PGA Tour rookie Scottie Scheffler continued his remarkable ascent on Friday, shooting a 12-under-par 59 at the Northern Trust in Norton, Mass., the 12th sub-60 round in PGA Tour history.
Scheffler had a chance to tie the record of 58 set by Jim Furyk at the 2016 Travelers Championship, but his 83-foot eagle put at TPC Boston’s par-5 18th hole came up around four feet short. He converted the birdie for the second 59 on tour this season after Kevin Chappell’s 11-under 59 at the Military Tribute at the Greenbrier last September.
“I rolled it pretty good today. Yesterday was a bit of a struggle,” Scheffler, 24, said after Friday’s round (he shot a 1-under 70 in Thursday’s opening round). “Nice to get some putts to go in. I actually got a text from my coach last night with a little putting tip, so thanks Randy,” a nod to Randy Smith, his longtime mentor.
Scheffler had only 23 putts Friday. He was 13 for 13 on putts inside eight feet and 5 of 6 between 10 and 20 feet.
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The Northern Trust is the first of three events in this year’s edition of the PGA Tour’s season-ending FedEx Cup playoff. Furyk also was the last golfer to shoot a 59 at a FedEx Cup event, carding that score at the 2013 BMW Championship.
Scheffler carded six birdies on his front nine, with four straight from Nos. 4 through 7. He then would reel off three consecutive birdies on two more occasions, at Nos. 9-11 and 14-16, before his closing birdie gave him the 59.
As of this writing, Scheffler has gained 9.8 strokes on the field, second this season to Chappell’s 9.9 during his 59 in September.
Most strokes gained total in a PGA Tour round this season (Scottie's will change a bit throughout the afternoon):
Chappell (59) at Greenbrier, +9.9
Scheffler (59) today, +9.8
Wyndham Clark (61) at Phoenix, +9.6
Scheffler earned player of the year honors in 2019 on the Korn Ferry Tour, the PGA Tour’s top minor league circuit, collecting a fully exempt PGA Tour card for the 2019-20 campaign. He finished in a tie for seventh at the Greenbrier in September and has since earned four more top 5 finishes, including a tie for fourth at the PGA Championship earlier this month, which was only his fourth-ever major appearance.
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