Source: PGA Tour – Original article in English published on 29 April 2025
One day before competing in the Korn Ferry Tour Championship 2019 —his last tournament before joining the PGA TOUR—, Scottie Scheffler was driving a buggy around the Victoria National Golf Club, covered in fescue, while answering quick questions for a video on the Korn Ferry Tour’s YouTube channel. He talked about a bit of everything, from his shoe size (he had changed it two weeks earlier due to blisters) to fruits, TV series, and haircuts.
Scheffler greeted his colleagues during the ride and answered the questions in a relaxed yet serious tone. Then, on the last question, he became more reflective.
— What is the best part of life?, he was asked.
— Life is important to share with people you enjoy —he replied—. If you don’t have a few close and quality friends, I don’t think what you’re doing is worthwhile, because you want to be able to enjoy it with someone. Find something you like to do and that you can enjoy with other people.
Three weeks earlier, a scene perfectly reflected that thought. There were 25 PGA TOUR cards at stake through the regular season of the Korn Ferry Tour, which ended at the WinCo Foods Portland Open, at the Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club in Oregon. Scheffler arrived in third place in the rankings, practically with his PGA TOUR card secured, but his childhood friend, Vince Whaley, was on the edge. He entered the week in 22nd place in the rankings… and did not make the cut. Neither did Scheffler.
Both had forged a friendship of nearly two decades competing in the junior and amateur circuit in Texas. Instead of leaving the city as is usually done after missing a cut, they decided to stay. The card presentation was a symbolic moment, comparable to a graduation. Whaley spent the weekend anxiously calculating and Scheffler noticed. After an uncomfortable Saturday at the hotel, he suggested going out to play on Sunday. They played at the Ghost Creek Course, the sister course of the tournament host, accompanied by Scheffler’s parents, Scott Sr. and Diane, who walked the 18 holes with them.
Finally, the numbers played in Whaley’s favour. He finished in 25th place and joined Scheffler on the PGA TOUR in 2020. They celebrated among the tall pines of Oregon, with a light beer, lots of laughter, and a selfie video with the tag #TOURBound.
Scheffler was in the midst of a stellar season: he finished first in the Korn Ferry Tour 2019 rankings with 10 top-10 finishes in 20 tournaments, including two victories and was voted Player of the Year by his peers. Less than six years later, he is the World Number One, with 13 PGA TOUR victories, two majors, and the Olympic gold in Paris. His impeccable long game, coordination, and balance between personal and professional life became evident for the first time that year.
While others thought about the throne, Scheffler thought about his friend.
— On Saturday, I was at the hotel doing calculations in a notebook and talking with Scottie —recalled Whaley—. He said: “We need to get you out of here,” and we decided to go play the next day. It was a lot of fun. Once we got on the course, we stopped thinking about everything.
— I just wanted to distract myself —he added— and it worked.
A path without guarantees
The 2019 season was special for many reasons. Neither had anything guaranteed. The Korn Ferry Tour is extremely competitive, and only with consistent results can a card be achieved.
— I always knew Scottie could succeed if he made it to the PGA TOUR —said his father in 2024—. What I didn’t know was if he could pass the Korn Ferry Tour filter.
But there was nothing to worry about.
Scheffler graduated from the University of Texas in the spring of 2018, before the PGA TOUR University system existed. He embarked on the tough route of Monday qualifiers and then the Q-School, when it still did not offer direct cards to the PGA TOUR.
In the First Stage, he played in Garland, Texas, the first two rounds alongside former Cowboys player Tony Romo. With 12 holes to go, he was three strokes below the cut. He closed with 7 under par in that stretch and passed comfortably.
In the Second Stage, in Mobile, Alabama, he posted rounds of 66-66-70-66. This secured him a conditional membership for 2019. In the Final in Arizona, he needed a par on the 18th hole to secure a schedule. He missed the green, executed a perfect chip, and left himself a short putt. He celebrated with an uncharacteristic fist pump.
— I remember that moment clearly —he said later—. In Q-School, there’s more pressure than on a Sunday at the Masters. If you fail, you’re left without playing for a whole year.
Seven months after obtaining his university degree, Scheffler had a job. He never looked back.
Extraordinary talent
Throughout 2019, Scheffler excelled in key statistics: top 15 in Driving Total, Greens in Regulation, and Putting Average. His final 63 at the NV5 Invitational, coming back six strokes to win in a playoff, or his final 64 at the Simmons Bank Open, where he fell to Robby Shelton, showcased his level.
Mark Hubbard, who played with him in Nashville, put it clearly:
— I didn’t know anything about him. But I was impressed. It was a flawless round. A 64 without effort, and you don’t see that every day.
He also left a mark among his peers.
Jonathan Randolph recounted that in one round they fell behind and were put on the clock… but not Scheffler, because he played so quickly and cleanly that there was no reason.
He played without an equipment contract, winning the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship with clubs from seven different brands. He bet on what worked for him, and it paid off.
—That shows he bet on himself —said Randolph—. He could have signed for money, but he preferred to trust his game.
Dan McCarthy, who beat him by one stroke at the Club Car Championship, remembers how he almost holed an impossible shot from a bunker on the 18th:
— It was miraculous. I went from thinking I had already won to thinking “I have to make this putt if I want to win.”
Cody Blick, who accompanied him on his Tour debut, recalls how on a 603-yard par 5 he hit a driver off the deck and reached the green:
— That’s when I knew he was special. We knew he would be good… but we didn’t know he would be that good.
Beyond the course
During 2019, Scheffler shared a house in Dallas with Max McGreevy, Grant Hirschman, and Charlie Saxon. They called it Dirty Meadow. They spent little time together, but when they did, the conversations were eccentric. During the pandemic, they debated things like: “How much money would you need to live for a year in Okmulgee, Oklahoma?”
Sometimes Scottie’s parents and sisters would come to help with the garden while the guys watched from inside.
— We felt bad —joked McGreevy—. But he was always generous, ordering food for everyone and helping out.
With Whaley, he shared accommodation in the Bahamas, Panama, and other tournaments. In Exuma, he even challenged a local to a race on the beach. In Panama, they shared a bathroom while both had a stomach virus.
But the most special moment was in Oregon when both secured their PGA TOUR cards.
—The first time I played with him, he was terrible —joked Whaley—. Six months later, he was amazing. And he never stopped.
The perfect ending
Scheffler closed his season with a second victory at the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, the first event of the Korn Ferry Tour Finals. He won by two strokes on the challenging Scarlet course at Ohio State University. After signing his card, he found out he had won. He responded: “Yay!”
He posed with the trophy and the children, gave his speech, and then spent an entire hour in the rules office, reviewing moments from the tournament and thanking everyone.
He was the same guy who had said in that video:
— Life is about being with others.
Five years later, he reaffirms that idea:
— My life hasn’t changed that much. Winning is fun, but it lasts a few seconds. What is truly special is celebrating it with those you love.
