Scheffler outduels Rahm at PGA to capture third major title

CHARLOTTE - World number one Scottie Scheffler captured his third major title on Sunday, outdueling Spain's Jon Rahm down the back nine in the final round to win the PGA Championship by five strokes.

Scheffler, the 2022 and 2024 Masters champion, became the 10th consecutive American to win the event, firing a level-par 71 at Quail Hollow to finish on 11-under 273 and defeat countrymen Harris English, Davis Riley and Bryson DeChambeau, tied for second on six-under.

"I knew it was going to be a challenging day. Finishing off a major championship is always difficult," Scheffler said.

"I did a good job of staying patient on the front nine. I didn't have my best stuff, but I kept myself in it, and I stepped up on the back nine."

Rahm stumbled to a 73 to finish on 280 and share eighth after a bogey at 16 and double bogeys at 17 and 18.

"Pretty fresh wound right now, but there have been a lot of good things happening this week and a lot of positive feelings to take for the rest of the year."

Scheffler took home a $3.42-million top prize from a record $19-million purse.

Scheffler squandered a five-stroke edge, Rahm briefly tying him for the lead, but a birdie at the par-five 10th lifted Scheffler back in front to stay.

The 28-year-old Texan took control with birdies at 14 and 15 while Rahm's closing woes secured Scheffler the Wanamaker Trophy, his first major win outside of Augusta National.

"I'm proud of how I did this week just staying in it mentally and hitting the shots when I needed to," Scheffler said.

"This back nine will be one that I remember for a long time. It was a grind out there. I think at one point on the front I maybe had a four- or five-shot lead, and making the turn, I was tied for the lead.

"To step up when I needed to the most, I'll remember that for a while."

After suffering a right-hand injury last December, Scheffler only won his first title of the year two weeks ago at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

The major victory was Scheffler's 15th career PGA Tour triumph, all in a span of three years and 94 days, with Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods the only players to hit the mark faster.

Scheffler, whose nine titles in 2024 included Paris Olympic gold, converted his eighth consecutive 54-hole lead into a victory.

He also matched Spanish legend Seve Ballesteros as the only players in the past century to win their first three majors by at least three shots.

- 'Kept hitting it left' -

Scheffler began the day with a three-stroke lead and stretched the margin as high as five, but Scheffler struggled with tee shots fading left as Rahm made his charge.

"I just kept hitting it left," Scheffler said.

Scheffler answered a bogey at the first with a birdie at the second but bogeys at six and nine were costly while Rahm birdied the eighth, 10th and 11th to share of the lead at nine-under.

Scheffler reclaimed the lead with a nine-foot birdie putt at the 10th while Rahm missed birdie putts at 12 and 14 and an eagle chance at the par-five 15th that ended with par.

Scheffler found a greenside bunker at 14 but blasted out to seven feet and made the birdie putt, then birdied 15 as Rahm was making bogey at 16, sealing his fate.

"I hit the important shots well this week," Scheffler said. "And that's why I'm walking away with the trophy."

Rahm, the 2021 US Open and 2023 Masters champion, captured the 2024 season crown in the LIV Golf League, but has not won a title this season in the Saudi-backed series.

Majors remain the only place where top PGA Tour and LIV stars compete.

Third-ranked Xander Schauffele closed with a 22-foot birdie putt to shoot 68 and finish on 283.

Five-time major winner Rory McIlroy, who completed a career Grand Slam by winning last month's Masters, fired a closing 72 to finish on 287.

World number two McIlroy skipped media interviews after all four rounds at a layout where he has won four times and owns the course record of 61.

