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Julio Cesar Valdera Morales is a Newsweek contributor based in Spain. His focus is golf as well as politics and economics. Julio has been with Newsweek since February, 2025 and previously practiced law. Julio earned his Masters Degree at the University of Havana. You can get in touch with Julio by emailing j.morales@newsweek.com.
Julio Cesar Valdera Morales
Contributing Sports Writer
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Scottie Scheffler has won 11 of his last 36 official starts on the PGA Tour, while also posting historic results in terms of top-10 finishes, top-25 finishes and cuts made.
However, such an extraordinary performance hasn’t made him lose sight of how difficult it is to succeed in professional golf.
He provided further proof at the end of his first round at the BMW Championship, when, in response to reporters’ questions, he reflected on the merit of being able to reach the Tour Championship without winning a single tournament.
“In order to win the FedExCup, you have to put together a great body of work,” he told the reporters at Caves Valley. “For you to qualify for the Tour Championship, especially without winning a tournament, means you had a great, consistent year.”
Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images
Naturally, when the terms “winless” and “consistent performance” are combined on the PGA Tour, one thinks directly of Tommy Fleetwood. However, Scheffler declined to associate any specific name with this opinion.
“Playing consistent golf out here and making it to the Tour Championship without winning a golf tournament is pretty difficult,” he said. “You look at — I’m not going to name names — but you look at seasons like some players have without winning and making it to the FedExCup final, that’s a really good year. I think it’s extremely hard to win out here on Tour.”
It’s fair to say that 12 of the current members of the FedEx Cup top 30 have reached this point without winning during the season. If the sample is extended to the entire BMW Championship field, the winless player ratio for the year rises to 27 out of 50.
However, Fleetwood’s case remains a standout, as his consistency has been more than demonstrated despite never having won on the PGA Tour. The Englishman, who joined the American-based circuit in 2018, has played in the BMW Championship five times (2018, 2019, 2022, 2023, 2024), advancing to the Tour Championship on four of those occasions (except in 2022).
Fleetwood has come close to his first PGA Tour title many times, with six second-place finishes and six third-place finishes. The most recent occasion occurred just a week ago, when he nearly won the FedEx St. Jude Championship (he ultimately finished tied for third).
The eight-time DP World Tour winner started strong again this week, posting a first-round 65 with five birdies and no bogeys at the BMW Championship. After the first 18 holes, he’s in second place, three strokes behind Robert MacIntyre.
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