Considering how well Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele have performed this year, it won’t be a surprise to see their names on the leaderboard again.
The two played together and finished with a 4-under 66 on a hot, muggy day in Memphis. Scheffler and Schauffele were tied for fifth after the first day of the FedEx St. Jude Championship, two strokes behind Chris Kirk, who took sole possession of the lead after a hole-in-one on the 14th hole.
“I think we both got off to a good start today,” Scheffler said.
“I felt like I had a little bit of a cold in the last nine holes, but overall I thought I started the week off well.”
Indeed, Schauffele opened with three straight birdies and Scheffler made four breaks in the first six holes. The world No. 1 sliced his second shot into the water on the par-5 third hole but still managed to save par.
But as he alluded to, the back nine was a different story, with Scheffler struggling with his irons and Schauffele failing to capitalize on his opportunities.
Still, Schauffele managed to avoid a bogey.
“I’m glad I got away with no bogeys,” Schauffele said.
“I would have been happy with a couple of bogeys. Overall, it’s always good to get around this course without a bogey.”
Meanwhile, Scheffler dropped a stroke after a poor bunker shot on the par-4 13th hole. Scheffler, in an uncharacteristically frustrated state, slammed his wedge into the sand after the shot, sending the ball landing 13 feet from the hole.
“It was a pretty easy shot. I took a terrible shot,” Scheffler said.
“It was just a moment where I kind of lost focus. Yeah, I felt like I got into a good spot where I thought I could get an easy par, but then I hit a terrible shot and that’s where I lost the point.”
Scheffler birdied the par-5 16th hole to finish the tournament at 4 under again, and interestingly, Schauffele also recorded his only birdie on the back nine.
The two players seemed to be pushing each other all day and at times showed they might be the best duo on the planet right now, and they also have a lot of respect and admiration for each other.
“I think he’s really consistent, he’s a guy that never lets himself get out of a tight spot,” Schauffele said.
“Sometimes during the round, it seems like he’s going to make a mistake, but he bounces back quickly. He’s also a very hard worker, so it’s fun to see a player like that succeed.”
Of course, Schauffele won the PGA Championship and British Open this season, his first two major titles of his career, tying him with the most major wins with Scheffler, who won twice at Augusta National.
“I’ve played with him a little bit, played a couple rounds with him at the Olympics and he really rarely misses a shot. His golf ball is either perfect or a three- or four-yard pull or a three- or four-yard push,” Schauffele said of Schauffler, who has six wins and an Olympic gold medal this year.
“If he has good visibility [his caddie] Ted [Scott]It seems like he’s always on the fairway, always on the hole. He makes golf really boring, which is what we all really want, because from tee to green, he’s a monster. And now he’s making putts, so it’s great for everybody else.”
Scheffler actually had a strong day on the greens on Thursday, ranking 11th out of 70 players in putting strokes gained, and will certainly surprise the rest of the field given how well he’s played from tee to green all season.
But the fact that Schauffler and Schauffele are off to such a strong start should put everyone else on notice. These two are playing better than anyone else right now and are at a level of their own, so you can bet they’ll continue to be in contention for the win over the weekend and in the FedEx Cup Playoffs overall.
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.
