Nearly a month after damaging his hand, world number one Scottie Scheffler is set to make his long-awaited PGA Tour return at the AT&T Pro-Am.
Scheffler has not played a PGA Tour event since the Tour Championship at East Lake in September. The world number one did play the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas, where he cruised to victory.
Scheffler has been working on his fitness in the gym and has also been spotted middling his irons on the range at Pebble Beach. With The Players and Masters to come, the 28-year-old’s return is ominous.
Scottie Scheffler’s Pebble Beach verdict
This week’s event–hosted at Pebble Beach and Spyglass Hill–is popular among the world’s best players. Scheffler is teeing it up at AT&T for the second time after finishing in the top ten in 2024.
When asked about the course during his pre-tournament press conference, Scheffler admitted the firm greens had caught his attention.
“Course is good. There’s a little bit less rough than there was last year. The greens are quite a bit firmer, so if the rain holds off this week, I think it will continue to get firmer as the week goes on,” Scheffler said.
“Should be a lot of fun. These greens are small, and when they’re firm, they can be really challenging. So, hopefully, the rain holds off, and the golf course will get firm and fast. Should be a really fun test.”
The world number one also acknowledged that Pebble Beach is a unique test, with small greens that are very different from those usually found on the PGA Tour.
“I think the ocean has a lot to do with why the golf course is so iconic,” Scheffler added.
“I think when you take that out of the picture because that’s a given, I think the golf course with small greens and a lot of pitch, I think it lends you to playing a different style of golf that you don’t see at a typical golf course nowadays.
“I think when you get onto these older golf courses, as they develop over time, they almost have more of a charm to them where things aren’t perfect.”
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Scottie Scheffler’s return to give PGA Tour boost
After, quite frankly, a disastrous start to the PGA Tour season, Scheffler’s return is a welcome relief.
The season-opener at The Sentry failed to garner attention from fans, and The American Express was marred by dreadfully slow play during the final round. Sepp Straka’s final group took nearly three-and-a-half hours to complete 11 holes.
Furthermore, the Farmers Insurance Open was hit by 18 withdrawals after the PGA Tour confirmed the Genesis Invitational would be played at Torrey Pines in the wake of the devastating Los Angeles fires.
Fortunately, Scheffler is one of the few players who moves the needle in the professional game. With the world number one and Rory McIlroy in action, PGA Tour chiefs will hope this week’s Pebble Beach renewal is the start of a favourable period for the Tour.
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