Can Scheffler's Dominance Match Tiger Woods Historic Career
By: Derek Clements | Edited: Fri 01 Aug 2025
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IT IS now a valid question - how does Scottie Scheffler stack up against Tiger Woods?
Scheffler has utterly dominated the sport of golf over the past two seasons in a way we have not seen since Woods in his pomp. He has won 13 times in 18 months.
If he leads a tournament after 54 holes then he goes on to win. Woods was arguably the best closer professional golf has ever seen.
When his rivals see Scheffler's name on the leaderboard they fear the worst. That happened every time Woods contended.
This week Scheffler will have sat on top of the world rankings for 150 weeks. His lead at the top of those rankings is insurmountable.
Scheffler is 29 years of age and has won four majors - The Masters twice, the US PGA and now The Open. By the same age, Woods had won 10 majors.
Scheffler has won 17 times on the PGA Tour - Woods had accumulated 46 victories at the same age, including 10 world golf championship successes.
Scheffler won four times in 2022, twice in 2023, nine times in 2024 including the Olympic gold, and has so far picked up a further four titles in 2025, including four majors.
The current world number one has made 146 starts, making the cut 127 times. Apart from his 17 wins, he has 10 runner-ups, 11 third places, 52 top fives and 72 top 10s and career earnings of nearly $91m.
Woods has made 378 starts, making 339 cuts and winning 82 times, with 31 runner-ups, 19 thirds, a mind-blowing 163 top fives and 199 top 10s. He has career earnings of almost $121m.
There is little point in making comparisons when it comes to prize money because earnings have gone through the roof in recent years since the advent of LIV Golf. After picking up the Claret Jug his earnings for 2025 stood at a staggering $19.2m.
He tops the world rankings on 20.25 points. Rory McIlroy is second on 11.55 points, with the rest nowhere. It is a huge lead, the sort not seen since Woods dominated the sport at his peak.
The fact is that Woods made an immediate impact on the paid ranks, winning twice in his debut season. He recorded at least five wins in a season on 10 occasions - remember that huge parts of his career were affected by injuries. When Scheffler first turned professional he built a reputation for not being able to finish the deal.
Like Woods, he was named rookie of the year. And like Woods when he started to win he quickly developed a taste for it. He only joined the PGA Tour in 2020.
As dominant as Scheffler has become, he does not thrill galleries in the way that Woods did. He does not possess the charisma of the 15-time major champion and he never will.
Scheffler vs. Woods: Career Stats
| Category | Scottie Scheffler | Tiger Woods |
|---|---|---|
| Turned Pro | 2020 | 1996 |
| Rookie of the Year | Yes | Yes |
| First Years on Tour | Struggled to close tournaments | Won 2 events in debut season |
| Dominance | 13 wins in 18 months, 2024–2025 | At least 5 wins in 10 seasons |
| Majors Won (by age 29) | 4 | 10 (15 total) |
| PGA Tour Wins | 17 | 82 |
| World Golf Championships | 0 | 18 |
| Olympic Gold | 1 | N/A |
| Starts | 146 | 378 |
| Cuts Made | 127 (87%) | 339 (90%) |
| Runner-ups | 10 | 31 |
| Third-place Finishes | 11 | 19 |
| Top 5s | 52 | 163 |
| Top 10s | 72 | 199 |
| Career Earnings | ~$91M | ~$121M |
| Weeks as World No.1 | 150 | 623 (281 consecutively) |
In his prime, Woods almost seemed to be able to will the ball into the hole. He played shots the rest of the world could only dream of achieving.
Even now, long past his prime and wracked by injury, Woods continues to move the needle in a way no other golfer can come close to. During his now extremely rare playing outings he continues to be the centre of attention, with fans clinging to the hope that he can do it one more time.
Another crucial difference is that Woods lived to compete - it was his raison d’être. Scheffler has made it clear that family life comes first, that he does not possess the same competitive spirit and does not get the same enjoyment from competing and winning that Woods always did.
Woods hates to lose. You get the sense with Scheffler that he can take it or leave it.
Woods always strove for perfection, changing his swing several times. He always wanted to get better. I get the sense that if Scheffler ever experienced the sort of injury woes that Woods has been through he would be more likely to walk away from the game than go through months of rehab and recovery.
That he is the dominant force in the game right now is beyond dispute, but does he have the motivation to keep putting in the hard hours? He will surely complete the career grand slam, but 15 majors and 82 PGA Tour victories? I don’t think so.
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About the author
Derek Clements is a seasoned sports journalist and regular Golfshake contributor, specialising in tour coverage, opinion pieces, and feature writing. With a long career in national newspapers and golf media, he has reported on the game across Europe, the United States and Australia. A passionate golfer, he has played and reviewed numerous renowned courses, with personal favourites including Pebble Beach, Kingsbarns, Aldeburgh, Old Thorns and the K Club. His love of the game informs his thoughtful commentary on both professional golf and the wider golfing community.
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