“Ruthless” is perhaps the only word that defines Scottie Scheffler‘s run at TPC Craig Ranch. The strong finishes started with the first round itself, where the Texan almost broke the course record with his score of 61 in the opening round. But the game was not over yet. He finished all four rounds with scores in the 60s, and his fourth-round score of 63 tied the record for the lowest 72-hole score in PGA Tour history (253) to win the CJ Cup Byron Nelson. Impressive, undoubtedly. However, not everyone feels impressed. No, we are not talking about Phil Mickelson‘s March “hot take.”
In March, the LIV golfer controversially claimed, “Does Scottie win in 2025 before the Ryder Cup? I don’t think so.” However, after Scheffler’s win at the CJ CUP Byron Nelson, Mickelson took back his words and posted, “So I might have been off on that one. Congrats to Scottie on a great performance.” Not everyone has changed the tune, however.
On the No Laying Up Podcast, Todd Schuster mentioned Mickelson’s “hot take” and said, “to be fair to Phil, does this count?” His reasoning: “This is the second weakest event… second weakest fullfield, non opposite field event of the year behind Mexico at Vedanta World so far. It’s just not a very good golf tournament.” The explanation lies in the course itself and its lack of difficulties. For instance, Golf Digest ranks it 37th in its list of “Best in State.” Additionally, in terms of scoring stats in the 2024 season, the golf course ranked 37th once again.
Additionally, the host mentioned the weather issues Dallas faces in May, more particularly, stormy weather. He isn’t entirely wrong; the stormy weather in Texas, for instance, halted the play at the CJ CUP Byron Nelson for over six hours on Friday. Adding to that, Schuster said, “This place, by all accounts, everybody hates it. It’s way out of town; the pros hate it, the caddies hate it, by all accounts. The Tour people don’t like it. TV people hate it.”
The criticism against the golf course isn’t new. Early this month, despite the ongoing work to develop the course, the guests on the Fried Egg Golf podcast called the development of the course “Frankenstein nature.” Often called the “laughing stock” on the PGA Tour, TPC Craig Ranch announced a $15M overhaul in the 2024 season. World Golf Hall of Fame member Lanny Wadkins is overseeing the development at the course.
The Wadkins project will involve a thorough renovation of the current golf course. This renovation will completely transform the course by introducing new types of turf that will enhance both the conditions and durability, bringing them up to the level of the country’s leading facilities. Given the nature of the course and the dismissive take on Scheffler’s first win of the season, the Texan would like to prove himself at the upcoming PGA Championship.
Scottie Scheffler’s win at Quail Hollow may impress his critics
Scottie Scheffler may not be anywhere close to his 2024 form that brought nine wins, but he is getting there. He finished 4th at the first men’s major and is likely to continue his strong gameplay at Quail Hollow for the PGA Championship. Why? Well, he is taking strong measures to bring his A game forward, including deciding not to play at the Truist Championship. Now, to understand the possibility of Scheffler’s chances at Quail Hollow, his stats will come in handy.
Quail Hollow, the second-time host of the PGA Championship, demands good driving skills and an approach to the tee. And Scheffler’s stats are looking mostly well. His Strokes Gained: Off The Tee (SG: Off The Tee) ranking is 4th, with a score of 0.716, which means he usually does better than other players with his tee shots. This is important at Quail Hollow, where players need to be both precise and hit the ball far.
His Total Driving ranking is 10th, with a score of 101, showing that he is good at both hitting the ball far and being accurate. This helps him get into good positions for his next shots. Although his Driving Distance ranking is 78th at 302.0 yards, meaning he isn’t the longest hitter, his Driving Accuracy ranking of 23rd at 65.60% shows that he can consistently hit the fairways. Do you think he will be able to drive well at Quail Hollow?
The post ‘Pros Hate It’: Scottie Scheffler Won’t Like What Golf Insider Revealed About His Latest PGA Tour Triumph appeared first on EssentiallySports.
