Are you really shocked at this point? For the ninth occasion in 2024, Scottie Scheffler has made his way to the winner’s circle, securing the 2024 Hero World Challenge with a five-stroke lead over Tom Kim. Concluding with a final-round bogey-free 63, Scheffler achieved the lowest score on Sunday to dethrone 54-hole leader Justin Thomas […]
Are you really shocked at this point? For the ninth occasion in 2024, Scottie Scheffler has made his way to the winner’s circle, securing the 2024 Hero World Challenge with a five-stroke lead over Tom Kim. Concluding with a final-round bogey-free 63, Scheffler achieved the lowest score on Sunday to dethrone 54-hole leader Justin Thomas and finish at 25 under for the event.
With this victory, Scheffler has effectively defended his titles at various tournaments including the WM Phoenix Open, Players Championship, and Hero World Challenge in his career. He adds Albany GC to a roster of golf courses — which also features Augusta National and Bay Hill Club & Lodge — where he has triumphed multiple times.
Scheffler’s nine wins in 2024 ties him with Tiger Woods (2000) and Vijay Singh (2004) for the highest tally in a single season since 1950, even though the Hero World Challenge and the Olympics are not officially recognized as PGA Tour events. Overall, the world No. 1 won at an impressive rate of 42.9% across his 21 competitions in 2024.
“It was incredibly gratifying,” Scheffler remarked. “I executed a lot of good shots today on the course. It was a solid round of golf. I started off well. It’s nice to take a little time off, come back, and continue performing at a high level, and I’m very happy with this week’s outcomes.”
Lagging slightly on Moving Day, Scheffler entered Sunday just one behind the 54-hole pace set by Thomas. The birdies came fast and frequent as Scheffler skillfully used his new putting grip to capitalize on the early holes, collecting three birdies within the first four holes to claim the outright lead.
Upon reaching the turn, Scheffler held a two-stroke advantage which quickly grew to three with another long birdie putt on No. 10. Kick-in birdies on Nos. 13-14 maintained his lead over Thomas, who found his groove on the back nine after finishing the front at even par.
Thomas managed to stay in contention thanks to a birdie on the par-5 15th, but a mistake on the next hole proved to be the final blow when combined with Scheffler’s eighth birdie of the day. Leading by five strokes with two holes remaining, the world’s best player comfortably cruised to victory and into the winner’s circle where he was greeted by tournament host, Tiger Woods, for the second consecutive year.
Outperforming 17 of the 19 competitors by 10 strokes or more, Scheffler once again demonstrated he is in a league of his own. Continuously enhancing his weaknesses while maintaining his composed demeanor, Scheffler shows no signs of slowing down in the near future. Grade: A+
Here are the evaluations for the other notable players on the leaderboard at the 2024 Hero World Challenge.
2. Tom Kim (-19): He emerged as one of the top performers over the last three rounds, but unfortunately, his Round 1 was among the weakest. After recovering from an initial 74, Kim scorched the course with a 62 on Saturday and continued strong on Sunday. After turning in 3 under, he needed three putts on the par-5 11th, which turned a sure-fire scoring chance into a bogey. Despite a strong finish, that slow beginning was too big a hurdle to overcome. Grade: A
3. Justin Thomas (-18): The opportunity was there for Thomas. Matching Scheffler with a birdie on No. 1, he slipped behind a couple of holes later and could never regain the lead on the leaderboard. The 15-time winner had scoring opportunities on Nos. 5-6, but uncharacteristically lackluster pitch shots left him with pars instead of birdies. The same held true on the par-5 9th when he mishit his second chip on the outward half. By then, Scheffler had already gained momentum. This finish marks Thomas’ fifth straight top-five result at the Hero World Challenge, but again represents a missed opportunity as he seeks his first victory since the 2022 PGA Championship. Grade: A-
5. Keegan Bradley (-14): Consistent throughout the event, Bradley found himself with a remote chance to stir things up on Sunday. Recording squares on two par 5s on the front side, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain couldn’t generate any momentum and fell behind Scheffler’s pace. The putter was his Achilles heel as Bradley excelled in ball striking on Sunday but finished last on the greens. Grade: B+
13. Cameron Young (-5): The former PGA Tour Rookie of the Year started strong with an opening bogey-free 64, but that was the pinnacle of his performance. Young lost nearly four strokes on the greens on Friday, and his short game continued to struggle on Saturday. By that point, the damage was irreparable; the first-round leader missed the chance to convert his early success into his first win since his Korn Ferry Tour days. His potential is undeniable, but his consistency remains questionable. Grade: C
T17. Wyndham Clark (E): For some reason, Clark just cannot seem to crack the code at Albany GC. In two appearances in the Bahamas, the former U.S. Open champion has yet to break 70 and finished just above last place a year following his initial outing where he defeated only one player. There were hardly any highlights over the week as he ranked outside the top 15 in strokes gained approach each day and struggled on the greens.Grade: F
