As Scheffler rests, tour heads to Valspar ‘Snake Pit’

MIAMI: There are only so many opportunities for golfers to win on the PGA Tour, so this week’s field will be glad not to see Scottie Scheffler’s name on the leaderboard.

After Scheffler picked up back-to-back wins at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship, the PGA Tour concludes its Florida swing this week at the Valspar Championship, beginning Thursday in Palm Harbor, Fla.

Scheffler is off this week after tightening his grip on the mantle of best player in the world. But 10 of the top 30 in the Official World Golf Ranking will be on the property, including a few of the players who lost to Scheffler last week -- Xander Schauffele and Brian Harman.

Schauffele held the 54-hole lead at The Players but watched Scheffler speed past him on Sunday. Scheffler fired an 8-under 64; Schauffele shot 70, finishing just one stroke back in a tie for second with Harman and Wyndham Clark.

“Overall, I was just there, again, in a good spot to win a golf tournament and didn’t get it done,” said Schauffele, who hasn’t won since the summer of 2022. “So I’ve accepted that and I have a couple nights to sleep under my belt now and feeling better than I did a couple days ago. So just excited to try and win again.”