McKINNEY — Scottie Scheffler is home.
After spending nearly a month away from the PGA Tour, the Dallas resident is back for this week’s AT&T Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch.
And Scheffler is as relaxed as ever. After winning the Players Championship in March, Scheffler tied for 10th at the Masters and tied for 11th at the RBC Heritage.
Scheffler took a scheduled break from the high pressures of golf and now enters this weekend as the world’s No. 2-ranked player behind Jon Rahm. And with Jordan Spieth pulling out of this week’s tournament with a wrist injury, Scheffler has become the face of the event.
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The break was needed.
“I didn’t do too much at home,” Scheffler said Wednesday after playing nine holes in a Pro-Am round. “I was just trying to relax and get a little practice in and pretty much just rest. I got pretty tired after the Masters, and that’s pretty typical of a major. They kind of wear you down. It was good just to get a little mental rest.”
Scheffler is so relaxed he didn’t practice at TPC Craig Ranch until Wednesday. He didn’t even see the new Ranch 17, a stadium-styled par 3 that has luxury suites on both sides of the fairway for an enclosed look.
“Yeah, sleeping in your own bed is nice,” he said. “I didn’t come out here until [Wednesday], which is unusual for me at a tournament. Usually I spend a lot of time at the course. It’s good for me to be able to practice at my home course [Royal Oaks Country Club], and get some work in kind of off-property where there’s not as much going on, and definitely nice to be able to go home every night.”
The AT&T Byron Nelson has special meaning to Scheffler. He’s making his fifth appearance. While he’s never won the tournament, he made his PGA Tour debut there in 2014 as a 17-year-old amateur from Highland Park. He finished tied for 22nd. As a pro, Scheffler’s highest finish was last year, a 19-under 269 which tied for 15th.
This season, Scheffler has won twice, at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and the Players among his 12 starts. A victory this weekend most likely will push him back to No. 1 in the World Golf Ranking. The top spot has changed five times since the start of the PGA Tour season with Scheffler holding the No. 1 ranking twice for a total of five weeks.
Now, he’s behind Rahm in the hopes of not only surpassing him but getting ready for the PGA Championship the next week.
But on Wednesday, Scheffler didn’t have the vibe of a man who is stressing what the next few weeks would look like for him. He was calm. The objective is to always win, especially this weekend in front of family and friends.
“It would certainly be a lot of fun, that’s for sure,” he said. “Like I said earlier, this tournament is special to me, getting to play in high school. I have very special memories of this tournament. Obviously a different golf course now, but still a good test, and just looking forward to getting out there and competing this week.”
Briefly: A moment of silence was held during the opening ceremonies for the victims of Saturday’s shooting at Allen Premium Outlets. Flags were held at half-staff. … Scheffler will tee off Thursday with two-time Byron Nelson champ K.H. Lee and Jason Day at 12:44 p.m.
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