Scottie Scheffler earned his 20th win on the PGA Tour on Sunday in just his 151st career start. The world No. 1 did his part in his season debut, overcoming a one-stroke deficit over Kim Si-woo after 54 holes to join the winner’s circle at the 2026 American Express.
Scheffler signed a final round 66 at Pete Dye’s Stadium Course and ran away from the field. With a tournament total of 27 under, Scheffler’s margin of victory was four strokes ahead of Jason Day, Ryan Gerrard, Matt McCarty and Andrew Putnam, the latter of whom was his closest pursuer for most of Sunday’s back nine.
This win represents a lot when considering Scheffler’s career. This is his earliest win on the PGA Tour in a calendar year. He has won six of the past 12 tournaments he has played on the PGA Tour in 2025, and this is also his seventh win in his last 13 starts.
With this win, Scheffler becomes the first player to reach 20 wins on the PGA Tour since Rory McIlroy at the 2021 CJ CUP. He becomes the 40th person in history to accomplish this feat.
With 20 wins in 151 matches, Scheffler is the third-fastest player in history to reach the significant number, behind Tiger Woods (95 wins) and Jack Nicklaus (127 wins). Scheffler also joined Woods and Nicklaus as the only players to win 20 PGA Tour events and four major championships by the age of 30.
Despite racking up seven PGA Tour wins in 2024, nine wins including an Olympic gold medal and a successful defense at the Hero World Challenge, and two major championships in 2025 despite not hoisting a trophy until May due to an offseason hand injury, Scheffler appears ready to challenge, if not surpass, those efforts just 72 holes into the 2026 season.
A day after Scheffler struggled against the scoring club, he let the field know he corrected those mistakes on the opening hole. He threw a dart 4 feet on the par-4 first and immediately caught Kim and never looked back. Scheffler had four birdies from within 5 feet in his first seven holes and added another from 10 feet before the turn.
The same story continued to unravel in the inside half as Scheffler imposed his will. He birdied the 11th from 2 feet, then the next from 2 feet, and on the 14th, a wedge drive to the back pin led to another conversion from 4 feet.
As the back nine progressed, it was no longer a question of whether Scheffler would win, but rather how wide his margin would widen. As the year progresses, the question may arise as to which tournaments Scheffler will win and which tournaments he will not win. Grade: A+
T2. Ryan Gerard (-23): Fresh off his runner-up finish at the Sony Open, Gerrard kept his foot on the gas on the mainland. He has now finished runner-up three years in a row since starting in Mauritius on the DP World Tour last fall. My confidence continues to snowball as I jump from game to game. Usually the bread and butter of his game is hitting the ball, but Gerrard has found success on and around the greens this week. He will win again this season, but it will come sooner or later. Grade: A
6. Shime Kill Kill (-22): The four-time PGA Tour winner set his sights on the challenge early in the final round. Kim had birdie chances on the front nine, giving himself a birdie chance. He was within striking distance of Scheffler until disaster struck on the par-5 eighth. He was turbulent around the green and hit double bogey without losing the ball. Some interesting decisions and not taking early chances cost Kim, but this week proved that given his current ball-striking acumen, a successful putt will put his name on the first page of the leaderboard. Grade: B+
T18. Blade Brown (-19): Facing a chance to become the second-youngest winner on the PGA Tour, Brown acquitted himself admirably in the final group alongside Scheffler and Kim. He looked comfortable with some early birdies, but made a fatal mistake on the par-5 fifth hole when he fell off the tee into the water, resulting in a double bogey. The 18-year-old never recovered from that, but the experience will prove beneficial as he continues to progress in his career. He fought a tough battle, but stayed within the top 10 and failed to qualify for next week’s Farmers Insurance Open. Grade: A+
T18. Will Zalatoris (-19): Zalatoris, making his first PGA Tour start since last spring’s PGA Championship, opened with a 7-under 65. The muscular right-hander continued to show promise with his ball-striking, but in a tournament that requires birdies, he ultimately fell behind before Sunday’s impressive 64. There were a lot of positive signs this week, as he led in regulation greens and tee-to-green strokes gained. That’s the secret to success, and one that Zalatoris has mastered throughout his career.
“It was really good except for a few holes on the Nicklaus course,” Zalatoris said. “I practiced with Blair Phillips at home and my putting was really good. It’s been a big change to take ownership on the putting green, and I think you’re going to see a big difference in my putting overall this year. Yeah, that’s good. All those 64s on Sunday feel pretty good, especially after the last three years I’ve been through.” Grade: B
T18. Rickie Fowler (-19): Fowler quietly enters 2026 with great momentum following his performance in last season’s FedEx Cup Playoffs. Despite tinkering with his bag configuration and outfitting him with a new putter, the fan favorite didn’t miss a beat. After recording three bogeys Thursday at La Quinta Country Club, Fowler played the final 54 holes without a bogey, including no squares on his scorecard in the second round on the more difficult Stadium Course. He may need to work on converting more scoring chances, but any time a clean card stacks up, that’s a good thing. Grade: B-