js/rcwBy Jim Slater Scheffler outduels Rahm at PGA to capture third major title

Read More........ → June 04, 2025

Mercedes-Benz Brings the Golf Cart Into the 21st Century with New Concept

Behold Mercedes-Benz's vision of what a modern - or rather scratch that, a futuristic Golf Cart should look like. This conceptual model was crafted at the Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Center in Carlsbad, California, with designers using input from golfers from all over the world. The all-electric model, which to be honest, looks like something that Smart would have come up with, has two seats and removable lightweight doors. It ditches the conventional steering wheel for a joystick mounted on the center console that can be operated by either passenger, while it also includes all vital features for regular road use such as indicators, headlamps and taillights – just in case someone wants to drive it home. "It has the latest in modern technology," says Margarete Wies, Head of the Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Center. "Using touch screen monitors, virtually all aspects of the cart can be controlled without extra buttons. Simplicity is the key. Intuition and pure form can maybe best describe the cart." Speaking of tech features, some of the other highlights include the head-up display integrated into the windscreen that can also be used to show the course layout, the current status of the game or weather information when the vehicle is stationary, an AIRSCARF neck-level heating system for the seats (borrowed from Merc's roadsters) and the so-called "fore button" to quickly warn other players of a misplaced shot. In addition, aside from manual charging, the Golf Car's batteries can be kept continuously charged by a solar module integrated into the roof. While a concept, Mercedes did not completely strike out the idea of a production model: "Although the Mercedes-Benz Vision Golf Cart is only a design study so far, there are no doubt many players who would like to see the cart become reality, bringing its fresh ideas and thus more fun, more innovation and more comfort to moving around on the golf course," said the carmaker in a statement. Source: Carscoops

Read More........ → July 25, 2013

£150m Nike deal: can McIlroy be bigger even than Tiger?

Nike sponsorship catapults Rory McIlroy, still 23, into world league of sports personalities

NORTHERN IRELAND golfer Rory McIlroy has joined the world's "sporting elite" after signing a mammoth sponsorship deal with sportswear manufacturer Nike. The exact details of the contract have not been made public but according to The Guardian "it has been widely reported to be a 10-year contract worth as much as £150m if McIlroy, previously with Titleist, goes on winning majors". Others suggest that the agreement will only last five years. Either way it catapults McIlroy into the world league of sports personalities. The deal was unveiled at an event in Abu Dhabi where it felt as if the 23-year-old was being inducted into the untouchable Nike "family", suggested James Corrigan in the Daily Telegraph. "With the money on offer, not to mention his new gang members, he had every right to feel a made man," he noted. The event was "more Hollywood than Middle East" said The Times. "In fact, it would be fair to say that the whole caboodle was a little cheesy." It even featured messages from some of Nike's other stars, including Roger Federer, Wayne Rooney and golfing rival Tiger Woods, which were shown on giant screens. "Hey, Rory. Welcome to the family," said Woods, described by the Times as the "man McIlroy will ultimately replace. "It did not seem
to be through gritted teeth," said the paper. "Even though it looks as if McIlroy is about to become top dog as far as Nike are concerned." However, McIlroy and Woods could form a formidable marketing partnership, and already an advert (below) featuring them indulging in some banter on the driving range is doing the rounds. It had attracted more than 1 million hits on YouTube within hours of being released. And they will work together, at least for the next few years. "McIlroy... has not been signed as a like-for-like replacement," claims the BBC. "Instead, expect to see the two marketed together - Woods chasing the four more major wins he needs to match Jack Nicklaus's record, McIlroy battling him as the new generation. "Woods and McIlroy... look as if they get on well; two great players with mutual respect," says the Times. And it could pay dividends for golf fans, says the Telegraph. "If McIlroy leaving Titleist to join Nike was golf's worst-kept secret then its second worst-kept secret must be that McIlroy and Woods will partner each other in the first two rounds [of the Abu Dhabi Championship]. What a way to start the year. The world No 1 and two will have the same Swoosh, roughly the same contract and exactly the same ambition - to show the other who is the real No 1." And perhaps McIlroy could pick up some more advice from his new partner and sponsors. "If McIlroy can avoid the scandals that have affected other Nike athletes such as Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong and keep his form, that gargantuan billion-dollar figure is clearly within range," said the Daily Mail. As for Nike, they are still recovering from the damage inflicted to the brand by scandals involving Woods, Armstrong and NFL player Michael Vick, jailed over dog-fighting. The company's golf division also saw revenues drop in 2010 and 2011. "McIlroy, like no other sportsman, can help turn both issues around," said the BBC. Source: The Week UK

Read More........ → February 13, 2013