Sports

Scottie Scheffler's second Masters win is what greatness looks like

Published

2 years ago

April 16, 2024

Scottie Scheffler's second Masters win is what greatness looks like

AUGUSTA, Ga. — The statistical models had it all mapped out. The narrative told in his recent form was the world’s most obvious foreshadowing. His pre-tournament news conference — in which he once again spoke of golf as something that he “does” and not as something that defines his life — practically solidified it.

Scottie Scheffler was always going to win the 88th Masters Tournament. And Sunday, he simply made it happen.

“It’s really impressive,” Max Homa said after losing to Scheffler by seven shots. “You just know that he’s going to be there, and he’s going to play well.”

By slipping on his second green jacket in two years Sunday afternoon, Scheffler became the second player to win the Masters and The Players Championship in the same season, joining Tiger Woods. Scheffler was already frequenting the same sentences as the 15-time major champion, but now it’s clear that will become a weekly ritual, perhaps for many years.

We are witnessing a display of greatness we haven’t seen in some time from anyone, and we should cherish the gift. Scheffler is the type of player who has that rare gravitational pull. When he expertly plots his way around a golf course and leaves his peers in the dust, it’s difficult to look away. It doesn’t look like we’ll need to anytime soon.

Scheffler’s dominance emanates from his 6-3 build. He swings with a freedom and flexibility that defies physics. Randy Smith, Scheffler’s coach since he was 7 years old, says the Texan has “the best pair of hands I’ve ever seen in my life.” His athletic figure allows him to harness immense power, and his unwavering fundamentals keep the ball in the fairway. Though it might disappear from time to time, he proved that his touch and eye for Augusta National’s undulating greens are unmatched.

A champion once again. #themasters pic.twitter.com/iQtyCyNekc
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 14, 2024

But the true source of Scheffler’s dominance rests between his ears.

In his green jacket ceremony, Scheffler apologized to the patrons of Augusta National for walking with his head down throughout Sunday’s round.

Scheffler heard the warm applause on every tee box and every green. He felt the roars. He saw the outstretched hands protruding past the gallery ropes. Out of the corners of his eyes, he sensed the presence of hundreds of young golfers looking to contribute to their role model’s final-round push in any way they could, to somehow claim a stake in his second Masters victory.

GO DEEPER

How Scottie Scheffler took down the only men who could stop him at the Masters

But Scheffler kept his gaze pointed downward. He didn’t like it, but there wasn’t time for any of that Sunday. There never is — just like there isn’t time for scouring over unnecessary TrackMan data or sitting through long-winded interviews that delve into his personal life. Scheffler doesn’t have a single social media platform downloaded on his phone. He has all the digital golf publications on the internet blocked from his newsfeed so he can stay informed but simultaneously above the fray.

“Nothing,” says Rory McIlroy when asked what’s going on in Scheffler’s head right now. “Nothing. Not a lot of clutter. The game feels pretty easy when you’re in stretches like this. That’s the hard thing whenever you’re not quite in form. You are searching and you’re thinking about it so much, but then when you are in form, you don’t think about it at all.”

The scariest part of Scheffler’s greatness is that it’s starting to come easily.

Until the final putt dropped and he launched into a long embrace with his caddie, Ted Scott, Scheffler’s four-shot victory at the Masters looked emotionless. That was never the case. Scheffler’s performance coach, Troy Van Biezen, says Scheffler’s superpower rests in the fact you can never tell if he’s 5 over par or 5 under par.

Scheffler wanted to win this tournament, badly. He told his friends Sunday morning that he wished he didn’t have such an intense competitive hunger. “I told them, I wish I didn’t want to win as badly as I did or as badly as I do. I think it would make the mornings easier,” Scheffler said.

Scottie Scheffler celebrated with his family after his second Masters win. (Adam Cairns / USA Today)

Scheffler has the ultimate want and the will — he always has. As a teenager, Scheffler would show up to Royal Oaks, his home course in Dallas, wearing pants rather than golf shorts to mirror his PGA Tour idols. He stayed patient through a yearslong growth spurt that derailed his swing into his early 20s. He’s played one season on the Korn Ferry Tour and four years on the PGA Tour, and Scheffler has not once thrown in the towel when things did not seem to be going his way.

