In the moments after Xander Schauffele captured the Olympic gold medal in Tokyo, Schauffele’s father, Stefan, who years ago had his own Olympic dream before a car accident ended his decathlon career, said of his son’s victory, “It’s significant. He proved something big to himself.”
Schauffele has only built on that confidence, and he begins his Olympic defense in Paris with not only a gold medal around his neck but a major trophy in each arm, the Wanamaker from his PGA Championship victory in May and the claret jug, which he secured just days ago.
SEE MORE: What’s Nelly Korda done since winning gold? Become a dominant force
Here’s a look at what Schauffele has accomplished since Tokyo:
World rank: 2nd (4th after Olympic victory)
Wins (5): 2022 Zurich Classic (with Patrick Cantlay), 2022 Travelers Championship, 2022 Genesis Scottish Open, 2024 PGA Championship (major), 2024 Open Championship (major)
Highlight: Schauffele entered this year with 11 top-10s in 26 career major starts. He added four more this year, two wins and no finishes worse than eighth – only Tiger Woods and Jordan Spieth have had major seasons with four top-8 finishes since 1980. His recent triumph at Royal Troon was most impressive, as Schauffele fired a final-round 65 to blow away the field down the stretch and ultimately win by two shots. For years he was considered the best player without a major. Now that he’s got a pair? “The fire,” Schauffele said afterward, “is still burning, maybe brighter than ever.”
Lowlight: After going a combined 6-2 in U.S. victories at the 2021 Ryder Cup and 2022 Presidents Cup, Schauffele was expected to be key cog in the American’s arsenal in Rome last year. But Schauffele went just 1-3 in his second Ryder Cup appearance, and his name was caught up in reports about how the U.S. team room was fractured. Though the reports were denied by several people within the team, Stefan Schauffele revealed that there at least was some issue; his son, he said, was nearly kicked off the team for not signing a player participation and benefits agreement. “It took a few hours to hash it out and it was fine,” Stefan Schauffele said. “Then I received a message that Xander was back on the team. That you can quote. That’s the extent of this and I think it’s shameful.” Xander later said of his dad, “I think the headlines sort of skewed obviously what he was trying to say.” He hasn’t addressed the topic since, though a couple weeks ago Xander did comment on Keegan Bradley’s appointment to U.S. captain, garnering headlines for saying that he wanted to attend fewer dinners and do less “knickknack-y stuff” during Ryder Cup weeks.
Olympic odds: +600
© 2024 KOBI-TV NBC5. All rights reserved unless otherwise stated.