Xander Schauffele once again came up just short of the title at the THE PLAYERS Championship, but did so making clear why he remains one of the most reliable players on the circuit. The American carded a final round of 69 strokes (-3) at TPC Sawgrass to finish in sole third place, two shots behind the champion, Cameron Young, after a final day marked by patience, the wind and the customary tension of the closing stretch of the course.
Schauffele had to fight an uphill battle for much of Sunday. In fact, he spent much of the round over par before responding on the closing holes, holding his own on a course that became more demanding as the afternoon wore on. “It was hard to be patient, for sure. Some strange things happened out there, but in the end -3 today is a good round“, he explained after finishing his round.
The Californian once again demonstrated his affinity for Sawgrass, a course where he has historically come close to winning on several occasions. However, as so often happens in this tournament, the 17th hole again carried weight in the result.
The 17th hole again delivered the verdict
Schauffele admitted that his shot to the iconic island par three could have been better. The wind and a small technical detail left it short of the ideal area of the green. “It would have been nice to hit the correct section on 17“, he admitted. “The greens are a bit softer than in other years and if you place the ball well you can have a good chance, but it remains an intimidating hole”.
The American even explained the technical reason for the error: “I had the sand wedge a little too high on the tee and I didn’t get as much compression as if I had struck it from the turf. I felt like I had hit it enough, but the ball came up short”. Beyond that detail, Schauffele left satisfied with how he competed in a final round that notably hardened for the last groups.
“It would have been a shame to string together two tournaments in a row playing over par at the weekend“, he admitted. “Here, when you go out in the final groups, the course gets harder: the wind picks up, the greens are firmer… but you know what you have to do to earn it on this course”. His third place also confirms that his game is arriving in good shape for the key stretch of the season.
Looking ahead to Augusta
With the Masters at Augusta less than a month away, Schauffele believes the week’s balance is clearly positive, although there is still room for improvement. “I’ve done a lot of things well. The iron play was very solid in the early rounds and I didn’t miss a single fairway all week“, he stressed.
The area to polish is clear: the putter. “I’d like to tighten up my putting a bit. I feel like I’m missing some from five to ten feet“, he explained. “But there’s still time”, he insisted. The truth, in any case, is that if his week at Sawgrass made one thing clear, it’s that Schauffele is very close. And with Augusta on the horizon, that’s a serious warning to the rest of the PGA Tour.
