At the 36th Annual Christian Prayer Lunch, American professional golfer Scottie Scheffler shared the story of his rise to become the No. 1 ranked player on the PGA Tour and champion of one of the most prestigious golf tournaments in the world, The Masters. If you follow golf, then you already know how Scheffler went on a run to win The Masters in 2022 after claiming the No. 1 ranking just two weeks prior. All the while, he keeps his eyes focused on Jesus.
After winning The Masters, he said, “The reason why I play golf is I’m trying to glorify God and all that He’s done in my life. So for me, my identity isn’t a golf score.” At the 36th Annual Christian Prayer Lunch, Scottie shared more of his life’s story.
Before his string of wins at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, Arnold Palmer Invitational, and in WGC- Dell Technologies Match Play, Scottie said at the luncheon that reporters would constantly ask him, “When are you going to win?” So, after those wins, taking the No. 1 ranking in the world, and winning The Masters, he was finally able to find relief from those questions.
But he said that since it all happened so fast, it was hard to even take in the moment. “I still can’t believe a lot of this stuff has happened,” he said. “I didn’t really feel like much changed for myself personally. It was just my golf game that changed.”
The final day of The Masters
Scottie said the morning of the final day at The Masters was a strange feeling. He was starting to get nervous. He had turned on the news coverage of the tournament and wasn’t ready to hear the wall-to-wall coverage of himself as the tournament leader. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to take on the day or for what was potentially to come in the wake of winning The Masters and becoming the No. 1 player in the world. The fame, scrutiny, and notoriety were all foreign to him and his family.
Scottie’s wife Meredith was already having the same feelings the night before. Meredith shared a thought she had that morning with Scottie.
“Who are we to say what’s best for our lives?”
She had been in prayer the night before, thinking about what was coming the next day. And Scottie said she had peace because “we’re not ultimately in control of our lives.”
It was a special morning for Scottie and Meredith. He was able to share what was on his heart, and she was able to speak truth into the situation.
God is in control
On the way to the first hole of The Masters, Scottie said his caddie Ted Scott said something like, “God is in control. Just play free. You’ve been preparing for this your whole life. So, let’s go have a great day.”
The third hole of the course was a challenge that day for Scottie. He snap hooked his drive off the tee. But after hitting his second shot from the trees back into the fairway, he had a chip shot to get onto the green. However, instead of simply hitting the green, he put the shot in the hole.
“I hit this nice little low pitch, and it kind of skipped up the way I wanted,” he said. “And then at that point I’m only watching the crowd, and they kind of start standing up. And all of a sudden they go crazy. And I was like, ‘Oh, wow, it went in. This is awesome.’”
After that, Scottie said he settled into the round on the fifth hole and played well the rest of the round until it took four putts to ultimately end his round and win the tournament on 18.
Faith in the good and bad times
“My faith is all about motivation why I play golf,” said Scottie. “When I show up to a tournament, success for me is not predicated on winning or losing.”
“At the end of the day, I do things for the glory of God.”
For Scottie, he said that faith keeps him balanced, keeping him from riding too high or too low
In speaking about the story of his faith, Scottie said it was a process. It was an isolating experience initially when he arrived at The University of Texas at Austin for college. He didn’t know many people. He was disconnected from his girlfriend (his future wife, Meredith) and parents. He described the feeling as “free falling.”
But God put one of Meredith’s friends from high school in his path to start bringing him to church, and he started getting into reading the Bible again. He also got connected to men through College Golf Fellowship who spoke truth into his life.
“God just kind of slowly started taking over my heart,” said Scottie. “And I started to try and slowly give up things to him. It was more of a slow burn, and it changed my life.”
Making time for God
Community is key to staying grounded, Scottie said. If he steps out of line, he has friends and fellow believers in Christ who are there and ready to help him refocus on God.
“I’ve been fortunate to be surrounded with good people that the Lord has placed in my life that have helped me keep me in line,” said Scottie.
He prioritizes spending time with the Lord, having quiet time, and sharing his heart with people.
“I’m not supposed to be a perfect person. I’m not supposed to have it all together. I’m not supposed to show up at The Masters and say, ‘I’m the guy. I’m the best. I’m going to win this tournament,’” said Scottie. “We live in a broken world, and we’re all sinners. And we fall short of the glory of God, and we need a Savior.”
Scottie said that he thought of God as being far away when he was growing up. He thought God was someone to please, but as he returned to Scripture, he learned that Jesus is our Savior. He also learned that the men who were mentoring him in College Golf Fellowship weren’t perfect either. This realization that he didn’t have to be perfect was the tipping point for him. He acknowledged that only one man, Jesus, lived a perfect life.
Scottie also shared about the importance of mentorship, both being mentored by someone with more life experience and mentoring someone younger.
“What we have is the gift of the love of Christ,” said Scottie. “All I want to do is … I want people to know what we know. I want people to know Jesus. I want people to be able to feel what it’s like to be loved by Jesus.”
Tending to your soul each day
Having good rhythms is how Scottie said he prioritizes his faith. He describes this concept as “getting in the habit of spending time in the Word.” Though his day-to-day routine can change drastically because of his career as a professional golfer, Scottie said it’s all about making those daily habits and changes while also remembering that you’re not a perfect person. You have to give yourself grace, Scottie said.
Daily habits, like understanding the times that are regularly available to be in the Word and surrounding yourself with good people, can help establish these “good rhythms.”
Though the world may say he is the best in the world in golf, Scottie recognizes that he isn’t perfect and needs a Savior. In coming to understand the reality of Jesus as the risen Son of God, he has committed his life to bringing God glory and helping to make sure the people he comes in contact with have the same opportunity to know Jesus.
As you consider your life, where are the opportunities for you to learn from the challenges that God has placed in your life? And what are the relationships you have that you can lean on for community in good times and bad? Now is the time to look at how God is working in your life and the lives of those God is putting in your path.
