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Was Xander Schauffele’s Florida Swing a Success as He Claimed? Exploring San Diego Native’s Recent Performances

Published 03/25/2024, 5:29 AM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

The PGA Tour has finally concluded its Florida Swing! The swing started from the greens of the PGA National Champions Course with the newly named Cognizant Classic, moving to Arnie’s place for the Invitational, celebrating the 50th anniversary of THE PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass then heading to the Copperhead Course of the final leg at the Valspar Championship.

The four events have been star-studded with various high-ranked PGA Tour pros trying their luck to win but not all could and one such pro was Xander Schauffele. The world number five played many events in the Florida Swing and although he did not win any, did he anyway have a stronger finish as he said?

Xander Schauffele’s various finishes in the Sunshine State

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Unlike many golfers, Xander Schauffele did not participate in the opening event of the Florida Swing, the Cognizant Classic. After playing the Genesis Invitational in Pacific Palisades, the world number five took two weeks off to play the Arnold Palmer Invitational. At the Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Schauffele struggled to score a single round in the 60s. He carded four rounds of 72-70-76-70 and finished well outside the top 10 tied at 25.

After an ordinary play at Bay Hill, Schauffele was determined for a better result and he did exactly that at the PLAYERS Stadium Course. After playing four arduous rounds, the 30-year-old finished one stroke away from tying the lead with Scottie Scheffler and was a runner-up with Wyndham Clark and Brian Harman. This was a significant improvement from the previous event.

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Then came the Valspar Championship. On the first day, Schauffele scored 3 under 68 and stood T13. However, for the next two days, the La Jolla native was way outside the top 20 mark. He started the final from T34. After shooting 6 under 65, Schauffele jumped 29 spots and sat tied for five on the final leaderboard. In the three Florida Swing events, Schauffele was T25, T2, and T5. Was it a successful run for the golfer? Not exactly, but it was indeed one of his strongest finishes, as he claimed in an Instagram post.

If Schauffele had finished outside the top positions in all three events, then it could be said that his Florida Swing was a failure but with two top-10 finishes, it ended in a success for the 30-year-old. But Schauffele wouldn’t be letting anything come in front of his future, which he thinks will be better than the past.

Xander Schauffele talks about his probable future 

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Xander Schauffele has played seven events on the PGA Tour till now, out of which he has made all the cuts and acquired one runner-up finish with five top-10s. Though he could not come out of his winless drought – Schauffele last won on the PGA Tour in 2022 at the Genesis Scottish Open – the various finishes were a testament to Schauffele’s potential of being the best of the best.

However, the 30-year-old believes in actions rather than in empty talks. Talking about his future, he said, “I feel like the best is in front of me, and the only way it’s not going to be in front of me is if I let all these things get to my head and not play my game.” 

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The 7-time PGA Tour winner has his eyes set on a bigger prize, adding another silverware to his portfolio. Though that might have to wait for another few days as Schauffele may probably tee it up directly at the 2024 Masters!

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Written by:

Khambe Huda Imran

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Huda Khambe is a Golf Writer for EssentiallySports. Growing up watching Tiger Woods and Annika Sorenstam bag one major after the other, Huda Khambe set herself on a path to becoming a sports writer early on. With a year of prior experience in writing, Huda now brings the greens to life with her unique insights on her favorite storylines, such as Jack Nicklaus's record rivalry with Tiger Woods and its impact on both stars.
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Edited by:

Aakash Nair

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