2024 Open: Xander Schauffele emerges as hottest player in golf just as Scottie Scheffler appeared unstoppable

Schauffele is giving Scheffler a legitimate run for Player of the Year, and he may well win it

Scottie Scheffler's 2024 has been remarkable with six wins, including a Masters and a Players Championship, and top 10 finishes in three of the four majors. He's constructed one of the great statistical seasons in the last 25 years. That someone else has now put together a year that is even in the same stratosphere is truly remarkable.

Xander Schauffele won the second major of the year -- and second in three tries -- on Sunday as he captured the 2024 Open Championship at Royal Troon with an all-time performance. He shot a bogey-free 6-under 65 in the final round, tying for the best round of the week. With a Claret Jug on the line, he was simply flawless. 

Schauffele's birdie at the hardest hole on the course, the par-4 11th, was emblematic of his tremendous performance. It was the only birdie on the hole all day, and he followed it with three more to shoot a back-nine 31. Schauffele called it, "The best round I've played."