Can anyone stop Scottie Scheffler at the PGA Championship?

It’s hard to fathom Scottie Scheffler’s rise to the top in golf. With just 42 days in between winning his first title on the PGA Tour and ascending to the position of world number one, the American has thrust himself into the spotlight, and with victory at the Masters earlier this month cementing his status as one of the world’s best golfers, it feels as though Scheffler is going to take some stopping in the other three majors that are still to come. 

The first of these is the PGA Championship, which takes place next month at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Scheffler will be one of the top favourites on the bet exchange. The big story ahead of the event surrounds whether or not defending champion Phil Mickelson will be in attendance. The six-time major championship winner has been on a hiatus from the sport after becoming embroiled in controversy over comments made about a potential Saudi breakaway golf tour.

Whether or not Mickelson takes part, Scheffler will view the PGA Championship as another opportunity to assert his qualities, and if his form at the Masters is anything to go by, we could be in for another masterclass in keeping a cool head under pressure. The 25-year-old delivered a stunning performance on the pristine greens and fairways of Augusta National, holding off pressure from a surging Rory McIlroy to see out victory and claim his maiden green jacket. 

“If you’re going to choose a golf tournament to win, this would be the tournament,” Scheffler reflected afterwards. “You don’t know how many chances you’re going to get. And so having a chance — I had a 5-shot lead on Friday and then a 3-shot lead going into today — I don’t know if you get better opportunities than that. You don’t want to waste them.”

For Scheffler, those chances seem to have been arising an awful lot lately, and that is simply down to the rich vein of form he has found himself in. He’s begun to play his best stuff at exactly the right time, with majors every month until the US Open in August. If Scheffler can keep up this same level of performance for all those events, there’s no reason why he couldn’t add more silverware to his burgeoning trophy cabinet. 

One step at a time. His focus as far as majors are concerned will be solely on the PGA Championship, and there are a number of players keen to rise to the challenge of toppling the in-form Scheffler. Those wondering how does a betting exchange work in relation to golf will see Jon Rahm’s name feature heavily despite enduring a distinctly average Masters. McIlroy may also fancy a tilt at the title after his stunning final round at Augusta, while the likes of Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa are all likely to be in the running as well.

Now that Scheffler is a certified major champion, it will be interesting to see how he copes with the increased expectation that will naturally fall upon him in the build-up to the biggest tournaments. The first such test is coming next month at the PGA, but given his cool demeanour it would no surprise to see Scheffler rise to the challenge.