Golf fans, pundits and historians will be discussing Xander Schauffele’s incredible back nine at Royal Troon for decades to come.
It’s one of the toughest stretches in major championship golf, but Schauffele made it look easy, scoring four birdies in the final nine holes, including two on two of the toughest par-4s in the world, the 11th and 13th, followed by two par-breakers on the par-3 14th and par-5 16th to finish off a stunning 6-under 65 on Sunday, the best round of the day.
The two-time major champion pulled away from his rivals in the closing stages to win the Claret Jug by two strokes over Justin Rose and Billy Horschel.
But after his approach to the 11th green, it felt like Schauffele had something special in store.
The 11th hole, known as “The Railway,” was the toughest hole at Royal Troon this week. There were railroad tracks on the right and thick gorse that would swallow any golf ball that curved left – both areas were off limits. With all this trouble lurking, Schauffele dabbled in the gorse but hit his best shot of the day to take the first step towards victory. Great approach:
South African Thriston Lawrence was leading at seven under par at this point, but Schauffele tied the mark two holes later, before Lawrence bogeyed the 12th hole to drop to six under par, putting Schauffele alone at the top of the leaderboard.
What followed was an easy Sunday stroll for Schauffele, with no late-game stress, quite the opposite of his win at Valhalla.
Speaking of PGA Championship wins, Schauffele achieved a rare feat with his most recent major victory at Royal Troon. He shot a final round 65 to become the first player to win two majors in the same year. Only Jack Nicklaus has ever shot 65 or better in the final round of a major, having done so in the 1967 U.S. Open and 1986 Masters. Justin RayBut even Nicklaus never accomplished that feat twice in the same season, and he went on to win 18 major championships.
But in retrospect, the Claret Jug was always Schauffele’s. He had just six bogeys during the week, none of which came on Sunday. He made no mistakes in 72 holes, avoided the pot bunkers on most holes and weathered the tough conditions on Saturday with a brilliant 69, which he called one of the best rounds of his career.
But his 65 on Sunday surpassed that performance and went further. Schauffele broke away from the pack and turned the final few holes of the British Open into a boring contest. He had the claret jug in one hand when he arrived on the 16th tee.
Schauffele became the first player to win two majors in the same season since Brooks Koepka in 2018. He is arguably one of the best players in the world and will arrive in Paris as one of the favorites to win gold in 2021. But until then, Schauffele will be savoring his second major and celebrating with a glass or two from the Claret Jug.
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.
