DeChambeau's elite scouting report on Scheffler’s unmatched control and distance, compared to Tiger, resurfaces as the Masters favorite seeks historic third green jacket.
DALLAS - Last summer, Bryson DeChambeau offered up a scouting report on the world's No. 1 player, Scottie Scheffler.
And as we prepare for this weekend's Masters tournament, Bryson's words are worth reviewing.
“He’s got the best spin and distance control I’ve ever seen,'' he told the Pat McAfee show. "He controls the golf ball from a spin perspective so much better than everybody else. If you’re 175 yards out and it’s 10 miles into the wind, he knows how to control the flight and spin to get that ball to land right next to the hole every hole.”
Bryson added, “His distance control is the best since Tiger. Probably since Tiger, he’s the best we’ve seen. I played with him in college a bunch and I said it before but he’s definitely improved since college for sure.”
That college experience? Bryson played here at SMU, while Scottit played at Texas.
And now?
Scheffler heads into the 2026 Masters as the man everyone is chasing, as he is the betting favorite to win the green jacket, with the first major of the season again built around a loaded top tier that includes Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy and DeChambeau.
For Scheffler, the storyline is bigger than just another week as the favorite.
He’s trying to win a third Masters title in five years, which would put him in rare company at Augusta National. Reuters reported that Scheffler recently stepped away from tournament play to be with his family for the birth of his second child, and now returns to one of his best venues looking to reset his form on golf’s biggest spring stage.
The odds board behind him is just as interesting.
ESPN’s betting numbers list Scheffler at +485, with Rahm next at +900. McIlroy and DeChambeau are both right there as major threats, each carrying short odds entering the week.
That reflects just how crowded the top of men’s golf remains, especially at Augusta, where course history matters and proven stars tend to rise.
Rahm’s move near the top of the market makes plenty of sense.
The 2023 Masters champion has continued to play well on LIV Golf and remains one of the most reliable big-event performers in the field. McIlroy, meanwhile, arrives as the defending champion after finally winning the Masters in 2025 and completing the career Grand Slam.
DeChambeau may be the hottest player of the bunch, coming in off back-to-back LIV victories and still chasing his first green jacket.
But as we are about underway, the clearest headline remains the same: the 2026 Masters still runs through Scheffler. ... with DeChambeau giving chase.