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Waste Management Phoenix Open: Xander Schauffele Disappoints Again

By Richie Randolph

SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 06: Xander Schauffele of the United States walks across the first green during the third round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 06, 2021 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 06: Xander Schauffele of the United States walks across the first green during the third round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 06, 2021 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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By any objective measure, Xander Schauffele is a great golfer and incredibly successful human being. Only 27 years old and entering his 5th year as a full-time PGA Tour player, Xander has many impressive accomplishments; he has made the cut in over 81% of his starts, has 29 finishes in the Top 10 and has already racked up just under $21 million in on-course earnings. Sadly, I have earned significantly less than $21 million and am quite jealous of Schauffele’s career thus far.

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Despite his flush bank account, the San Diego State University grad’s time on the PGA Tour feels like a disappointment. Sunday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open encapsulated this; Xander lacked any juice and floundered to an even par 71 while Brooks Koepka grabbed the tournament by the horns with a scintillating 65, punctuated by a chip-in for eagle on the short 17th.

Schauffele earned $649,700 for his runner-up finish (again, more than I’ve ever made) and most players on the PGA Tour would kill to have a week like this. However, the La Jolla native is not like most of his peers; he is the 4th ranked player in the world. Put another way, he is better than all but 3 other golfers on the planet, so winning needs to be a goal each and every week, especially when he’s in contention on Sunday. Finishing 1st on the PGA Tour is hard (this was only Koepka’s 8th career win) but I still find myself shocked at Xander’s lack of killer instinct on Sundays.

January 6th, 2019 was the last time Schauffele won a golf tournament. That was over two years ago, before Tiger won major #15, before Bryson bulked up and well before terms like ‘Coronavirus’ and ‘Social Distancing’ became part of everyday vernacular. Why hasn’t Xander won during that timeframe? I went through all of his stats to try and find the fatal flaw resulting in the former Aztec’s winning drought, and there really are not any. He is not suffering from Jordan Speith-esque weekend breakdowns; his final round scoring average is 69.42, which is actually lower than his 1st round average. In 2019 he ranked 8th in Total Strokes Gained; he was 3rd last season and sits at 2nd so far in 2021. In 2020 Schauffele ranked 4th in Bogey Avoidance and 10th in Birdie Average per round; that seems like a winning combo. He drives it long and straight, is a great iron player and makes putts; how in the world does he only have four career PGA Tour wins and been shut out for 2 years?

There is no magic formula or a clear need to fix one aspect of his game. Winning on the PGA Tour is tough, but it’s time for Schauffele to step up and grab another trophy. The best players – not just in golf, but in all sports – have a keen ability to find ways to win. That is why they are the best. Xander’s talent is undeniable, but until he starts winning his career will mirror that of an ‘empty calorie’ NBA player; great stats and a massive bank account but a player whose accomplishments ring hollow because they could not win.

Next. Brooks Koepka: 2021 FedEx Cup Contender or Pretender?. dark

Xander Schauffele tees it up next in LA for the Genesis Open – will that finally be the week he breaks through? I’m excited to find out.

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