Scottie Scheffler defends title at 2024 Hero World Challenge, earns ninth win of year
Scheffler ran away with his second Hero title.
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Scottie Scheffler’s 2024 campaign is in the books, and he has added another feather in his cap to conclude one of the best seasons of all-time.
Scheffler defended his title at the 2024 Hero World Challenge, his first competitive start since the 2024 Presidents Cup and first solo event since the Tour Championship in August. Starting the day a shot behind Justin Thomas, the world No. 1 shot 9-under 63 to win by six shots at 25-under 263.
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Scheffler topped Tom Kim by six shots. A late bogey dropped Thomas to solo third at 18 under.
When the week began, there was plenty of talk surrounding Scheffler and how he would look after almost three months off, and the conversation only grew when he debuted his new putting grip for his short- to mid-range putts.
Before the Bay Hill Invitational in March, Scheffler switched to his mallet putter and proceeded to win for the first time in 2024. The grip change this week resulted in him gaining nearly four strokes on the greens and finishing third in the 20-person field in Strokes Gained: Putting.
His 2024 stands as follows: nine wins in 21 starts, including his second Masters victory, second Players victory (the first player to win in back-to-back years at TPC Sawgrass), first Tour Championship win and capturing Olympic gold. Although the Hero and Olympics are considered unofficial events, he’s the first player since Tiger Woods in 2006 (eight official, one unofficial) to win at least nine times in a calendar year.
Scottie Scheffler of the United States plays his shot from the fourth tee during the final round of the Hero World Challenge 2024 at Albany Golf Course on December 08, 2024 in Nassau, Bahamas. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
Come Monday, Scheffler will break a tie with Nick Faldo for the fourth-longest streak by a golfer to be ranked No. 1 in the world at 82 straight weeks. He’ll also become the fourth golfer to hold the No. 1 spot for an entire calendar year. By early 2025, he’ll pass Greg Norman (96 weeks) for consecutive weeks spent at No. 1, then he’ll be behind only Tiger Woods, who holds the Nos. 1 and 2 spots on the list with 281 and 264 consecutive weeks, respectively.
The year 2024 was for Scottie Scheffler, and if his second putting adjustment in the calendar year is any indication, he’s in for only more success in 2025.
