[PHOTO: Jamie Squire]
During the final round of the 2024 Masters, Ludvig Aberg double-bogeyed the 11th hole, Collin Morikawa doubled the ninth and 11th. Max Homa doubled 12th. Those mis-steps along with his own strong play allowed Scottie Scheffler to double his total of green jackets, picking up win No.2 at Augusta National.
The miscues from his closest challengers are noted, but Scheffler was so strong over the last 11 holes that it probably wasn’t going to be matched regardless. Scheffler got up-and-down at the par-5 eighth for birdie then hit a lob wedge from 81 metres and spun it back to inches for a tap-in birdie at the ninth. He then stuck a wedge on 10 from 131 metres to nine feet and made that birdie putt to take a firm hold of the lead.
Scheffler kept the good times rolling, birdieing the par-5 13th and then dropping a 140-metre pitching wedge to within inches on the 14th to stretch the lead. A birdie on 16 made it four up with two to go. Game. Over.
It was a Tiger-esque performance from a man who’s TaylorMade P7TW irons are based off Woods’ muscleback blades. “I grew up playing Nike clubs like Tiger, so these had a special appeal to me,” Scheffler told Golf Digest in 2022. “I figured if he was using the irons they had to be pretty good.” Scheffler’s irons have True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 shafts and Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips.
Scheffler also continued his recent hot putting, ranking third in putting average for the week. Scheffler changed to a TaylorMade Spider Tour X X1 mallet putter from his Scotty Cameron blade at last month’s Arnold Palmer Invitational after doing extensive testing at home. The putter is half-an-inch longer than his previous gamer and has an L-Neck hosel and TaylorMade’s True Path alignment aid on top with a full-line sightline on top. The putter has 3 degrees of loft with a lie angle of 72 degrees. The insert is an 80/20 TaylorMade Pure Roll insert and the grip is a Golf Pride pistol. Since the switch, Scheffler has won the API, the Players and now the Masters.
‘It freed me up’: Scottie Scheffler’s confidence-boosting putting change, explained
And for those wondering about the number 5 on Scheffler’s Titleist Pro V1, there’s an interesting reason. “I use high numbers – 5 through 8 instead of 1 through 4 – because it’s easier to identify,” he said. “I’ve just hit the wrong ball a few too many times.”
Hitting the wrong ball seemed about the only way to keep Scheffler from winning Masters No.2.
What Scottie Scheffler had in the bag at the 2024 Masters:
Ball: Titleist Pro V1
Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (Fujikua Ventus Black 7X), 8 degrees
3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10, 15 degrees
Irons (3-4): Srixon ZU85; (5-PW): TaylorMade P7TW
Wedges: Titleist Vokey SM8 (50, 56 degrees); Titleist Vokey SM9 WedgeWorks prototype (60 degrees)
Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour X X1