Scheffler has the drive, but he also has the separation. The 27-year-old devout Christian — who will become a father when his wife, Meredith, gives birth to their first child soon — knows that golf isn’t everything. Scheffler was prepared to withdraw from the Masters if he got the call from Meredith, and now, all he wants to do is go home to her.

“My identity is secure already,” Scheffler said Sunday evening. “I get to come out here and compete, have fun, enjoy it; and then at the end of the day, win or lose, my identity is secure.”

GO DEEPER

Ten notes to know on Scottie Scheffler’s Masters win and the final round

Scheffler’s unique concoction of mental and physical traits has led him to become a generational talent. Sunday, as he found Augusta’s table-top-sized landing areas with ease and continued to pour in birdie putts when the tournament was already his, Scheffler proved that.

His disposition isn’t changing, and he’s not going anywhere.

This is only the beginning, and we’ll want to remember it.

(Top photo: Andrew Redington / Getty Images)

Sports

2026 World Cup Odds: How Far Can Mexico Go After Winning Group A?

Published

4 hours ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

2026 World Cup Odds: How Far Can Mexico Go After Winning Group A?

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After its massive 1-0 win over South Korea on Thursday night, Mexico has won Group A and officially clinched a spot in the knockout round.

El Tri will play its Round of 32 game in Mexico City, and will face the third-place finisher in either Group C/E/F/H/I.

This is the fourth time that Mexico has topped the group stage of a World Cup, with the other three coming in 1986, 1994 and 2002.

With the win, Mexico remains unbeaten in World Cup group games at home, going a combined 6-2-0 (W-D-L), with two wins and a draw in 1970 and 1986, and now two wins in 2026.

Before the tournament began, Mexico was listed at +6500 to win the World Cup. Now, after winning its first two games of the tournament, Mexico has surged up the oddsboard to +5000.

Can Mexico build off its first two matches and make a deep run in this tournament? Let’s check out the updated odds for El Tri as of June 19.

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Team Mexico — Stage of Elimination

Last 32: +125 (bet $10 to win $22.50 total)
Last 16: +135 (bet $10 to win $23.50 total)
Quarterfinals: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)
Semifinals: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)
Runner-up: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total)
Outright winner: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)

Mexico is currently +5000 to win the 2026 FIFA World Cup after winning Group A (Getty Images).

Mexico’s Past World Cup Results:

1930: Group stage
1934: Did not qualify
1938: Withdrew
1950: Group stage
1954: Group stage
1958: Group stage
1962: Group stage
1966: Group stage
1970: Quarterfinals
1974: Did not qualify
1978: Group stage
1982: Did not qualify
1986: Quarterfinals
1990: Banned
1994: Round of 16
1998: Round of 16
2002: Round of 16
2006: Round of 16
2010: Round of 16
2014: Round of 16
2018: Round of 16
2022: Group stage
2026: TBD

What to know: Mexico has made a habit of being in the running, but never really being in the running. Make sense? Consider this: El Tri made it out of the group stage in seven consecutive World Cups (1994-2018), but never made it past the Round of 16 in any of those years. In 2022, Mexico failed to make it out of the group stage, and it will look to get back to its winning ways in 2026 after a great start to the tournament. With its win Thursday night, Mexico has now advanced to the knockout stage in eight of the last nine World Cups. It is important to note, however, that Mexico has never made it past the quarterfinals at a FIFA men’s World Cup.

Sports

Goalkeeper Raúl Rangel’s elite play and South Korea’s mistake help Mexico advance

Published

5 hours ago

June 19, 2026

Press Room

Goalkeeper Raúl Rangel’s elite play and South Korea’s mistake help Mexico advance

GUADALAJARA, Mexico — Three and a half years after its biggest failure on the World Cup stage in half a century, the Mexican national team needed only two games to advance to the knockout round of this year’s tournament as winner of Group A.

