Since 2022, two names have dominated the Player Impact Program. Tiger Woods, despite playing less, has remained the top player on the PGA Tour. Rory McIlroy finally edged past him last year. A handful of them, who could’ve given them a run for money this year, now ply their trade in LIV Golf. The mantle of breaking the mold obviously falls on Scottie Scheffler.

But is the 28-year-old up for the job? The reigning Masters champion has shown staggering dominance on the greens. However, a player’s performance on the greens does not determine PIP. It never was, which might work against the Texas star.

What impact does off-course performance have on the PIP rankings?

Let’s go back to 2021. Bryson DeChambeau finished fifth in PIP money that year, as Tiger Woods bagged the $8 million top prize in the inaugural edition. DeChambeau won twice that season, with one additional runner-up finish. But what worked for the two-time major champion was his much-publicized spat with Brooks Koepka, which dragged on and on. DeChambeau even joked that the more Koepka stoked the fire, the better it would be for him to amass more fortune.

🤷‍♂️ whoops 🤷‍♂️ pic.twitter.com/SkMTGerVOB

— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) March 2, 2022

The on-course performance doesn’t solely determine the PIF money. Rory McIlroy won twice last season. But more than that, McIlroy topped the PIP chart because of his frankness at the press conference and unhinged answers to tough questions. A year later, Ulsterman netted three titles, but came in second to Woods, who played only three, withdrawing from one.

Last year, too, Woods didn’t play after the Masters. Yet, the 48-year-old was the second-most impactful golfer on the PGA Tour. Woods topped the Google search data among golfers. The PIP involves four criteria; only one has a direct correlation to the on-course performance.

Nielsen brand exposure measures the duration a sponsor’s logo has appeared on the Saturday and Sunday broadcasts of the PGA Tour. The rest is solely determined by a golfer’s popularity. Had Bryson DeChambeau been on the PGA Tour, he was likely to bag a place in the top three. And since he is not there, the onus falls on Scottie Scheffler to break the Woods-McIlroy dominance on the PIP list.

Can Scottie Scheffler do what most think is impossible?

Scottie Scheffler undoubtedly tops Nielsen Brand Exposure. Six titles, two runner-ups, and five additional top-10s guarantee that. However, it’s the remaining three titles that have significantly impacted Tiger Woods over the years.

But Scheffler does have some advantages. For one, his winning streak has obviously generated a lot of buzz. Scheffler’s astounding dominance and consistency have drawn comparisons to Tiger Woods. Almost every week for the Masters, Scheffler remained under the limelight.

He has already shattered the record for most earnings in a single season. The $29 million from 15 starts is almost double Xander Schauffele’s earnings and triple what Rory McIlroy, the third-placed golfer, has earned.

On top of that, the comparison with Woods’s 2000 season can work in his favor. A historic comparison of the first 15 starts between Woods in 2000 and Scheffler in 2024 showed the latter’s scoring average was almost a stroke better than the former. Although Woods was ahead in true strokes gained, Scheffler was not far behind. The comparison with arguably the greatest modern-day golfer is bound to add some points to at least one category: media mentions, which measure the unique articles covered by an entity.

Moreover, Scottie Scheffler broke the Internet in May. Need we recapitulate what happened? Scheffler’s mugshot flooded the Internet with memes. The timeline of most, including those who don’t follow golf as closely as you or I do, was flooded with pictures of the 6’2” man from Texas and the news of his arrest. (My colleagues who cover the NFL and NBA would attest to that.) There were t-shirts with ‘Free Scheffler’ etched on the front.

via Reuters

The drama unfolded over ten days, with multiple twists and turns. Scheffler indeed scored some points at MARC General Population Awareness, which measures a golfer’s popularity among non-golf audiences, and Google Search Data, which measures how many times a player’s name is searched on Google.

So far, it appears Scheffler has most things covered. However, the Tiger Woods threat still remains. Despite not playing since April, the former world no. 1 topped the Google search results. And this year, his output has definitely been better. Woods also broke up with Nike early this year and then launched Sun Day Red, which generated a lot of buzz in each of the three majors. It won’t be surprising if the 48-year-old once again tops the Google search data. But overall, Scottie Scheffler has a real shot at toppling the settled order on the PIP leaderboard.