Rory McIlroy has enjoyed a fabulous year on the PGA Tour, but despite racking up three wins including The Masters and The Players Championship, Scottie Scheffler has still managed to eclipse him.
Scheffler is the best golfer in the world right now by quite some distance, and he holds around a 10-point lead over in the rankings over McIlroy – the world number two.
McIlroy played alongside Scheffler on day one of the Tour Championship on Thursday, and the difference in quality was clearly evident.
The Northern Irishman can, of course, hit the ball as well as anyone on his day, but the American’s relentless consistency and ability to avoid mistakes make him a step above the rest.
It has actually been claimed by Dan Rapaport that McIlroy doesn’t think he can consistently compete with Scheffler.
And that’s a damning indictment of where the 36-year-old is at mentally right now.
He is clearly a proven winner, just like the current world number one is.
However, is McIlroy aligned with Scheffler regarding their opinions on winning golf tournaments?
Rory McIlroy offers his thoughts about winning after Scottie Scheffler’s comments
Back in July, Scheffler caused controversy by suggesting that he lacks fulfilment from winning golf tournaments, and questioning what the point is in caring so much about competing.
The American said: “To win the Byron Nelson Championship at home, I literally worked my entire life to become good at golf, to have an opportunity to win that tournament. You win it, you celebrate, get to hug my family, my sister’s there, it’s such an amazing moment. Then it’s like, okay, what are we going to eat for dinner? Life goes on.
“Is it great to be able to win tournaments and to accomplish the things I have in the game of golf? Yeah, it brings tears to my eyes just to think about it because I’ve literally worked my entire life to be good at this sport. To have that kind of sense of accomplishment, I think, is a pretty cool feeling.
“To get to live out your dreams is very special, but at the end of the day, I’m not out here to inspire the next generation of golfers. I’m not out here to inspire someone to be the best player in the world because what’s the point? This is not a fulfilling life. It’s fulfilling from the sense of accomplishment, but it’s not fulfilling from a sense of the deepest places of your heart.
“There are a lot of people who make it to what they thought was going to fulfil them in life, and you get there, you get to No. 1 in the world, and they’re like, ‘What’s the point?’ I really do believe that, because what is the point? Why do I want to win this tournament so badly?”
In my opinion, Scheffler’s outlook on winning and competing is actually what makes him so good.
When he leaves the golf course, he focuses entirely on his life away from the PGA Tour, and that’s the way it should be, right?
Rory McIlroy gives his opinion on winning golf tournaments
McIlroy spoke to Kate Mackz about the enjoyment he gets from winning golf tournaments, and his viewpoint was very different to Scheffler’s.
He said: “I think the thing is with high and lows, you know that neither are going to last forever. There is always going to be a comedown after a high and you are always going to have to build yourself back up after a low.
“I think I have been around long enough to know that careers ebb and flow. You are going to have times when you feel like you are on top of the world and you are going to have times when it feels a little more difficult.
“I think the difficult times make the good times even better, it makes you appreciate them even more. In golf I have won right around 10% of the tournaments I have played, which is not a lot. One in 10 compared to other sports is not a lot.
“So knowing that in golf I feel like you really have to celebrate your wins, so when I won The Masters or when I win any tournament for example, I make sure that I celebrated, I make sure that my focus does not turn to the next thing. Anyone who performs at a high level I feel like it’s always go, go, go.
“Sometimes I think you have to sit back and appreciate what you have done and reflect. I think it’s okay for people to feel proud of themselves and really appreciate what they have achieved.“
I think that is actually a healthy way to look at playing professional golf, just like Scheffler’s was.
The thing to note here is that human beings are different, so it should be no surprise that PGA Tour players have different viewpoints as well.
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