Mexico’s defense held off a spirited final push by South Korea, earning a 1-0 win on Thursday night at Guadalajara Stadium in front of a fiery announced sellout crowd of 45,522.

“It was a very tough game,” Mexico coach Javier Aguirre said.

Goalkeeper Kim Seung-gyu made a mistake in the 50th minute, failing to stop what appeared to be a simple cross and bobbling the ball. That allowed Mexico’s Luis Romo to easily tap the ball into the net and claim a 1-0 lead.

“In the end, a mistake was going to tip the scales,” Aguirre said.

Mexico goalkeeper Raúl Rangel blocks a shot from South Korea’s Son Heung-min during their World Cup match at Guadalajara Stadium on Thursday.

(Natacha Pisarenko / Ap Photo/natacha Pisarenko)

“You always want to be there; I felt it, and I got the chance,” said Romo, who started the game after starting the opener on the bench — a strategic change by the Mexican coach that paid off.

South Korea put pressure on the Mexican team throughout the game. Late in the scoreless first half, Jae-sung Lee came close to giving South Korea the lead. Aguirre hoped his team would shake off nerves following the emotional opener at Azteca Stadium and show more bite in its second game against South Korea, but his team didn’t have much power behind its attack during the game’s first 45 minutes.

The crowd in Guadalajara grew frustrated and began booing the Mexican national team’s performance at the end of the first half.

Mexico, however, won back their cheers when it capitalized on South Korea’s costly mistake and converted it into a goal.

Obed Vargas replaced Romo in the 71st minute and was close to scoring a spectacular goal if not for Seung-gyu’s save.

El Tri earned a win without any other goals thanks, in part, to a great night by goalkeeper Raúl Rangel, who stopped a header by Cho Gue-sung in the 87th minute. Captain Edson Álvarez helped turn away South Korea’s attack late, holding up relatively well despite having left ankle surgery during the past year.

“It was just a reflex,” said Rangel, whose club team Chivas plays at at Guadalajara Stadium. “I was very focused and stepped up when the team needed me, and I’m happy about that.”

LAFC star and South Korea captain Son Heung-min fired one shot over Mexico’s goalkeeper in the first half, but Álvarez cleared it off the line before the referee ruled Son was offsides.

South Korea finished controlling possession 58% of the time, but it only earned two shots on target.

“It wasn’t a good game because they didn’t let us do much,” Aguirre said.

Mexico was coming off a comfortable 2-0 victory over South Africa, while the South Koreans had defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, marking their first World Cup opening-match win since 2010.

During the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Mexico was eliminated in the group stage for the first time since 1978, breaking a streak of seven consecutive appearances in the knockout rounds. However, playing on home soil, the team’s goal is to emulate El Tri’s achievements in 1970 and 1986, when they reached the quarterfinals — the country’s best World Cup finish.

Due to the new 48-team format, Mexico would need to win two knockout-round matches and reach a sixth game to realize its goals.

“We’re taking it one step at a time; first, there’s the third game,” Romo said.

Mexico's Luis Romo celebrates with his teammates after scoring during a match against South Korea at Guadalajara Stadium

After the win over South Korea, Mexico will close out group play against Czechia at Azteca Stadium in Mexico City on Wednesday. El Tri will get to play the first two games of the knockout round — should it win the first one — at Azteca Stadium, a venue where it has never lost a World Cup game.

South Korea has four points and will be favored when it plays South Africa Wednesday in Monterrey. If South Korea wins the match, it would be the Group A runner-up and advance to play the Group B runner-up on June 28 at SoFi Stadium.

“We want all nine points,” Vargas said of Mexico’s goal entering its next game against Czechia.

Sports

2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot Race Tracker: Lionel Messi Is Alone At The Top

Published

14 hours ago

June 18, 2026

Press Room

2026 FIFA World Cup Golden Boot Race Tracker: Lionel Messi Is Alone At The Top

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!

