Riviera has never been kind to Scottie Scheffler. He has managed a T12 in 2023, a T10 in 2024, and when the event moved to Torrey Pines last year, he finished T3. Back at Riviera this week, Thursday looked like the course was going to add another forgettable result to that list. It didn’t. 11 under over the final two days and a closing 65 later, he left the $20 million event hosted by Woods with no regrets.

When asked post-tournament whether he found satisfaction in fighting back after a difficult start, Scheffler kept it direct. “I’ve never been one to quit, so it’s not really, I mean, I’d feel pretty silly to quit in a PGA Tour event. Overall, being out here and competing, that’s what I love to do.”

Scheffler opened with a 3-over 74 in Round 1, a result heavily shaped by what he walked into on Thursday. Severe storms hit Riviera before and during Round 1, causing weather suspensions. By the time late-wave players teed off, the greens were bumpy, fast, and nearly unreadable. Scheffler described exactly what made putting so difficult that day:

“When we went out on Thursday, the wind was blowing so hard, and the greens were so bumpy and so fast, it was a complete crapshoot whether or not the ball was going to get in the hole.”

Well, that explains the 74. Hitting putts with added speed to fight the bumps created more pressure putts on severely sloped greens, a problem that punished late tee times directly. His SG: Putting for the week, however, finished at 3.363 (ranked 11th), and he averaged 1.67 putts per GIR (ranked 5th), confirming Thursday was a conditions issue, not a form issue. Drawing an early tee time from Round 2 onward changed the equation immediately.

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“Going out early yesterday, the greens were a lot fresher, got to see some putts going in,” the World No.1 highlighted.

From Round 2 through Round 4, Scheffler carded 68, 66, and 65, finishing 11 under on the weekend and T12 overall. His Round 4 scorecard tells the story most clearly.

He recorded seven birdies, closing out at -6 for the day with a final score of 65. For a player who started the week five over through his first 10 holes on Thursday, that back nine on Sunday was the clearest statement he made all week. Even after the 66 in Round 3, Riviera still didn’t feel comfortable.

“At times, yeah, maybe a little bit, but then at times it still felt weird,” the 29-year-old said.

That discomfort at Riviera is notable because the 2026 season elsewhere has told a different story. Scheffler entered the Genesis having finished T-3 at the WM Phoenix Open and T-4 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, both after sitting 10 shots off the lead after Round 1. He was on a streak of 19 consecutive top-10 finishes coming in.

Riviera may not have given Scheffler the result he wanted, but the schedule ahead offers him every opportunity to correct that quickly.

What’s next for Scottie Scheffler: Bigger purses, bigger stage

Scottie Scheffler himself made clear heading into this week that the back-to-back stretch of Phoenix, Pebble, and Riviera presented entirely different challenges each time.

“You’ve got some different challenges that you see,” he said.

With that stretch now behind him, Scheffler heads into a more familiar run of events.

The Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill runs March 5-8 and carries a $20M purse. Scheffler has won at Bay Hill before, taking the title in 2022, making it one of the more comfortable venues on his calendar.

The following week, THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass runs March 12-15, with a $25M purse, the largest on tour. Scheffler won THE PLAYERS in 2024.

His driving distance of 303 yards on average this week and 72.22% greens in regulation are numbers that travel well to courses like Bay Hill and Sawgrass, where ball-striking is rewarded consistently.

Riviera has seen Scheffler struggle and recover in the same week. Bay Hill and Sawgrass will hopefully just see the recovery bit.