PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – As if Scottie Scheffler hasn’t won enough money in the last two weeks, he’s more than halfway to winning his annual chip-in bet with caddie Ted Scott.
As Scheffler took aim with his 56-degree sand wedge at the par-4 fourth hole from 92 yards, NBC lead analyst Kevin Kisner predicted, “This one oughta be dancing around the hole.”
Was it ever. It spun into the hole for an eagle to kickstart Scheffler’s remarkable rally from five shots back to repeat as champion of the Players Championship. Scott smiled and flashed six fingers, noting that it marked the sixth hole out this season for Scheffler, who needs to make 10 of them this year to win their annual bet.
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“I got off to a slow start this year. I didn’t hole out any until Riv,” said Scheffler, referring to Riviera Country Club, host of the Genesis Invitational last month. “But I’ve hit the ground running pretty quick after that.”
Scheffler added: “So it was actually I think it was last year this time (at the Players) where I got to 10. So now we’re at six and hopefully we can keep the momentum rolling and get some of Teddy’s money back in my pocket.”
Scott said that they re-set the bet after Scheffler won last year, but that he failed to get to 20 hole-outs. It may have been due to Scott losing count of his boss’s hole-outs.
Scott called the bet an old caddie trick – Jordan Spieth and Michael Greller have had a similar practice for years – and while the caddies are often on the losing end, they wind up profiting if their pro is holing out, so there’s really no downside.
“It’s like fishing where the fish thinks it’s getting something,” Scott explained. “He’s a competitor so I like to figure out ways to make him competitive. It’s just a way to keep him engaged.”
Scott noted that during their first year together in 2022 that he and Scheffler had an argument over the contest when Scheffler contended his hole out should count and Scott held firm that it didn’t count because it wasn’t a chip.
“It’s 150 yards,” Scheffler complained.
“I guess he trumped me on that,” Scott said, noting that hole-outs have counted ever since.
The hole-out on No. 4 at TPC Sawgrass will go down as one for the ages. Scott better start saving up to pay off their bet.
