Aug 29, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Scottie Scheffler appears over his putt on the 18th inexperienced throughout the first spherical of the TOUR Championship golf event. Necessary Credit score: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports activities ATLANTA — The inevitable turned official Sunday afternoon at East Lake Golf Membership: Scottie Scheffler gained the Tour Championship and clinched the 2024 FedEx Cup, the primary season-long championship of his PGA Tour profession.
Scheffler completed a whopping 30 beneath par and defeated Collin Morikawa by 4 strokes after an eventful spherical of 4-under 67. Scheffler added a FedEx Cup to his rising resume and took dwelling the corresponding $25 million bonus.
Scheffler adopted back-to-back bogeys by ripping off a three-birdie run at Nos. September 11. A 15 1/2-foot eagle putt on the par-5 14th was the ultimate spotlight of Scheffler’s commanding 2024 marketing campaign that reasserted his standing as the very best golfer on this planet.
Morikawa utilized strain early and went on to shoot 66 — not sufficient to get in Scheffler’s method.
The stoic Scheffler cracked a smile at caddie Ted Scott after tapping in for par at No. 18.
For the third consecutive 12 months, Scheffler entered the Tour Championship at 10 beneath with a two-shot head begin due to the FedEx Cup beginning strokes format. He completed the job after failing to transform in 2022 and 2023.
He turned the primary participant since Tiger Woods (2007) to win seven occasions on tour in a single season. His different wins got here on the Masters, the Gamers Championship and 4 signature occasions.
“We’ll look again on 2024 and it is clearly among the finest particular person years {that a} participant has had for a very long time,” Northern Eire star Rory McIlroy stated as Scheffler completed his spherical.
Scheffler’s ascendancy comes at a very profitable second in PGA Tour historical past. With purses growing in recent times, Scheffler managed to interrupt the tour file for many official cash in a season for the third 12 months operating. He gained $29,228,357 in official cash this season, not counting Sunday’s $25 million FedEx Cup bonus.
Scheffler led by 5 to start the day and grew the margin to seven after two holes. Morikawa birdied No. 4 earlier than Scheffler landed in a greenside bunker at No. 5, resulting in his first bogey.
The enjoying companions each birdied No. 6, however Scheffler gave a stroke again when his 5-foot par putt slid by the opening at No. 7, his solely miss from inside 8 ft all week. He then drove right into a bunker on the quick par-4 eighth and blasted his second shot over the inexperienced.
The door creaked open for Morikawa, who simply birdied the eighth whereas Scheffler carded his third bogey in 4 holes. The 2-shot swing pushed Morikawa to 23 beneath, two off the lead.
In a single shot, Scheffler turned the spherical again in his favor. He flew his tee shot on the lengthy par-3 ninth to simply 5 ft of the pin. That was the beginning of his birdie surge, as he made a 3-footer at No. 10 and a 15-footer at No. 11.
Morikawa bought caught in impartial on the fallacious time, lacking birdie tries at Nos. 9 and 10. However he transformed three birdies in his closing six holes and clinched his finest Tour Championship end in 5 journeys.
Sahith Theegala capped off his finest profession displaying at a FedEx Cup playoff occasion, holding onto third place at 24 beneath due to a final-round 64.
Georgia native Russell Henley went 5 beneath over his closing six holes, culminating with a pitch-in eagle on the par-5 18th, to shoot the spherical of the week at 9-under 62 and please the house crowd. Henley completed the week 19 beneath, tied for fourth with Xander Schauffele (68) and Australia’s Adam Scott (67).
–Adam Zielonka, Area Degree Media
