Through all that links chaos, through the madness of a final-round sprint for the line, stepped the magisterial sanity of Xander Schauffele, the Champion Golfer of 2024. The American did not simply destroy the rest down the stretch to lift the Open Championship – his – he took a few destructive drivers and impeccable irons to the reputation of the feared Troon back nine. Schauffele came back in 31 strokes to post a remarkable, bogeyless 65 to reach nine-under and deny countryman Billy Horshel (68) and the gallant Justin Rose (65) by two strokes.
That gap might seem like a whisker in 72 holes of strokeplay, but in truth it was an awfully long whisker as Schauffele birdied three out of four holes from the 11th to drain the tension out of what had been a feverish atmosphere and transform the expectancy into awe. “That was the best round of my life,” Schauffele said. “Hearing your name called with ‘Open champion’ after it is something I’ve dreamt of for a very long time.
” Schauffele is the first player this decade to succeed in multiple majors in a season and after this, there can be no doubt that he and Scottie Scheffler are head and shoulders above their peers, with Rory McIlroy – who – in a distant third in the world rankings. What is also clear is that the starred-and-striped domination is restored. US golfers have collected all four majors this year – and that has not happened since 1982 – and their winning streak has increased to seven.
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