“The only thing I think about is getting home as soon as possible, my priorities are going to change and I think golf is going to move into fourth place.” Dressed in the green jacket, having just won his second Masters with incontestable authority and pushing his name up the golf history books with the strength of a rhinoceros, Scottie Scheffler (New Jersey, 1996) continued to be the same in the room press release from Augusta National. His unwavering faith and his love for his wife, Meredith, deeper than an ocean. The best golfer on the planet – who dares to argue? – is going to be a father for the first time in the next few days of “a boy or a girl” – he didn't want to know – and his only thought after holing the last putt was to get on a plane and return home to Dallas to embark on the greatest adventure of his life.
The superiority that Scheffler exercises over the rest of the players, without exception, is on its way to becoming something unique. He has set out on the path to Olympus and his exhibition in Augusta confirms his unapproachable status. The adopted Texan has won three of the last four tournaments he has played in and they have not been just any weeks. He took Bay Hill at Arnold Palmer's home, The Players considered the fifth major and now the Masters. The only one he didn't win was the Houston tournament, in which he came in a terrible...second position.
But beyond the numbers, what scares his rivals most about Scheffler is that he does not falter in any aspect of the game. He is a machine for hitting fairways and greens, and he has no shortage of distance with his 1m91. His short game is pure elite, built on the hours he spent as a youth at the Royal Oaks Country Club in Dallas competing against the elders. Putting has always been his biggest liability but his superiority in the rest of the game made up for it. Not content with that, a few months ago he signed guru Phil Kenyon for his team, who among many others changed the career of Francesco Molinari, and the results are obvious, even though he is still not among the PGA aristocracy with putting. Tour.
Scheffler, who is still with the same coach who taught him how to play when he was 7 years old (Randy Smith), has not changed his swing, as peculiar as it is effective, and continues to take ballet steps by moving his feet every time he hits the ball. He is a number one of those outside the norm, who seems not to live in a cloud. He is always close, even shy on the field, who finds it difficult to express his emotions in public.
Scheffler couldn't be a footballer, don't look for him with a Ferrari. His happiness does not happen there. Until last year, he did not change his GMC Yukon, purchased in 2012. With it he exceeded 200,000 km behind the wheel, but even with more than 50 million dollars in the bank, he did not part with his beloved car until he had no other choice.
One of the most marked aspects of his personality is his Christian faith. He is a man of deep beliefs and it is increasingly common to hear him talk about God in public. “Before going out to play the last round, my friends told me that my victory is assured on the cross. It has been a very special feeling to know that I am safe forever, that it does not matter if I win or lose the tournament, my identity is safe,” he answered with biblical references to journalists after winning the Masters.
It's Scheffler's turn to save the birdies and tackle the diapers. Golf is his turn to rest.
