His victory at Muirfield Village was his first PGA Tour victory since April.

“Was it the hardest this year? I don’t think so. It’s hard to assess how difficult it was to win,” Scheffler said.

“Maybe The Players? I’d just won and my neck was really sore that week, so that was probably the hardest. But in terms of weekend satisfaction, that’s pretty high up there. Mr. [Jack] Having played in some close calls at Nicklaus’ golf course in previous tournaments, it was very satisfying to sink the putt on the 18th hole to secure the win and shake Mr. Nicklaus’ hand.

“A few years ago, after I missed a putt that could have led to a playoff, he said to me, ‘You didn’t make the putt today, but one day you’re going to make it on the 18th hole and walk up to shake my hand.’ So it was pretty special walking up to him today and shaking his hand and thinking about that.”

Two years ago, Scheffler finished third at the Memorial, missing out on a playoff against Morikawa and Patrick Cantlay.

But this time, Schaeffler was able to shake hands with Nicklaus in victory, which also carries historical significance.

Only one man has ever won the Arnold Palmer Invitational Championship, The Players Championship, Masters Championship and Memorial Championship all in the same year, and that was in 2001. That was, of course, Tiger Woods, who won by seven strokes at Muirfield Village that summer for his fourth win of the season.

Photo: Michael Reeves/Getty Images

During Sunday’s round, Scheffler at times looked less like the best player in the world. He missed a bunker to save par on the par-3 fourth hole, which led to his first bogey of the day, and then missed a bogey on the par-3 eighth hole, when he couldn’t get up and down from the thick rough next to the green. But Scheffler did manage to make a birdie on the par-4 sixth hole.

However, it was his only par break of the day.

“I know Scotty didn’t play his best on some holes today, just like a lot of players didn’t play their best on some holes,” tournament organizer Jack Nicklaus said.

“But he played well enough to win a golf tournament, and that’s all that matters.”

Still, Scheffler made a lot of pars. 25′ par save He held a two-stroke lead going into the difficult par-3 16th hole.

He also missed good birdie opportunities and had a number of pars, especially on the 12th and 13th holes, where he went hitless after two excellent approaches.

However, on the par-4 17th hole, Scheffler left his approach in the rough just short of the green. He couldn’t save consecutive pars and was one stroke ahead going into the 18th hole, creating some drama in the process.

But in the end, Scheffler performed under pressure, just as Woods did for many years in his prime.

And the best part is that he became the first father to win, with his wife, Meredith, and son, Bennett, witnessing it all.

“Watching her become a mother over the last month or so has been really special and I’m so proud of her,” Scheffler said.

“Without her support, I definitely wouldn’t be doing this on the golf course. And having Bennett celebrate with me today, even though he had no idea what was going on, made me so happy as a parent. So we’ll always fondly remember this tournament and that first week Benny was on the road with us.”

Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation Playing Through. Follow For more golf articles, follow us on Twitter Jack Mirko In the same way.