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Scottie Scheffler’s victory in the Tour Championship caps a fine season for the world number one and brings an opportunity to reflect on the state of the elite men’s game.
Here, the PA news agency looks at the situation heading towards 2025.
Will Scheffler’s dominance continue?
With seven victories on the PGA Tour including the Masters, his FedEx Cup success and an Olympic gold medal, Scheffler has put together an outstanding season. He has not been fazed by frequent comparisons to Tiger Woods and proved he can deliver under pressure. Like all players, he still makes mistakes but he has shown a strong mental capacity to recover from them. If there is part of his game that can still be improved it is his putting, but he is close to being the complete player. Form can come and go but with such fortitude and consistency, there is every reason to believe his dominance can carry on.
Does he not still face strong competition?
Yes of course. Despite Scheffler’s pre-eminence, he has not been the only show in town. Xander Schauffele has certainly run him close for the title of 2024’s best player, having captured the US PGA Championship and the Open titles. With Bryson DeChambeau winning the US Open, all four majors were taken by Americans, meaning there is plenty of competition from within his own country. The likes of Collin Morikawa, Wyndham Clark, Patrick Cantlay and LIV player Brooks Koepka all add to the US strength. Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg will hope to kick on after an impressive first full year on the main circuit and then there is the threat from Rory McIlroy.
Where is McIlroy at?
As the world number three and with another couple of tournament wins under his belt, there is no doubt McIlroy has had another fine year. Yet after a barren run in the majors that now stretches to a decade, he may be looking at it differently. His near miss at the US Open was his most heartbreaking yet. Unlike at the 2022 Open at St Andrews when he was caught by a surging Cameron Smith, this time he could only kick himself after two costly missed short putts down the stretch. He has since admitted that cast a shadow over the remainder of his year and he may reduce his schedule in future. Nobody doubts the Northern Irishman’s quality but his search for the magic major formula continues.
How are things off the course?
Elite men’s golf remains fractured with no apparent end in sight to the merger talks between the main tours and the breakaway, Saudi-funded upstart LIV Golf. LIV’s raid for Jon Rahm failed to accelerate negotiations and the PGA Tour pressed ahead with their ‘signature events’ series in an attempt to stave off future defections. The long-running saga has been highly damaging for the sport’s image and will remain so as long as it continues.
Could it affect the Ryder Cup?
Europe’s preparations for the 2023 event were disrupted by LIV – not least with an enforced change of captain – and it could happen again if Rahm, one of their key players, misses out on qualification. The Americans could also be affected but whether this focuses minds remains to be seen. The build-up to Bethpage next year has already begun. With Luke Donald long in place, Europe look well organised this time in contrast to the Americans, who named Keegan Bradley late and could face a dilemma if he also qualifies as a player.
