CNN
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Scottie Sheffler tied the PGA Tour record and claimed his first victory in 2025, winning a ferocious victory at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas on Sunday.
The world’s No. 1 rivaled the PGA Tour’s 72-hole scoring record 253, matching the mark set by Justin Thomas at the 2017 Sony Open and Rudig Åberg in the 2023 RSM Classic. He also broke the 259 CJ Cup 72 holes record set by Steven Bowditch in 2015.
Schaeffler concluded his victory with 63 in the final round and finished 31 under in the tournament.
The Americans called the dominant victory “very special” and then described him as having grown up coming to watch the tournament, even making their PGA Tour debut with the CJ Cup.
“This is a golf course you can run and I knew I couldn’t run to the finish line today,” the 28-year-old told reporters. “I knew I had to put together a good round.
“Suppose I was very safe today and I shot Parr too, Eric would have been chasing me. I knew I had to go out and make some birdies, I did a good job on the front nine and I was able to play consistent golf here.
Schaeffler entered Sunday’s final round with an eight-shot lead, but no one came within six shots in the final 18 holes when he put in an inspired display to stay on top of the leaderboard.
The only downside to his successful outing in Texas was the chance to break the record completely after a bogey and par on the final hole at par 3 Shelley No. 17, meaning he had to set a share of the historic mark.
Thomas, who first set the record, was humorously texted CBS analyst Colt Nost when Schaeffler was on the 17th: “Tell Scotty to make a bogey pal and tie the 72-hole record together. 31 under is fine.
The victory is Schaeffler’s 14th place on the PGA Tour, but this is the first of the year. Over the past three years, he had already won 10 times by May, including two Masters victories.
Schaeffler, who missed last year’s CJ Cup due to the birth of his first child, Bennett, fought back tears as he hugged his son and spoke to the crowd in celebration of his victory.
Later, when asked why emotions got caught up in him, Schaeffler explained that the tournament was ingrained in him as a golfer. TPC Craig Ranch explained that Schaeffler was close enough to his home, where he was sleeping in his bed during the tournament.
“When I think about this tournament, I think about a lot of different things. I grew up coming to see it,” he said. “This was my first start on the PGA Tour when I was in high school. The girl I was dating at the time is now my wife. We have one son. My sister was caddying for me at the time. She was here today. She has two children.
“My family was able to be here. It was a really, really special memory. I think sometimes it collides with me at once. There are so many great memories as the kids come to watch this tournament.
“I’ve never really come this far to be honest with you. I’ve always dreamed of playing golf on the PGA Tour. I came out on the driving range and watched these guys practice and I was able to hit their brand new range of balls.
“It’s really a lifetime of effort and sacrifice from so many people around me, and my family is clearly the starter for that.”
