Scottie Scheffler was met with congratulations after he arrived at the Valhalla Golf Club after he picked up another title: dad. The 10-time PGA Tour winner took to social media to announce the birth of his first child. Scheffler said in a post on Instagram, “Welcome to the world, little one. Your mom & dad love you so much.”
Scheffler had been on a three-week break as he and his wife, Meredith, awaited the arrival of their child. They welcomed baby Bennett on May 8, according to The Associated Press. Scheffler told Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis, “I had, I think, pretty high expectations of what it would feel like, and I think those were far exceeded. It was fairly challenging leaving the house this morning, but I’m here. I’m committed to playing this week. I’m excited to be out here competing.”
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Scheffler continued, “I told my little man when I was leaving, ‘I don’t’ wanna leave, but I gotta leave.’ I’m called to come out here and do things to the best of my ability, and so showing up this week, especially with the weather forecast for the next couple of days, I know I had to be here to get some practice in to just see what’s going to happen the next few days.”
Scheffler hoped to continue his hot streak despite the time off, but that didn’t happen as Xander Schauffele won his first PGA Championship. Scheffler hadn’t played since winning the RBC Heritage, which came a week after he won his second Masters green jacket. Scheffler, who finished T2 at the PGA Championship last year, is coming off a streak of winning four of his last five tournaments.
He said, “I think as the week goes on, I’ll get more and more immersed in what I’m doing and just trying to do my best to stay as present as I can on the golf course and then when I get home, I’ll be calling home as much as possible.”