Xander Schauffele, for many, will be the overwhelming favourite to win The Tour Championship given his previous record at East Lake, which includes one win and three runner-up finishes.
Xander Schauffele will start The Tour Championship two shots behind Scottie Scheffler, with the pair both enjoying amazing 2024s. For some, Schauffele’s record at East Lake gives him an advantage over Scheffler, but there is reason to almost write previous performances in Atlanta off.
East Lake has undergone major changes over the last 12 months, with Schauffele noting this week that it is like a brand new course for the field. However, there are perhaps signs which suggest that the 30-year-old is still going to be able to thrive in the coming days.
Schauffele has made a big effort to improve his fitness over the years, with the rewards obvious to see, with wins coming at the PGA Championship and The Open. On both occasions, it was his performance coming down the stretch which got him across the line.
Xander Schauffele stuns commentator with improvement he’s made to his game
But it would appear that it is another change Schauffele has made which has really impressed others, with Ryan Lavner telling the Golf Channel Podcast that he is amazed by the speed he has added.
“I do also think it’s interesting, as it relates to Xander Schauffele, who has played better than Scottie Scheffler over these past two weeks in the FedEx Cup play-offs, nipped him by a couple of shots in Memphis, and of course, much better last week in Colorado where Xander Schauffele once again had a top five finish. It did not help him all that much in the FedEx Cup race, he’s still beginning two shots back,” he said.
“But on this golf course, the vibes he has, even if the golf course is different, you think Xander Schauffele has to feel pretty good about his chances.
“I do think that this will be a good barometer for Xander Schauffele, I’ve talked about it before where this is the sort of golf course where if you have the length, if you have the distance, if you have the apex height on your drives, you can cut it down to size, you can fly bunkers that other players have to navigate around or potentially lay up short of, and so, he has taken it upon himself to add a lot of speed, to add a lot of distance. He’s gained three miles per hour clubhead speed, I was shocked looking it up. That is a ton year over year, and that’s translated to him being a top 10 driver on the PGA Tour.”
Limitless potential
Schauffele always had the game to compete with the world’s best players. He had registered six top 10 finishes in majors before 2024, with a couple of very close calls along the way. But he has been able to take that next step this year, with top 10 finishes at all four events. And of course, he got across the line in two of the four.
Clearing that hurdle has the potential to open the door for Schauffele to achieve so much more; he knows that he absolutely has what it takes to get the job done in the game’s biggest events.
Schauffele has now been backed to win as many as six majors during his career, which would be an unbelievable achievement in this golden era for the game. Certainly, it appears that he has taken his game to a level where that could indeed be possible.
Receive exclusive golf news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