Who’ll win the Golden Boot at the 2026 FIFA World Cup? The race is on for who’ll score the most goals at the tournament, and it is set to be one of the tournament’s most closely watched storylines.

Several of the world’s top forwards will be aiming to finish as the competition’s leading goalscorer. Kylian Mbappé enters the tournament after winning the Golden Boot at the 2022 FIFA World Cup, while Harry Kane, Erling Haaland, Lionel Messi, and Mikel Oyarzabal are among the other players expected to challenge for the award.

And check out our list of all the 2026 World Cup goals, ranked!

Favorites To Win The Golden Boot

Harry Kane: +310 (bet $10 to win $41 total)
Lionel Messi: +350 (bet $10 to win $45 total)
Kylian Mbappé: +350 (bet $10 to win $45 total)
Erling Haaland: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)
Kai Havertz: +1300 (bet $10 to win $140 total)
Vinícius Júnior: +3300 (bet $10 to win $340 total)
Folarin Balogun: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)
Mikel Oyarzabal: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)
Lamine Yamal: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)
Raphinha: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total)
Michael Olise: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total)
Romelu Lukaku: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total)
Viktor Gyökeres: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total)
Cody Gakpo: +5500 (bet $10 to win $560 total)
Cristiano Ronaldo: +5500 (bet $10 to win $560 total)

3 Goals

Lionel Messi (Argentina)

2 Goals

Johan Manzambi (Switzerland)
Harry Kane (England)
Erling Haaland (Norway)
Kylian Mbappé (France)
Harry Kane (England)
Elijah Just (New Zealand)
Yasin Ayari (Sweden)
Kai Havertz (Germany)
Folarin Balogun (USA)

1 Goal

Granit Xhaka (Switzerland)
Rubén Vargas (Switzerland)
Ermin Mahmic (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Michal Sadilek (Czechia)
Teboho Mokoena (South Africa)
Jáminton Campaz (Colombia)
Luis Díaz (Colombia)
Daniel Muñoz (Colombia)
Abbosbek Fayzullaev (Uzbekistan)
Caleb Yirenkyi (Ghana)
Jude Bellingham (England)
Marcus Rashford (England)
Martin Baturina (Croatia)
Petar Musa (Croatia)
Yoane Wissa (DR Congo)
João Neves (Portugal)
Marko Arnautović (Austria)
Jude Bellingham (England)
Marcus Rashford (England)
Yoane Wissa (DR Congo)
João Neves (Portugal)
Caleb Yirenkyi (Ghana)
Ali Olwan (Jordan)
Romano Schmid (Austria)
Leo Østigard (Norway)
Ayman Hussein (Iraq)
Ibrahim Mbaye (Senegal)
Bradley Barcola (France)
Ramin Rezaeian (Iran)
Mohammad Mohebbi (Iran)
Maxi Araújo (Uruguay)
Abdulelah Al-Amri (Saudi Arabia)
Emam Ashour (Egypt)
Alexander Isak (Sweden)
Viktor Gyökeres (Sweden)
Mattias Svanberg (Sweden)
Omar Rekik (Tunisia)
Amad Diallo (Ivory Coast)
Keito Nakamura (Japan)
Daichi Kamada (Japan)
Virgil van Dijk (Netherlands)
Crysencio Summerville (Netherlands)
Felix Nmecha (Germany)
Nico Schlotterbeck (Germany)
Jamal Musiala (Germany)
Nathaniel Brown (Germany)
Deniz Undav (Germany)
Connor Metcalfe (Australia)
Nestory Irankunda (Australia)
John McGinn (Scotland)
Ismael Saibari (Morocco)
Vinícius Júnior (Brazil)
Breel Embolo (Switzerland)
Gio Reyna (USA)
Mauricio (Paraguay)
Cyle Larin (Canada)
Jovo Lukić (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Ladislav Krejcí (Czechia)
Julián Quiñones (Mexico)
Raúl Jimenez (Mexico)
Hwang In-Beom (South Korea)
Oh Hyeon-Gyu (South Korea)