Charlotte, N.C. - Jon Rahm bows down the 16th fairway at Quail Hollow Country Club. He hid under his stern facial expression under his bright pink hat, and none of this emanated as the nearby green sound of No. 14 was in the water, and Scottie Scheffler had just got Birdie shot twice, almost spelling out his main champion fate.
"Even if you don't want to look at the rankings, the crowd will know," Ram said.
For a brief moment, Ram seemed capable of doing something unimaginable: tracking the world’s number one player, who started Ram’s top five goals in a big championship match on Sunday. Thanks to Scheffler's atypical 2 first 9, it seems Rahm has gained momentum after tying the lead to the 11th hole and is ready to go downhill on the way to the Wanamaker trophy.
But beating Shefleur requires more than a good golf ball. The trademark of the three-time major champions today is not flash, but stability, and becomes incredible when facing mistakes. The pressure he puts on his opponents organically occurs. His game is so loud and bulletproof that those who try to beat him know the effort required to surpass the best players in the world will be tough.
On Sunday, Schaffler's inevitability hangs in the wet Charlotte air. That's why when Rahm walked out of the 16th green with bogey, Scheffler scored 14 and 15 in 2 points, and the Spaniard couldn't help but break it. He found water on the 17th T-shirt on the par 3. game over.
"These nine will be something I remember for a long time," Schevler said. "I will remember it for a while in order to strengthen the time when it is most needed."
Nineteen years ago, Luke Donald watched a similar movie in the 2006 PGA Championship. Donald - then the 10th player in the world - took the lead after 36 holes and shot 66 at the Medinah Country Club on Saturday to reach 14. There is only one problem: Tiger Woods filmed the 65-season record that day to lead with Donald. By then, Woods had been 11-0 in the Grand Slam, where he had at least 54 holes lead.
"The Tigers have this aura, and you feel like you need to do a lot more than you really improve the game," Donald said after Quail How finished the final round. "And I think he got it."
Woods and Donald played the game in the final match that Sunday, with Woods scoring 68 shots by five in his 12th win. On Sunday in Charlotte, Scheffler now took the win with a 3-0 lead with a 54-hole lead: five shots.
"He just played the game and didn't make too many mistakes that frustrated you, and I certainly went through that in 2006," Donald said of Woods. "I think Scottie was a similar player when he got the lead."
A lot has happened since Scheffler won the 2024 Masters and put himself firmly above the sport. Xander Schauffele won two majors, Bryson DeChambeau himself won two majors, and Rory McIlroy finally got his green jacket and grand slam.
Sheffler was not forgotten at that time - he won six championships on the tour and another top ten in the Grand Slam - but a small narrative began to sprout: When will Schaeffler win a major that is not a master?
That Ram is Sunday Schaffler's foil. They placed their green jackets on each other’s shoulders and entered the competition as two professional identities. Now Schaffler slides not only over Ram, but also over dechambeau, Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas. He is a player of his generation and everyone else is just trying to catch up.
"Sometimes I feel like I'm being suppressed." DeChambeau tied for second place. “I had to be more precise and fix the issues I could solve to make myself more consistent and stand there like what Scottie is doing right now.”
No one has received more praise in the past 24 months than Schefler, as they all try to explain his greatness, while also marveling.
"I played a lot of golf with him and it seems like every shot has a lot of power, just found there," Sam Burns said.
With Scheffler, this didn't feel the track. Even after the first nine bogeys and defeating Sanbo on the left with his swing, he didn't look panic. He has been working with coach Randy Smith throughout the week to move his hips more effectively towards the target, and a moment when it seemed bad habits to enter his swing again. But then, Scheftler stood on the tenth tee and even aimed at the advice of his caddie, Ted Scott, and made sure he turned all over and striped. Click on something. After three other birdies on 15 holes, Schefler's victory felt inevitable again.
"I feel it's as difficult as I've been fighting for a game in my career," Schevler said, who said his driver was also considered unqualified before the game, forcing him to compete in a new game this week. "It's always difficult to end a big championship. I don't have the best stuff, but I keep sticking to myself. In the first few days, I'm fighting the swing."
Because of his elite batting, Schefler has attracted comparisons to Woods over the past two seasons. But he could win without his best, and then win a lot of wins when he scored, similar to what Woods did at his peak.
"He just won't be too high or too low, but his game is talking to himself," Donald said. "And he hates losing."
As Scheffler won more victories and became the focus of the sport, he was allowed to show himself and tell exactly how much he wanted. At the 2024 Masters, he shared his tension and hoped that he wouldn't want to win like he did. Scheffler removed tears on the 18th fairway of Quail Hollow on Sunday, then put on a hat with moments of ecstasy and yelling after the final putt fell. He is no longer just two Masters titles, but now he is a three-time Grand Slam champion at the age of 27, halfway through the Grand Slam.
“Sometimes I wish I didn’t care as much as I did – or like me,” Schevler said again after the final round. “If I could show up, um, win or lose, I would still go home to do anything. Sometimes I feel it.
"Whether it's golf, pickle, whatever it is, he wants to win, he wants to win, he wants to win," Smith said. "I've always equated it with other sports. You have basketball guys, you always know who on the team, who wants the ball, and that's how he's the way."
If McIlroy’s emotional victory at the Masters this year is the end of a storyline, then Schefler’s victory at Quail How is a timely reminder of the only growth. McIlroy may be the best year in the sport, but the title of the best player in the world still belongs to Scheffler.