2024-08-04 23:00:02
Scottie Scheffler added a gold medal to an amazing 2024 season that has already included a second green jacket with a win at the Masters. Scheffler won the men’s individual stroke play golf tournament at the Paris Olympics’ Le Golf National course with a wild final round on Sunday.
Scheffler, 28, wins his first Olympic medal in his Olympics debut and brings the gold back to the United States.
Scheffler scored a -9 under final round of 62 on Sunday to catapult himself onto the top of the podium. He finished -19 under par. Scheffler would birdie holes 1, 2, 3, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 for an exciting final round.
He set an Olympic record for 72 holes at 19-under 265. Great Britain’s Tommy Fleetwood, who fell out of the lead with a bogey from the rough on the 17th, got up-and-down for par on the final hole for a 66 to win the silver medal.
Scheffler was visibly emotional during the medal ceremony as the national anthem played, appearing to wipe away tears in his eyes.
“I’m not big on comparisons or anything like that,” Scheffler said when asked by NBC Olympics where this ranks among his accomplishments. “I’m just going to enjoy this moment. Like I said, I take tremendous pride in representing my country and I’m very proud to be going home, to be going back to the USA with a medal.”
Hideki Matsuyama (-17) won the bronze. France’s Victor Perez (-16) finished fourth, just off the podium. Ireland’s Rory McIlroy (-15) and Spain’s John Rahm (-15) finished tied for fifth.
USA’s Xander Schauffele, who won the gold in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, finished tied for ninth at -12. Wyndham Clark (-11) tied for 14th and Colin Morikawa (-5) finished tied at 24th.
Schauffele was tied for the 54-hole lead with Rahm until he had a collapse of his own. So did Rory McIlroy, one off the lead until hitting wedge into the water on the 15th hole.
Scheffler is currently ranked number one in the world and is well positioned to win player of the year. He has six PGA wins in 2024, including winning the Masters (his second win in Augusta), the Memorial, the RBC Heritage, the Players Championship, and the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Scheffler is the first golfer to win six times on the PGA tour in a single season since Tiger Woods in 2009.
All four golf majors also went to a player from the United States.
“It was a pretty cool experience, it was very special,” Scheffler said. “Like I said, representing your country is amazing. Putting on the flag every morning is a pretty humbling experience. Going out here and doing our best. It was definitely a fun experience, it was really cool to go see the other events. I’m proud to be going home with a medal.”
Where is Scottie Scheffler from?
Scottie Scheffler was born in Dallas, Texas, but when he was six, his family moved to Ridgewood, New Jersey, where he spend most of his childhood, according to NBC Olympics. Scheffler went to the University of Texas.
