Join the Club by John Patrick: The Open has left an open question
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Who is the Player of the Year on the PGA tour?
Right up until lunchtime Sunday, the answer was easy.
Scottie Scheffler, six times Scottie Scheffler.
As my elementary school math teacher, Sister Maureen Deloris used to say, “Let’s review, shall we?”
Scottie’s victories this year:
The Players (The PGA Tour’s premiere event)
The Arnold Palmer Invitational (One of the PGA Tour’s signature events)
The Masters (One of the four majors)
RBC Heritage (Another one of the PGA Tour’s signature events)
The Memorial (Yet another PGA Tour signature event)
The Travelers Championship (You guessed it, signature event)
On top of that, Scottie leads the tour’s money list with over $27 million just this season.
No question, right? Well…
Xander Schauffle just threw a big old nine iron into Scottie’s coronation when he lapped the field on Sunday at Royal Troon in the 152nd Open Championship to pick up his second major of the year. Schauffle also won the PGA Championship in May.
That’s two major championships this year. The equivalent of golf’s winning poker hand. Two majors beat one major and five other wins, doesn’t it?
They are Xander’s only wins in 2024.
This century, every player that won a pair of major championships in the same year was named Player of the Year. Brooks Koepka in 2018, Jordan Speith in 2015, Rory McIlroy in 2014, Padrig Harrington in 2008 and, of course, you know who all of those other times.
That being said, none of those players had to compete with another player that had won six times – so far.
Both Scottie and Xander are playing in the Olympics next week. Does a gold medal change the trajectory?
If someone other than Scottie or Xander comes away with gold, then the FED EX Cup playoffs and the Tour Championship might actually play a role in determining this year’s award.
For me, and Sister Maureen Deloris, and with an assist from the Louisville Police Department, right now, today, it’s Xander.
It’ll be fun to watch it play out over the next few weeks.
