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AUGUSTA, Ga. — Scottie Scheffler has been a force to be reckoned with for the past three years on the PGA Tour.
In a stroke of ingenuity, Rolex signed Scheffler to be one of its brand ambassadors on the Sunday before the 2022 Masters, his first of two Green Jackets. That has to go down as one of the better-timed endorsement deals in golf and it continues to reap rewards. Scheffler enters the 89th Masters as world No. 1 and though he hasn't won yet this season, he remains the favorite to win it again. Ahead of the 2025 Masters, Scheffler participated in a Masters-centric Q&A through his partnership with Rolex that touches on his memories from winning the Masters in 2022, the pivotal moments last year, plus much, much more.
Scottie Scheffler: As a young golfer, you always dream of making the putt on the 18th hole to win the Masters. I four-putted the last hole so it was not necessarily the dream, childhood moment of making the winning putt, but the walk up the 18th hole was extremely surreal. My caddie, Ted Scott, and I had a conversation when we were walking up, saying thanks, being grateful and just really enjoying the moment. I think we really did [enjoy the moment] and the results of my putting on the 18thgreen probably show how much we were enjoying it. I think the feeling that you get with the achievement and the gratefulness of being able to achieve a lifelong dream is so special. It is just really fun to put on the Green Jacket and when you go back the next year, you get to host the Champions Dinner and do all the things that you have dreamed about. Going from being a little kid learning to play the game to winning the Masters is a truly humbling experience.
SS: I had a really good Sunday. I think that was a Sunday where I played really good, especially the last 10 or 11 holes to separate myself, especially there. I had birdies on holes 9 and 10 and I think holes 13, 14, and 16, so some key birdies when I really needed them.
SS: I don’t remember what I said to my friends, but I remember what my friends told me.
SS: I do – I love to win, and since it’s the Masters, there’s always something special about it. When you grow up here in the United States, that’s the tournament I think we look at the most, just with the history around the tournament with Mr. Jones, the Augusta National Golf Club and it being on the same golf course year in year out. I think you just dream of getting a chance to play in that tournament and to have an opportunity to win it, for the second time, you’re sitting there in the morning and thinking “I want this so badly”. I almost wish that if I wanted it less, it would be easier for me just to go out there and play, but you desire something so much that you’ve worked so long for.
SS: Thursday that week was a day in which I got like the absolute most I could have out of the round. I think I shot five or six under and was close to the lead, and it was a day in which I got off the golf course and I didn’t feel like my swing was in a great spot. I remember coming off the course and Randy told me, “great job” and asked how I felt out there, and I thought that I cannot keep going another three days in this tournament with my swing feeling like this and that we need to go figure something out. I remember Thursday being a day in which I was just really, really efficient going around the course. We went to the range and I told Randy what I was feeling in my swing and he gave me a little tip with my grip. I remember hitting one shot and it feeling exactly the way I wanted to feel, and I hit another one and it was exactly the way I wanted to feel, and then we left the range and it was a feeling that I stuck with for the rest of the week and it worked out pretty well.
SS: It was just the way my left thumb was on my grip. He had me move it down the grip just a touch. I’ll let Randy try to explain why that is. He’s fond of that kind of stuff. But I was just telling him the way it was, feeling a little loose in the backswing, and he told me to just move my left thumb just a touch down the grip. And I remember hitting my first shot to the left, because what I had been doing all day was saving it. When I flushed it, and it came out just to the left, I could feel what I was doing in my swing. And then I hit one more shot, and I could feel it right in the slot. That was exactly the feeling I was looking for and when I woke up the next day, it was still there, and I hit it really good the rest of the week.
SS: I may have hit a few more after that, but I remember hitting two shots and being like, ‘All right, that’s it’. That was the feeling I was looking for. And I’m sure I hit a few more balls after that, but I remember us not really talking about anything else. I just said give me some more clubs, let me hit some shots. And then we left the range. And that was our feel for the week.
SS: I remember landing it pretty close to pin high on 10 and it ended up over the green in a bush. I remember missing a pretty makeable par putt on 11. I’d missed a couple putts to the right that day and I remember asking Teddy if he saw anything, and he said that the ball might just be barely back in your stance. He said on my next one to move it up a touch. I remember making about a seven-footer for par on hole 12. It was an awkward putt where I couldn’t really tell which way it was going to break. I hit it right down my line and it went right in the middle. Then I made that key long putt there on 13 for eagle that kind of turned the day around pretty quick. That putt I made on hole 13 felt like a big momentum switch for me.
