Xander Schauffele made history for American golf by clinching the first Claret Jug of his life at Royal Troon Golf Club. It had been 42 years since all majors were won by Americans, with Schauffele himself triumphing in the PGA Championship and the 152nd Open. The 30-year-old pro outshone many veterans of the golfing world and lifted his second major of the 2024 season in just two months.
Schauffele became the first player in the last 10 years to win the PGA Championship and The Open in the same season, a feat last achieved by Rory McIlroy in 2014. With his steep rise this season, the two-time major winner was soon compared with the world No. 1, who himself won the 88th Masters in April.
Comparing the players, The NUCLR Golf asked the golf fans on X who had the better season between Scottie Scheffler and Schauffele. Surprisingly, the majority of golf enthusiasts unanimously agreed that Schauffele outperformed the 12-time PGA Tour winner’s 2024 season run, even though Schauffele couldn’t dethrone Scheffler from the world No. 1 rank after winning The Open.
#DISCUSSION: What player has had the better season so far — Scottie Scheffler or Xander Schauffele? pic.twitter.com/TsMugAfYvC
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) July 21, 2024
To put things into perspective, the fans’ support for Schauffele was not in vain. Despite Scheffler’s title victories in the 2024 season, golf fans had many valid reasons for backing Schauffele’s season run as the better of the two.
Netizens favor Xander Schauffele over Scottie Scheffler
On one hand, Scottie Scheffler has won six times in the 2024 season, including the Masters, four signature events (such as the Memorial Tournament and Arnold Palmer Invitational), and the PLAYERS Championship in consecutive seasons. On the other hand, Xander Schauffele had two major wins, a solo 8th place at the Masters, T7 in the U.S. Open, and a runner-up finish at the PLAYERS. While Scheffler has more wins, Schauffele’s major victories and other finishes give him precedence. This made one user say, “Scheffler has had a statistically better year, but Xander is the PGA POTY by winning TWO majors, was top 8 the other 2 & also was runner up to Scottie Scheffler at the Players.”
In golf, when a player’s legacy is discussed, the number of majors they have often takes precedence. For example, many regard Jack Nicklaus as the greatest of all time, with Tiger Woods following because one holds the major record and the other does not. Similarly, comparing Schauffele and Scheffler’s 2024 results, Schauffele’s two majors outweigh the other victories of the 27-year-old, according to this fan.
Fans favored Schauffele’s season, saying, “This is a very simple question and answer. Ask every tour player whose season they would prefer. Everyone player would say Xander . 2 majors Beats 1 and a bunch of wins.” Another fan echoed this sentiment, disregarding Scheffler’s other five victories on the PGA Tour and focusing solely on the majors, as the field for majors is the toughest. They said, “Two majors vs one: it’s Schauffele.”
In just three weeks, the FedExCup playoffs, spanning three elevated events, will start. In the end, the winner of the playoffs will be declared at the TOUR Championship. One user explained that this would decide who had the better season, Scheffler or Schauffele. They said, “Scottie. Major plus Players plus four signature wins. It’s close…the FedEx playoffs will decide it.”
So far, golf fans have declared Schauffele had the better season because of his two major victories. However, one viewer gave the world No. 1 a chance to overpower the two-time major winner. Starting with the FedEx St. Jude Championship, they wanted the 27-year-old to win all three events and take the FedExCup, which could make his season better than the reigning Open champion. The user said, “Right now, Xander If Scottie wins the 3 FEDEX events, then him.”
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