MIAMI – World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler fired a bogey-free 68 on Dec 3 for a three-shot win in the Hero World Challenge, where 15-time Major champion Tiger Woods said he had “come a long way” in his first tournament since April.
American Scheffler had four birdies to finish on 20-under 268 on the Albany Golf Course in the Bahamas. He beat Austrian Sepp Straka, who fired a closing 64, by three strokes to give him the trophy after runner-up finishes in 2021 and 2022.
Tournament host Woods, who had not played since ankle surgery after his third-round withdrawal at the Masters, said he was “ecstatic” with how the week had gone after carding a final-round 72 for an even-par total of 288.
He shook off a double-bogey at the second hole with birdies at the third, fifth and sixth. After bogeys at eight and 11th, he birdied 14th and 15th before a bogey at 16th that left him 18th in the 20-player field.
“I’ve come a long way,” said Woods, who had said he was no longer playing with pain from leg injuries suffered in a 2021 car crash but still battled chronic back pain.
“From being a little bit rusty to playing four days and knocked off a lot of rust which was great, and just the physicality of actually playing and competing again – I haven’t done this in a while.
“I wish I would have played a little cleaner but there’s always next time.”
Having completed 72 holes, the American, who turns 48 on Dec 30, said he thought that his estimate he could play one tournament a month in 2024 “seems reasonable”.
“It gives me a couple of weeks to recover, a week to tune up. Maybe I can get into a rhythm. That’s what the plan was going into next year and I don’t see why that would change,” he said.
Woods, who said all week his fitness was his main concern, added that the way he drove the ball was the best aspect of his game in the tournament.
“I drove it on pretty much a string all week,” he said. “So it’s not like I have to go and find something the next few weeks or something going into next year. What I’ve been working on is right there.”
The victory in the unofficial event saw Scheffler end 2023 on a high note, nine months after he claimed his sixth PGA Tour title at the Players Championship.
Since then, putting problems had held the 27-year-old back, but last week showed his recent work with putting coach Phil Kenyon was paying off.
“It’s nice to see some fast results from the stuff we’ve been working on. It was nice to see some putts go in,” he said.
Straka surged into second place with eight birdies to finish on 271. “It was just a great round of golf,” he said. “I felt like the last two days I hit the ball really well, didn’t make a lot of putts and today I finally made a few putts.”
Justin Thomas (67) was third at 16 under while Tony Finau (67) and Matt Fitzpatrick (70) were tied-fourth at 15 under. AFP, REUTERS
