Scottie Scheffler runs away with The American Express for his latest historic win in first start of the season

Scottie Scheffler’s dominant run throughout the golf world isn’t over yet.

The top-ranked golfer in the world ran away with The American Express on Sunday afternoon in Southern California, which marked his first start of the 2026 PGA Tour season. Scheffler, who started one shot back of the lead at the Pete Dye Stadium Course, posted a 6-under 66 in his final round to get to 27-under on the week. That gave him a four-shot win over the rest of the field in what was just his latest dominant win.

The win marked the 20th of Scheffler’s career, though the last 14 have come in his previous 35 starts dating back to 2024. Scheffler won seven times during the 2024 campaign alone, including at the Masters, and then he won six times last season. That included wins at the PGA Championship and British Open, which brought him now just a U.S. Open away from completing the career grand slam. Scheffler, 29, is now just the third golfer in the modern era to have at least 20 wins and four major titles before turning 30, joining Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.

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Scheffler hasn’t missed a cut on Tour since August 2022. His worst finish in 20 starts last season was a T25 run at the WM Phoenix Open. That was one of just three times he finished outside the top 10.

The $1.7 million check he earned on Sunday also officially pushed him over $100 million in career earnings on Tour, something only two other golfers in history have ever accomplished. Rory McIlroy has earned just shy of $108 million on Tour, and Woods is the all-time money list leader with nearly $121 million earned.

Scheffler’s round felt very routine on Sunday. At least, it was routine for his standards.

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Scheffler, who held a share of the lead at the midway point, fell one back to Si Woo Kim after Saturday’s round where he finished with a 4-under 68 — his worst score of the week. Kim, however, quickly fell out of contention on Sunday.

And, after a bogey himself at the second, Scheffler took off. He rattled off four birdies over the next seven holes to make the turn as the solo leader. After he missed the green with his second shot on the par-5 11th, Scheffler nearly chipped-in for eagle. That left him with a tap-in birdie instead, which pushed his lead to two.

A birdie at the 12th suddenly ballooned his lead to four after Andrew Putnam bogeyed ahead of him. By then, the tournament was his. Scheffler cruised the rest of the way to grab the four-shot win without any issue. The double bogey he made at the par-3 17th didn’t matter one bit.

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Jason Day posted an 8-under 64 on Sunday to join the group at 23-under to tie for second. He matched Ryan Gerard, Matt McCarty and Putnam there. Blades Brown, the 18-year-old who nearly shot a 59 in the second round, finished in T18 at 19-under. Brown needed a birdie at the final hole to climb into the top 10, which would have earned him a start at the Farmers Insurance Open next week.

Clearly, Scheffler is just picking up in 2026 where he left off a few months ago. If Sunday’s win is any indication, he is gearing up for yet another dominant, historic season that nobody in the golf world seems capable of slowing down.

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