For Texan Scottie Scheffler, there's no place like home to get first win of 2025

When Scottie Scheffler was just 17 and a senior in high school, he made his debut on the PGA TOUR at the THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson and certainly didn’t disappoint.

Scheffler would go on to finish T22 that week and, well, the rest is history.

Now Scheffler returns to THE CJ CUP with five top-10 finishes this season, tied for the most on the PGA TOUR so far, but no win – yet. He finished tied for fifth the last time he played this event, missing in 2024, and is as eager as ever to break through and tilt his first trophy of 2025.

“I have really good memories of this tournament. This tournament has always treated me really well,” Scheffler said Wednesday. “It’s good to be back.”

Scheffler finished T8 in his title defense at the RBC Heritage, the last time he was in action on TOUR. Prior to that, he finished fourth at the Masters – again, in a title defense. He finished tied for second at the Texas Children’s Houston Open after a sizzling Sunday 63 and has certainly put together a fine body of work so far this season. Scheffler sits second on TOUR in Strokes Gained: Total, sixth in SG: Off the Tee and second in SG: Tee to Green.

Scheffler missed last year’s tournament as he awaited the birth of his son, Bennett, who came May 8, 2024. With a laugh, Scheffler couldn’t remember if he even watched the tournament a year ago – but with the best of reasons why.

“It's funny, some of our friends just had a baby," Scheffler said Wednesday. "Their baby is probably 2 months old, and I remember them asking us, ‘What did you do at the beginning when your baby wasn't sleeping? How did you get your baby back to sleep?’ I was like, 'I have no idea what we did. I don't really remember. It was all kind of a blur,'” Scheffler said with a smile. “I can't tell you if I watched the tournament last year or what. All I can say is it's good to be back this year.”

Scheffler is one of a hearty handful of golfers with Dallas ties who are teeing it up at THE CJ CUP, two of whom will be in his group for Thursday and Friday – Jordan Spieth and Si Woo Kim. Kim and Scheffler are members of the same golf club in Dallas, Royal Oaks Country Club, while Spieth and Scheffler’s Texas ties are well documented.

“Playing with Jordan here will be really fun,” Scheffler said. “Jordan is obviously a huge part of the community here, and with the success he's had on the course and the effect he's had off the course here in the community, the community here obviously loves him.”

Scheffler’s fifth-place finish in 2023 was his best result at TPC Craig Ranch, as he finished T15 in 2022 and T47 the year prior. This year the course features a few holes that have been lengthened while the club prepares for an overhaul led by 21-time PGA TOUR winner Lanny Wadkins and his design firm at the conclusion of this year’s tournament. Some of the grass has already been changed over for 2025.

“I think this golf course, the knock on it would be that it was a little bit too easy the last two years," Scheffler said. "There wasn't a ton of rough, and the fairways were too generous. So having the overseeded rough and bringing in some of the fairways, I think brings a challenge to the course.

"I think that's a good thing. I think putting more of a premium on guys getting the ball in play and not just hitting it as far as you can, I think it's a really good thing for the golf course. We'll see how it plays out this week.”

Given how Scheffler has played so far this season, he could be trending towards this particular week being the one when he finally returns to the winner’s circle on the PGA TOUR. TPC Craig Ranch is just 30 miles from Dallas and of course, there’s no place like home.