By: Justin Gincauskas
After winning his first in 2022, Scottie Scheffler was named the PGA Tour Player of the Year for the second consecutive season on Wednesday. Scheffler takes home the award, which is voted on by PGA Tour players, despite not winning a major in 2023. He becomes the first golfer to win the Player of the Year back-to-back years since Tiger Woods won it three times in a row from 2005-07.
The award does not come without its controversy, as many believe Jon Rahm should have received the honor. Scheffler won twice on the PGA Tour last season, while Rahm won four times. Rahm also added another major in 2023, capturing the green jacket at the Masters. Some believe Rahm’s move to LIV Golf is why he did not win the award.
The PGA Tour revealed that Scheffler won by receiving 38% of the votes. The tour selected him over Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Wyndham Clark, and Viktor Hovland, who were the other four nominees. The voting took place between Dec. 1 and Dec. 15.
Scottie Scheffler spoke about winning the award to reporters in Hawaii, where he will tee off Thursday at The Sentry.
“I guess this year they really appreciated my consistency,” Scheffler said Wednesday. “The way I played the entire year, I think I maybe only had one or two starts that I would categorize as not great, but other than that I had a lot of starts where I just played really solid golf, and to do that for an entire season out here I think is very difficult.”
Scheffler’s two wins during the 2022-23 season came at the WM Phoenix Open and The Players Championship. He finished the year with 17 top-10 finishes, 21 top-25 finishes, and zero missed cuts. Scheffler finished in the top three at two of the four majors in 2023, with his best result being a tie for second at the PGA Championship.
Scheffler earned roughly $21 million throughout the season, which broke the record he set last year for most official money earned in a single season. By winning the award a second consecutive time, he now joins Fred Couples, Nick Price, and Woods as the only players to receive back-to-back Player of the Year honors.
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