Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele are all in the running to be crowned the PGA Tour’s Player of the Year, but who will secure the Jack Nicklaus Award?
The PGA Tour has named McIlroy, Scheffler and Schauffele – the world’s top three – as its three nominees for the 2024 season, with all of them winning multiple times over the past 12 months.
Scheffler registered seven PGA Tour titles on his way to FedExCup victory and also won Olympic gold, although his win at The Masters was his only major success compared to Schauffele’s two.
Schauffele and Scheffler both enjoyed consistent seasons, posting 15 and 16 top-10 finishes respectively during 2024 and not missing a cut, while McIlroy competes the three-man shortlist after winning twice on the PGA Tour last season.
The Player of the Year award is determined by a member vote, with PGA Tour members who played in at least 15 events during the 2024 season eligible to vote. The voting closes on December 4 and the winner will be announced by the end of the year.
Scheffler and Schauffele the two favourites?
Scheffler has sat top of the world rankings throughout 2024, with the world No 1 winning the Arnold Palmer Invitational for a second time in three years before becoming the first player in history to successfully defend his title at The Players.
A second win at The Masters was followed by another Signature Event win at the RBC Heritage a week later, with Scheffler continuing his winning run at The Memorial Tournament and the Travelers Championship.
A spectacular final-round 62 saw Scheffler claim gold for Team USA in Paris, while he capped off a stellar campaign – in which he also won the Byron Nelson Award for low-scoring average – by securing the FedExCup for the first time with a four-shot victory over Collin Morikawa at East Lake.
Schauffele was also in FedExCup contention and eventually ended the year in fourth spot, with three runner-up finishes coming alongside his major victories at the PGA Championship and The Open.
The one-shot success at the PGA Championship was a record-low 72-hole score for a men’s major, with Schauffele ending the week on 21 under, while the two-shot victory at The Open saw him become the first player to win multiple majors in a year since Brooks Koepka in 2018.
McIlroy partnered Shane Lowry to victory at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and won the Wells Fargo Championship in his next start, a fourth career success at Quail Hollow, with the Northern Irishman registering seven top-10s during another steady campaign.
The 35-year-old came agonisingly close to an elusive fifth major and first since 2014, squandering a late lead to finish second to Bryson DeChambeau at the US Open, with McIlroy ending the year ninth in the FedExCup standings.
What about the Rookie of the Year?
The four nominees for the Arnold Palmer Award as the 2024 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year have also been announced, with Nick Dunlap, Max Greyserman, Jake Knapp and Matthieu Pavon on the shortlist.
France’s Pavon earned PGA Tour membership with his performances on the DP World Tour the previous year and made an immediate impact, winning the Farmers Insurance Open and also became the only rookie to qualify for the season-ending Tour Championship.
Dunlap became the first player in PGA Tour history to win as an amateur and professional in the same season, winning The American Express and Barracuda Championship, while Greyserman claimed three runner-up finishes among six top-10s in 2024.
Knapp also enjoyed a victory in his breakthrough season, winning the Mexico Open at Vidanta alongside top-five finishes at the Farmers Insurance Open and the Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches.
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