SS: I think Teddy said something along the lines of if it was somebody else, he would consider laying up, but he said you’re the best long-iron player in the world, so just hit the shot at the green. At that point in the final round, I had a lead, so you don’t want to play defensively and we don’t want to change how we approach the round. That was a moment there on the back nine where we could have changed the way we usually played and maybe tried to limp in, but I remember asking Teddy to see where his thoughts were, and that’s when he said “you’re a great iron player, hit the ball on the green.” I remember hitting a good shot to the middle of the green, nice two-putt, and making another key birdie there on the next hole.
SS: I get moved to tears pretty easily. Usually, I don’t make it this long through an interview without crying when you talk about like the Masters and things like that, so I’m a little proud of myself for that! I remember finishing and scoring, and everything always happens so quick after you win tournaments. I remember them going through the order of what is going to happen now and I just asked if I could go to the restroom and I didn’t need to use them at all, I just needed like two minutes to myself. I remember walking up towards the Locker Room and a couple people congratulated me, but there’s really nobody back there because everybody’s on the side of the Clubhouse that’s on the golf course. I had a nice walk up to the Champions Locker Room by myself and that is something that I always wanted to do after winning the Tournament once, I wanted to go up there again as a champion.
The guys in the Locker Room always joke about keeping it in the Locker Room, so that was pretty fun to go up there and celebrate with the attendants up there. Sometimes you just need a couple minutes to collect your thoughts. That’s really all it is. I’m a pretty emotional guy, and sometimes I just need a little time to myself to reflect. It wasn’t long, but I remember going to the bathroom and just kind of standing there for a minute, taking some deep breaths and a moment to reset before going back out to do the trophy presentation.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Scottie Scheffler talks Masters wins, celebrating with attendants
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In a stroke of ingenuity, Rolex signed Scheffler to be one of its brand ambassadors on the Sunday before the 2022 Masters, his first of two Green Jackets. That has to go down as one of the better-timed endorsement deals in golf and it continues to reap rewards. Scheffler enters the 89th Masters as world No. 1 and though he hasn't won yet this season, he remains the favorite to win it again. Ahead of the 2025 Masters, Scheffler participated in a Masters-centric Q&A through his partnership with Rolex that touches on his memories from winning the Masters in 2022, the pivotal moments last year, plus much, much more.
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Q: Did winning the Masters for the first time exceed all expectations and dreams you had as a golfer growing up?
Scottie Scheffler: As a young golfer, you always dream of making the putt on the 18th hole to win the Masters. I four-putted the last hole so it was not necessarily the dream, childhood moment of making the winning putt, but the walk up the 18th hole was extremely surreal. My caddie, Ted Scott, and I had a conversation when we were walking up, saying thanks, being grateful and just really enjoying the moment. I think we really did [enjoy the moment] and the results of my putting on the 18thgreen probably show how much we were enjoying it. I think the feeling that you get with the achievement and the gratefulness of being able to achieve a lifelong dream is so special. It is just really fun to put on the Green Jacket and when you go back the next year, you get to host the Champions Dinner and do all the things that you have dreamed about. Going from being a little kid learning to play the game to winning the Masters is a truly humbling experience.
Q: What are your fond memories of the final round last year?
SS: I had a really good Sunday. I think that was a Sunday where I played really good, especially the last 10 or 11 holes to separate myself, especially there. I had birdies on holes 9 and 10 and I think holes 13, 14, and 16, so some key birdies when I really needed them.
Q: Do you remember what you said to your friends before the final round?
SS: I don’t remember what I said to my friends, but I remember what my friends told me.
Q: In your press conference, you said you told them “I wish I didn’t want to win so badly.” Can you elaborate on what you mean by that because you like winning?
SS: I do – I love to win, and since it’s the Masters, there’s always something special about it. When you grow up here in the United States, that’s the tournament I think we look at the most, just with the history around the tournament with Mr. Jones, the Augusta National Golf Club and it being on the same golf course year in year out. I think you just dream of getting a chance to play in that tournament and to have an opportunity to win it, for the second time, you’re sitting there in the morning and thinking “I want this so badly”. I almost wish that if I wanted it less, it would be easier for me just to go out there and play, but you desire something so much that you’ve worked so long for.
Q: During your first round at the Masters Tournament, holes 12 and 13 were a crucial turning point. Can you take us through those two holes?
