Scottie Scheffler's fourth victory in his last five tournaments will have to wait one more day. With the 2024 RBC Heritage experiencing more than a 2.5-hour weather delay Sunday, tournament action was unable to be completed before nightfall; it will instead leak into the work week. The final round at Harbour Town Golf Links will resume Monday at 8 a.m. ET with Scheffler holding a five-stroke lead at 20 under.
The world No. 1 is well clear of his nearest pursuer, Wyndham Clark, with three holes left in his tournament. Clark, meanwhile, is in the clubhouse at 15 under hoping for another runner-up check behind Scheffler. Others on the golf course like J.T. Poston, Patrick Cantlay and Sahith Theegala stand at that same number with holes to play.
Monday morning may only be a formality as Scheffler looks to be in control of just about everything -- like he has been the last two months.
Scheffler began Sunday in Hilton Head Island with one arm already slipped in the tartan jacket. Possessing a one-stroke lead, the Texan was crowned by many late Saturday evening despite the bevy of stars who had plans to upend him.
After knocking in a 6-foot par save on the 1st, Scheffler more or less turned those predictions into a reality. Chipping in for eagle on the par-5 2nd from long of the green (his 11th hole-out from off the green this season), Scheffler opened a three-stroke lead on the field and never looked back.
Charges were made by many, including a familiar foe in Clark, but none were that threatening. The reigning U.S. Open champion turned in 7-under 29 and tacked on another birdie on the 11th to get within one of Scheffler, but the pressure of perfection proved too much.
Hitting a tree with his second shot on No. 12, Clark's ball ricocheted out of bounds and led to a double bogey. Another dropped shot came on the following hole and all but secured another near miss from the U.S. Open champion.
Collin Morikawa, Ludvig Åberg, Cantlay and Theegala all hovered on the first page of the leaderboard but never truly threatened. Instead, it was Patrick Rodgers who emerged as Scheffler's greatest threat thanks to an eagle-2 at the turn. A bogey a few holes later put an end to his Cinderella story.
Remaining in the wake of mistakes was a spotless Scheffler at 19 under, four ahead of the field. Turning in 3 under, the steadiest man in the game marched forward with a heavy diet of fairways and greens before a spell of thunderstorms halted his momentum on the par-4 12th.
Inclement weather was all that could stop Scheffler as the 27-year-old returned to the golf course more than two hours later and resumed his round without a hitch. While temperatures cooled and winds freshened, Scheffler was unaffected.
He picked off a birdie on the 13th to push his lead to five before a mud ball on the 15th led to his second finding the water on the par 5. It didn't matter as Scheffler launched a pitching wedge onto the surface, spinning it left and utilizing the slope to access the tucked pin. He avoided what would have been his first dropped shot since the 3rd hole on Thursday with an emphatic par save, and he will sleep easy Sunday night knowing five strokes separate him from the field and three holes separate him from victory.
Rick Gehman, Kyle Porter, Patrick McDonald and Greg DuCharme discuss Scottie Scheffler's hold on the RBC Heritage, Nelly Korda's fifth straight victory and Miles Russell finishing top 25 as a 15 year old. Follow & listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
The final group is on the green on the par-5 15th meaning they will have three holes to play on Monday. Scottie Scheffler faces a par putt from 10 feet to maintain his five-stroke lead as he stands at 20 under.
The only thing that can stop him is the sunlight at this rate. Scottie Scheffler adds a birdie on 13 to get to 20 under and five clear of the crew at 15 under. Without the world No. 1 this tournament would be very, very good, but alas they are all fighting for first flight honors it appears.
Conditions are considerably harder for these guys. The wind has switched, it's about 10 degrees cooler and they are racing against the clock. Scottie Scheffler and Sepp Straka make par on No. 12 and head to the par-4 13th. Wyndham Clark posts the clubhouse lead at 15 under, four behind Scheffler.
Players are on the golf course and play is set to resume. Scottie Scheffler in the final pairing has about 7.5 holes remaining and one hour until sunset meaning this thing is probably going to leak into Monday unfortunately.
The expectation is this thing will be finished today as the range is open and play is set to resume in 40 minutes at 6 p.m. ET. This will leave Scottie Scheffler a couple hours to complete just about seven holes as he left off in the middle of the 12th fairway with a four-stroke lead at 19 under.
The horn has sounded at 4:28 p.m. ET as a large weather system (with lightning) has engulfed Harbour Town. This comes as Scottie Scheffler stands in the 12th fairway with a four-stroke lead at 19 under over a number of pursuers up ahead of him on the golf course. Players are being brought back into the clubhouse as rules officials make an assessment on when play will return.
Scheffler lets a chance slide by on the short ninth and will instead settle for a 3-under 33 on his front nine. It was highlighted by his eagle-3 on the par-5 2nd and Scheffler will head to the back side with a three-stroke edge.
Theegala cards four 3s in a row to end his front nine and get within four of Scottie Scheffler. Sahith spoke yesterday about how cool it is what Scheffler is currently doing and how it is a motivating factor for someone like him to get better. It's a great perspective and Theegala continues to get better and better, but it may not be enough this week as he is four behind with nine to go.
