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Golf has been secondary for Scottie Scheffler of late. It’s hard to know what to expect at Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) 鈥 Scottie Scheffler’s son Bennett turns 2 next month, and Remy less than two weeks ago. Neither is old enough to understand the significance of Augusta National, the and the green jacket their father sometimes wears.

鈥(His wife Meredith) got this great picture of me and Bennett walking into the clubhouse with me with my green jacket and holding his hand. But, I mean, he has no idea what it means,鈥 Scheffler said. “This place signifies so much for me in my golf journey, and that鈥檚 something I鈥檇 love to be able to share with my kids. We鈥檒l see how that goes as they age.

鈥淩ight now I just 鈥 if I鈥檓 wearing it near him, I鈥檓 just hoping he doesn鈥檛 ruin it or anything like that.鈥

Scheffler has two kids 鈥 one for each of his Masters titles. He’s the favorite in this week’s tournament, as he tends to be for all majors these days, but his family life has been more exciting than his golf recently. The Scheffler who tore through the 2025 season, winning six times in a 4 1/2-month span, hasn’t arrived yet this year.

It was business as usual when Scheffler won his first tournament of the year at in January. He followed that up by closing strong for top-five finishes at Phoenix and Pebble Beach, but since then he’s been outside the top 10 in three straight events 鈥 and outside the top 20 in the last two of those.

A slump by his standards? Well, it’s hard to call it that because Scheffler hasn’t played at all since The Players Championship in the middle of last month. He because his wife was expecting their second child, and little Remy was born March 27.

The word 鈥渞ested鈥 isn’t often used by parents of newborns, but being away from the course may leave Scheffler refreshed.

鈥淚鈥檓 getting plenty of sleep. My wife鈥檚 a trouper,鈥 Scheffler said. 鈥淩emy is so young right now, they sleep a lot of the day. I think he鈥檚 used to being in the womb at this point. Yeah, I鈥檝e been able to get a decent amount of sleep.鈥

It was hard to tell which of the kids was more of a hit at Wednesday’s family friendly 鈥 Remy being carried by Meredith in a baby wrap or Bennett knocking the ball around with a blue toy club.

Bennett was born just before the PGA Championship in 2024. That major proved to be a wild experience for Scheffler at Valhalla. He before the second round for not following police instruction 鈥 a felony charge and three misdemeanors were later dropped 鈥 but made it back from jail in time to shoot 66 that day on his way to finishing tied for eighth.

His obstacles this week are likely to be on the course. Scheffler will try to become the first player since Adam Scott in 2013 to win at Augusta National after having three weeks off.

If there’s been a problem for Scheffler this year, it’s been his starts. In his past five tournaments, he’s played the first round in a combined 3 over par while shooting 56 under the rest of the way.

Of course, all that might feel like ancient history to Scheffler after he’s been otherwise occupied in recent weeks. A major like the Masters doesn’t offer much of a chance to ease back into competition mode, but it does have its advantages.

鈥淎ugusta keeps going above and beyond to make things special and easy for us as players. Especially the practice rounds,鈥 Scheffler said. 鈥淭he practice rounds are very peaceful. There鈥檚 no phones. There鈥檚 no people asking for selfies in the middle of the round. It鈥檚 very calm out there, and people follow the rules here.鈥

Scheffler will play with Robert MacIntyre and Gary Woodland in the . He was a 6-1 favorite per BetMGM Sportsbook on Wednesday morning. That’s similar to his +550 odds before the previous major 鈥 the 鈥 but not as short at the +275 price on him leading up to last year’s U.S. Open.

鈥淕ame feels like it鈥檚 in a good spot,鈥 Scheffler said. 鈥淚 got some rest the last few weeks at home. So I feel rested and ready to go this week.鈥

___

AP golf:

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