SS: Thursday that week was a day in which I got like the absolute most I could have out of the round. I think I shot five or six under and was close to the lead, and it was a day in which I got off the golf course and I didn’t feel like my swing was in a great spot. I remember coming off the course and Randy told me, “great job” and asked how I felt out there, and I thought that I cannot keep going another three days in this tournament with my swing feeling like this and that we need to go figure something out. I remember Thursday being a day in which I was just really, really efficient going around the course. We went to the range and I told Randy what I was feeling in my swing and he gave me a little tip with my grip. I remember hitting one shot and it feeling exactly the way I wanted to feel, and I hit another one and it was exactly the way I wanted to feel, and then we left the range and it was a feeling that I stuck with for the rest of the week and it worked out pretty well.
Q: What was the tip?
SS: It was just the way my left thumb was on my grip. He had me move it down the grip just a touch. I’ll let Randy try to explain why that is. He’s fond of that kind of stuff. But I was just telling him the way it was, feeling a little loose in the backswing, and he told me to just move my left thumb just a touch down the grip. And I remember hitting my first shot to the left, because what I had been doing all day was saving it. When I flushed it, and it came out just to the left, I could feel what I was doing in my swing. And then I hit one more shot, and I could feel it right in the slot. That was exactly the feeling I was looking for and when I woke up the next day, it was still there, and I hit it really good the rest of the week.
Q: So you just hit two balls and left?
SS: I may have hit a few more after that, but I remember hitting two shots and being like, ‘All right, that’s it’. That was the feeling I was looking for. And I’m sure I hit a few more balls after that, but I remember us not really talking about anything else. I just said give me some more clubs, let me hit some shots. And then we left the range. And that was our feel for the week.
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Q: In the third round, you went double bogey 10, bogey 11, eagle 13 and birdie 18 to get back into position. Do you remember that stretch?
SS: I remember landing it pretty close to pin high on 10 and it ended up over the green in a bush. I remember missing a pretty makeable par putt on 11. I’d missed a couple putts to the right that day and I remember asking Teddy if he saw anything, and he said that the ball might just be barely back in your stance. He said on my next one to move it up a touch. I remember making about a seven-footer for par on hole 12. It was an awkward putt where I couldn’t really tell which way it was going to break. I hit it right down my line and it went right in the middle. Then I made that key long putt there on 13 for eagle that kind of turned the day around pretty quick. That putt I made on hole 13 felt like a big momentum switch for me.
Q: During the final round, do you remember the conversation on hole 13 about going for it in two?
SS: I think Teddy said something along the lines of if it was somebody else, he would consider laying up, but he said you’re the best long-iron player in the world, so just hit the shot at the green. At that point in the final round, I had a lead, so you don’t want to play defensively and we don’t want to change how we approach the round. That was a moment there on the back nine where we could have changed the way we usually played and maybe tried to limp in, but I remember asking Teddy to see where his thoughts were, and that’s when he said “you’re a great iron player, hit the ball on the green.” I remember hitting a good shot to the middle of the green, nice two-putt, and making another key birdie there on the next hole.
Q: After the round, you stopped to cry, just after the trophy ceremony, can you take us through what it was that moved you to tears?
SS: I get moved to tears pretty easily. Usually, I don’t make it this long through an interview without crying when you talk about like the Masters and things like that, so I’m a little proud of myself for that! I remember finishing and scoring, and everything always happens so quick after you win tournaments. I remember them going through the order of what is going to happen now and I just asked if I could go to the restroom and I didn’t need to use them at all, I just needed like two minutes to myself. I remember walking up towards the Locker Room and a couple people congratulated me, but there’s really nobody back there because everybody’s on the side of the Clubhouse that’s on the golf course. I had a nice walk up to the Champions Locker Room by myself and that is something that I always wanted to do after winning the Tournament once, I wanted to go up there again as a champion.
The guys in the Locker Room always joke about keeping it in the Locker Room, so that was pretty fun to go up there and celebrate with the attendants up there. Sometimes you just need a couple minutes to collect your thoughts. That’s really all it is. I’m a pretty emotional guy, and sometimes I just need a little time to myself to reflect. It wasn’t long, but I remember going to the bathroom and just kind of standing there for a minute, taking some deep breaths and a moment to reset before going back out to do the trophy presentation.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Scottie Scheffler talks Masters wins, celebrating with attendants
Continue reading...
