Internal fire driving Scottie Scheffler at PGA Championship despite recent, bittersweet runner-up streak

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NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. -- Scottie Scheffler stormed the gates at the start of the 2026 season, appearing primed to siege the collective golf city. All the riches and treasures were within sight as he won in his first start of the year for the first time in his career amid a stretch that rivals those of the game's all-time greats.

Given what he has accomplished every year since 2022, it seemed as if 2026 might somehow surpass all those individual campaigns.

The jury is still out as to whether this year can be the year, tough, as Scheffler enters the 2026 PGA Championship. Twelve months ago, he had played in nine tournaments, won once and collected four top-five finishes. This year, he has played in nine tournaments, won once and collected six top-five finishes.

The world No. 1 is on course for a similar summer, but the difference this time around seems to be who is challenging his throne: Rory McIlroy at the Masters, Matt Fitzpatrick at the RBC Heritage, Cameron Young at the Cadillac Championship. Scheffler fell to all of them and became the first player in PGA Tour history to finish solo runner-up in three straight tournaments.

"I think it was last week my wife was like, 'Hey, Scottie, you're like the first guy in PGA Tour history to have three solo runner-ups in a row.' I'm like, 'Yeah, it's probably because the guy that was playing that good figured out a way to win one of those; he didn't come second in all three.' A little bit of it is bittersweet," Scheffler said. "Finishing second in a golf tournament is not bad … especially in the way I did it in a couple of them.

"I was spotting guys so many strokes going into the weekend, mainly the Masters. Didn't have a very good chance going into the weekend there. Hilton Head, didn't have a very good chance going into the weekend there. Cadillac, I finished solo second, but really didn't really have that good of a chance. So, just different things. Overall, yeah, I'd say a little bit bittersweet. You know you're playing good golf, and you'd love to get some wins. Finishing second hurts, but I think when you reflect and you're looking at things to work on, there's a lot less to clean up when you're finishing second than there is when you're finishing 30th."

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