Scottie Scheffler repeats at Albany
World No.1 Scottie Scheffler finished Sunday at Albany in the exact same location as last year, on the 18th green as the winner of the Hero World Challenge. Scheffler defended his title and in the process tied the Albany record for the event, finishing at 25-under-par 263.
“We did a lot of good things on the golf course this week, played some solid golf,” Scheffler said. “I think only two bogeys for the week and then I made a good amount of birdies. Eliminating the mistakes and making a good amount of birdies is always helpful. Teddy and I felt like we did a pretty good job of keeping the golf course in front of us and staying in position.”
Scheffler was near perfect during the second and final rounds. His bogey-free 64 on Friday and his 9-under 63 on Sunday were the best rounds posted both days. It wasn’t just two days that have led to Scheffler’s success. Since winning the 2023 Hero World Challenge, Scheffler has seven PGA TOUR wins – including The PLAYERS Championship and the Masters Tournament – and the Olympic Gold Medal in Paris.
“I think it’s been a great year. It’s been a fun year,” Scheffler said. “I’ve been fortunate to get some wins out of some really good golf. This was another week where I played really solid and was able to see some nice results from that. Overall, it was a pretty fun year.”
Scheffler started the final round one shot back of Justin Thomas. During the final round, it turned into a three-way battle atop the leaderboard with Scheffler, Thomas and Tom Kim. The bogey-free performance helped Scheffler pull away as he cruised down the stretch to a six-shot victory.
There is something special about Albany for Scheffler. In four career appearances, he has finished as runner-up twice and twice hoisted the trophy. While he is as competitive as anyone on the course, Scheffler knows the importance of the Hero World Challenge and the impact it makes off the course through TGR Foundation.
“We’re proud to be supportive of Tiger and his foundation,” Scheffler said after his victory. “[I] love the work that they do and it’s always a fun tournament for us to come and play in and support Tiger.”