PGA Championship Winners and Losers: Schauffele Breaks Through, DeChambeau Owns the Crowd

Xander Schauffele is finally a major champion. But he wasn’t the only big winner on Sunday at Valhalla.

Bryson DeChambeau came up one shot short of a playoff at the PGA. / Adam Cairns-USA TODAY Sports

The 2024 PGA Championship is in the books, and Xander Schauffele is off the list of major-championship-wannabes thanks to a 6-under 65 for a one-shot win over Bryson DeChambeau. As ever, we wrap a major with some players feeling great, and others not so much. Here are the winners and losers from Sunday at Valhalla.

Winners

Xander Schauffele: Breaking through is never easy, and after 12 top-10 finishes in majors, he finally got it done, punctuated by a clutch-as-it-gets 6-footer for birdie on the 72nd hole.

Bryson DeChambeau: The booming drives. The fist pumps. The bravado. It’s rare that a runner-up can leave feeling so positively, but DeChambeau threw everything he had at Schauffele, finishing a bogey-free 7-under 64 with a birdie on the final hole. He gave the final round all of its juice and extended the event's suspense to the very end. 

Justin Thomas: It’s been an uneven season for the two-time PGA winner, but this week at Valhalla he represented himself and his hometown well. Capped it with a 68, a T8 and watery eyes on the final hole. 

Scottie Scheffler: On Saturday he appeared to suffer the effects of his surreal Friday morning arrest. But back to business on Sunday, he quietly tossed up a 65. So, on what by his standards will go into the books as a dud week, he still finished (checks notes) tied for eighth. Put him down right now as the favorite at Pinehurst.

Losers

Collin Morikawa: Entered the final round as a co-leader and couldn’t buy a putt for 17 holes before finally sinking a much-too-late birdie on 18. That’s two appearances in final pairings at the majors this year without sniffing a victory.

Viktor Hovland: A tough addition to this list given that he shot a 66. But his missed birdie putt on 18, which could’ve matched DeChambeau for the clubhouse lead, has to sting. Overall, an encouraging week given that he was thinking of skipping this event to work on his game. But near-misses hurt, and this one will leave a mark.

Scottie Scheffler: Yes, he appears on both lists here. Let’s not forget, he entered the week with the look and feel of a player who seemed ready to take a run at a Grand Slam. But the bizarre events of Friday morning seemed to derail him. Photos of Scheffler in his orange jumpsuit popped up at Valhalla and the crowd rallied behind him, but the whole episode still seems surreal. He’ll be back, but this week was a lost opportunity.