Scottie Scheffler poses with the trophy after winning the 2024 Memorial Tournament. | Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images
Here are five takeaways from the Memorial Tournament, which saw another exciting finish and Scottie Scheffler win again.
Once again, the Memorial Tournament produced a thrilling finish, as Scottie Scheffler captured his fifth victory of the 2024 PGA Tour season.
With the win, Scheffler joins Tiger Woods as the only two players to have won at Bay Hill, TPC Sawgrass, Augusta National, and Muirfield Village in the same season.
Better yet, Scheffler also won the RBC Heritage this year. That makes Scheffler the first player to have five wins before the U.S. Open since Tom Watson accomplished that feat in 1980.
Nevertheless, here are five takeaways from the Memorial:
5. Matthew Fitzpatrick bounces back with backdoor top-five
Matthew Fitzpatrick took two weeks off after missing the cut at the PGA Championship, and the decision to do so paid off. He finished in a tie for fifth, thanks to a final round 3-under 69 on a challenging Sunday at Muirfield Village.
The Englishman has not had a great season. Before this week, his best finish came at The Players, where he finished solo fifth. He carded four rounds in the 60s that week to finish at 16-under, four behind Scheffler.
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Matt Fitzpatrick hits a shot during the final round of the 2024 Memorial Tournament.
Since then, he has strung together some solid results, including a top-10 finish at the Valero Texas Open. But in May, Fitzpatrick had trouble with his irons at Quail Hollow and Valhalla.
His poor approach play explains why he tied for 52nd at the Wells Fargo and missed the cut at Valhalla. That trend continued this week, as Fitzpatrick ranked 34th in the field in strokes gained, approaching the green. He gained nearly four strokes with his putter on Sunday, which is why he shot a 69.
Still, his strong finish will give him a boost of confidence heading into the U.S. Open, the event he won two years ago at Brookline.
4. Stars struggle on Sunday
Muirfield Village made some of the biggest stars in golf look like 15 handicappers on Sunday.
Shane Lowry, who shot a 4-under 68 on Saturday, signed for a 13-over 85 on Sunday. The Irishman tripled the 17th hole, made doubles at 8 and 11, and posted seven other bogies.
Will Zalatoris also struggled, shooting a 7-over 79 thanks to a pair of doubles on the front. Other Americans who looked lost on Sunday included Keegan Bradley, who shot an 80, Eric Cole, who signed for a 79, and Brian Harman, who shot 77.
Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood each shot a 4-over 76, as did their fellow Ryder Cup star Sepp Straka.
Sunday was a bloodbath. Only six players shot under par, with Fitzpatrick and Emiliano Grillo leading the way with 3-under 69s.
3. Adam Hadwin clinches Open Championship spot
As part of The Open Qualifying Series, the top finisher in the Memorial Tournament—not otherwise exempt—earned a trip to Royal Troon for golf’s oldest major.
Adam Hadwin will head to Scotland in July, primarily due to the 6-under 66 that he opened with on Thursday. The Canadian held the lead after day one, but he struggled to garner momentum after that, shooting a pair of 72s before carding a 2-over 74 on Sunday.
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Adam Hadwin acknowledges the gallery on the 18th green during the final round of the 2024 Memorial Tournament.
But Hadwin played well enough because he finished one stroke ahead of South African Christiaan Bezuidenhout. Like Hadwin, Bezuidenhout had his eyes set on Royal Troon, but he will have to try and qualify through other means.
Nevertheless, the Canadian gets the nod to The Open for the fourth time in his career. He last competed in 2021 and missed the cut when Morikawa took home the Claret Jug. Hadwin’s best finish came in 2018 at Carnoustie, where he tied for 35th.
2. Collin Morikawa is close, despite coming up short again
On the Monday before the Masters—eclipse day—Collin Morikawa discovered something in his swing at the Tournament Practice Area. Whatever it was, it has worked. He has been a completely different player since then.
Morikawa tied for third at Augusta, then finished in solo ninth the following week in Hilton Head—his first top 10 finishes since The Sentry, the season’s first tournament.
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Collin Morikawa hits his tee shot on the 16th hole during the final round of the 2024 Memorial Tournament.
Since The Masters, Morikawa has teed it up in six events, recording four top 10s. He tied for fourth at Valhalla, finished in solo fourth at Colonial, and came in solo second at the Memorial. His game is right there, and a win will undoubtedly come soon. He just needs a few more putts to fall.
But given his exquisite ball-striking capabilities, perhaps Morikawa vies for a U.S. Open title at Pinehurst No. 2, a course that requires strong iron play. He is trending in the right direction, so it should surprise nobody if he is right there in the end.
1. It’s Scottie Scheffler’s world, and we’re just living in it
Scottie Scheffler will head to Pinehurst No. 2 as a gigantic favorite.
He will also have a massive target on his back, but he does not seem bothered by the spotlight.
“Just because I’m the favorite next week doesn’t really have any affect on my score. I think we all start at even par, if I remember correctly,” Scheffler joked.
“Out here the margins are so small between winning and losing. It’s a putt or a shot here or there. Fortunately, [on Sunday,] I was able to hit the shots when I needed to, and hopefully, going into next week, I’m going to stick to my game plan and prepare the way I usually would and get ready to go out and compete again on Thursday.”
Scheffler has been so successful because of his preparation—a testament to his character and a reminder that hard work always pays off.
“I feel like I’m always trying to work on all aspects of my game, and I feel like when I walk out onto the first tee, I’m focused on my preparation. When I step up there, I always remind myself walking to the tee that I’m prepared for this and that I did everything I could in order to play well. I checked all the boxes when I step up on the tee,” Scheffler explained.
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Scottie Scheffler fist pumps on the 16th green during the final round of the 2024 Memorial Tournament.
“So when I step up there, I just remember, the results aren’t up to me, and I’m going to go out there and compete. But I feel like I put an awful lot of work into this game, and just because I got to number one in the world doesn’t mean I’m going to stop working.”
But what makes Scheffler’s dominating season even more impressive is the whirlwind of emotions he has experienced off the course.
On May 8, Scheffler and his wife, Meredith, gave birth to their first child, Bennett.
Then, his arrest at the PGA Championship became the biggest story in the country. Louisville Police eventually dropped the charges against Scheffler, who referred to it all as a “big misunderstanding.”
And yet, he just won his fifth event of the season and heads to the U.S. Open with a terrific chance to win his third career major. His hard work, determination, and compartmentalization are incredible and proof that it’s his world, and we’re just living in it.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
