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CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Xander Schauffele might be the most under-the-radar player in golf history who won two major championships the previous year — the PGA Championship and British Open.
Schauffele, despite being the PGA defending champion this week at Quail Hollow, isn’t even within the top few players on most people’s “favorites’’ list to win.
Part of the reason for that is his slow start to this season due to an oblique injury that delayed his start.
Still, Schauffele holds the memories of his 2024 PGA Championship victory at Valhalla close to him.
“When you’re in a position to win, you don’t really hang your hat on anything that can kind of bring you down,’’ Schauffele recalled of closing out his first major a year ago this week. “You’re just on a mission. You’re on a mission to do one thing, and that’s to win. It’s sort of a whatever-it-takes mentality, and you’re not sitting there nitpicking yourself on the small things, or if you mishit it or you miss your line by a little bit, or things of that nature.
“It’s been a process for me to get back to that point where I’m OK with hitting bad shots or hitting it out of place, and just making the best of it and sort of moving along and allowing myself to get a good nine-hole stretch in and go low.
“That’s been a process coming back, and thinking back to the 72nd hole [at Valhalla], I was just in a good state of mind. All I was trying to do was win that tournament. If I had to hit a shot lefty on the last hole, I wasn’t going to be rattled.’’
Schauffele recalled how special the scene was on the final hole last year as he finally crossed the line.
“I had a few buddies fly down from New York, my friend and his girlfriend and Chris [Como], my sort of freshly new swing coach at the time then. My wife was there, my uncle was there, my brother. It was cool to see everyone sort of huddled up. It was nice to be able to share that sort of emotion with everyone that’s close to me.’’
Schauffele will tee it up in the first round grouped with world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and newly minted Masters champion Rory McIlroy, teeing off at 8:22 a.m. Thursday.
And, despite being the defending champion and No. 3 in the world rankings, he’ll be the underdog in that three-ball.
“[My] game’s coming along slowly but surely,’’ Schauffele said. “Just getting as many reps in as I can. It’s already been off to an interesting week with the [stormy] weather. It’s definitely one of the hurdles everyone’s going to have to overcome this week.’’
One hurdle he doesn’t have to overcome anymore is being asked about his array of close calls in majors without winning one.
“I don’t get asked that question anymore,’’ he said. “It was going to be that conversation if I didn’t win one ever, it would have been that conversation that would have haunted me until I was done playing, probably. That’s just how the game goes.
“Luckily, I was able to rattle that one off, my first one at Valhalla, the PGA, which was awesome. I feel like I’ve done it before, but at the same time, I feel I’m still trying to prove myself as well.’’
English (US)