Scottie Scheffler expressed feeling 'whipped' after a demanding PGA Tour schedule, struggling at the U.S. Open following his Memorial Tournament win. He indicated a need to adjust his schedule to avoid burnout before major events.
Key points
Scottie Scheffler won the 2024 Memorial Tournament.
He struggled at the U.S. Open with a tied 41st finish.
Scheffler expressed the need to adjust his tournament schedule.
He confirmed he will likely skip the Truist Championship.
DORAL, Fla. — Scottie Scheffler admitted he was "whipped."
The current world No. 1 had just won the 2024 Memorial Tournament, hanging on despite a final round 74, and was headed to Pinehurst for the U.S. Open, the one major standing between him and a career Grand Slam.
Scheffler opened with a 71 and didn't get any better. Out of contention from the start, he closed tied for 41st.
"I'm like, physically and mentally, I can't do this for two weeks in a row," Scheffler said before the start of the Cadillac Championship at Trump National Doral. "I won Memorial and I was whipped showing up to the U.S. Open. So that's kind of how I adjusted my schedule to be like … maybe the week before the major it's not wise to go out there and beat myself up a little bit."
Scheffler, who shot a 1-under 71 in the first round at Cadillac, all but confirmed he will not be in Charlotte for the Truist Championship May 7-10, the sixth signature event on the PGA Tour schedule. The site where he won the PGA Championship a year ago.
The decision highlights the challenges of the 2026 schedule, and a major reason the schedule will change significantly starting in 2028.
DORAL, FLORIDA - APRIL 29: Scottie Scheffler of United States of America looks on from the 11th tee prior to the Cadillac Championship 2026 at Trump National Doral Miami on April 29, 2026 in Doral, Florida. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
DORAL, FLORIDA - APRIL 29: Scottie Scheffler of United States of America looks on from the 11th tee prior to the Cadillac Championship 2026 at Trump National Doral Miami on April 29, 2026 in Doral, Florida. (Photo by Megan Briggs/Getty Images)
Q&A
Why did Scottie Scheffler feel 'whipped' during the PGA Tour?
Scottie Scheffler felt 'whipped' due to the physically and mentally taxing schedule of consecutive tournaments, particularly after winning the Memorial Tournament.
What was Scottie Scheffler's performance at the U.S. Open?
Scottie Scheffler finished tied for 41st at the U.S. Open, struggling with his game after a demanding previous week.
How did Scheffler adjust his schedule for major tournaments?
Scheffler indicated he would avoid playing the week before major tournaments to prevent burnout, as he felt exhausted after the Memorial Tournament.
Will Scottie Scheffler participate in the Truist Championship?
Scheffler confirmed he will likely not participate in the Truist Championship scheduled for May 7-10.
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Cadillac Championship at Trump course fifth signature event on schedule
The Cadillac Championship is the fifth signature event on the PGA Tour schedule. Signature events have limited fields with $20 million purses and include the top 50 players from the previous season's FedEx Cup standings through the Tour Championship, plus about 22 others who qualify through various paths that reward those playing well in recent events.
Cadillac, though, was crammed into a very unfavorable spot, not just because the temperatures start rising this time of year, but because it now means we have five significant tournaments — three signature events bookended by the Masters and PGA Championship — in a six-week stretch.
Which is why five of the top 15 players in the Official World Golf Ranking are skipping Cadillac, led by No. 2 Rory McIlroy. That is more than any other signature event this season.
The Arnold Palmer Invitational had every top 15 player and two other signature events included 14. The RBC Heritage, played the week after the Masters, drew 11.
"The schedule is very busy and the schedule is very congested," world No. 7 Tommy Fleetwood said. "You play the tournaments you can and go from there. I try never to be in a position where I'm playing just for the sake of playing just because you feel like you should. You're here to do the absolute best you can."
The Tour's decision to satisfy Donald Trump's desire to host a PGA Tour event at his property by giving him a signature event, put its players in a very difficult spot. With a multi-year contract, the event will be a part of the Tour's revamped and contracted schedule.
The only question is where it will fall.
"This year is a little bit of an exception I think," said Adam Scott, who won the last PGA Tour event played at Doral, in 2016. "This is an added event. Ideally this wouldn't be the way. I think we've got to get through this year and hopefully the schedule looks a little more balanced next year."
Scott will have a say in that future schedule as a member of the Tour’s policy board as well as the Future Competition Committee.
The schedule will look a lot different moving forward with CEO Brian Rolapp's desire to have around 25 "first track" tournaments, including 16 signature events, the four majors, The Players and the playoffs.
What he has to figure out is a schedule that does not have stretches where the top 2 players in the world are not playing in the same field for four consecutive weeks, as we are in now.
Scheffler and McIlroy will not be in the same event between the Masters and PGA Championship.
Jupiter's Rickie Fowler, who did not qualify for the Masters, is playing in all three signature events between the Masters and PGA Championship. Fowler is used to a busy schedule starting with the Masters and the only question is whether or not a player is comfortable playing a signature event before or after a major.
"April basically through the end of the year, it's kind of nonstop," Fowler said. "You try and get a week off here and there.
"The cadence hasn't necessarily changed a whole lot. Having some (signature events), especially some back-to-back leading up to or following some majors, maybe dictates a little bit of the schedule, that's why you see some guys take one or two off."
The biggest loser in this glut was the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a tournament with a $9.5 million purse that was the third in a six-week stretch where the other five had purses of at least $20 million.
Justin Rose pulls a club to play his second shot from the seventh tee during the first round of the 2026 Cadillac Championship at Trump National Doral.
Justin Rose pulls a club to play his second shot from the seventh tee during the first round of the 2026 Cadillac Championship at Trump National Doral.
Justin Rose: 'I looked at this period … something had to give'
Justin Rose was in the same spot following this year's Masters as Scheffler was in entering the 2024 U.S. Open.
The Englishman, and No. 5 in the world, just went through another emotionally draining Masters that once again ended in heartbreak. Rose took a two-shot lead at the turn Sunday and shot a 37 on the back nine.
Like the year before, when he lost in a playoff to McIlroy, he was denied that first Masters championship. He finished tied for third.
Rose needed a break. So he withdrew from the RBC Heritage the next day.
"I looked at this period coming up and I think something had to give, for sure," said Rose, who opened Cadillac with a 74.
"For me, it kind of ended up being the RBC, especially what happened after Augusta. I felt like I knew what was coming, I knew what a big run of events were coming. After the Masters, I feel like I needed that week extra to reflect and get the recovery going into this big run of events."
Rose is not averse to playing three straight weeks, saying historically some of his best golf has come at the end of a three-week stretch. Which, if he remains in the Truist field as expected, will be the case when he tees it up at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, for the May 14-17 PGA Championship.
"When you're having to miss great events to prepare for other great events, it's not ideal," Rose said. "This is a new edition, so it had to fall somewhere.
"I guess the (Future Competition Committee) is looking at the best practices going forward. So I'm sure there's been a lot of talk about our schedule next year, the year after, whatever it is. I'm sure that this period of time will be refined, for sure."
