Reuniting with his swing coach Jeff Smith worked out well for Davis Riley! The 27-year-old finally acquired his first trophy of the PGA Tour at the Charles Schwab Challenge with a five-stroke victory, after sharing the crown at the Zurich Classic in 2023 with Nick Hardy. However, one thing that was most concerning as he entered the Sunday field, was the man closest to the rearview mirror Scottie Scheffler who came back into the picture after his terrible rounds at the PGA Championship.

Scottie Scheffler and Davis Riley, both 27, have a history. Both played golf at country’s top programs – Scheffler went to Texas, while Riley played at rival Alabama. In 2013, Riley, while making his second straight appearance at the US Junior Amateur, lost to Scheffler after calling a one-stroke penalty on himself. He also lost to the World’s No. in the WGC – Dell Match Play. Well, looks like he finally found his way around Scheffler.

Here’s how Davis Riley pulled the Charles Schwab Challenge

At the presser on Sunday, after the conclusion of the event at the Colonial Golf Course, Riley revealed the mantra that he followed. Scoring a bogey on the second hole, after a 4-par shot on the opening hole, became a sort of a setback for him. He was scared as Scottie Scheffler was ‘breathing down his neck’ throughout the championship.

Davis Riley knew that Scheffler would storm in and had all the possibility of taking the victory. How could Riley underestimate the ‘most dominating’ player? Riley expressed, “I knew at some point today he was going to make a push and I expected that and, honestly, I tried to treat today as if we both started tied and I just tried to win the day.”

The pressure was real on him, but the game went on pretty well after carding the first birdie of the round on hole 4. As Riley ended his last 5 holes with three birdies, he revealed that he wanted to get lost and stay focused on his gameplay. “I just wanted to get lost in that and then show up on 16 and 17 and be right where I wanted to be,” added Riley.

And thus, after informing his caddie about the same, he shifted his full focus to his strategy. Picking targets, ‘being detail-oriented’, and analyzing the process he was going through was what got the Mississippi Native his first-ever solo victory at an even par score! And well, it was not just lifting the trophy, he got to enjoy other benefits from the win too.

What did Davis Riley win at the Colonial Golf Course?

Charles Schwab Challenge being one of the five Invitational events on the PGA Tour, had a total purse of $9.1 million, and the Riley took home $1.638 million. Being an invitation-only tournament, it has a reduced field of 120 players, due to the championship’s invitational status.

Apart from the prize money, Riley also received a custom 1975 Schwab Corvette Stingray and a tartan jacket as adornments. The highlight of his first solo win on the PGA Tour was earning a place on the famed Wall of Champions near the first tee at Colonial!