Scottie Scheffler back at No. 1 with Players Championship win

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Scottie Scheffler took on the scary TPC Sawgrass as if he was playing alone. And by the time he got done with a masterful performance Sunday in The Players Championship, that's about how it looked.

Scheffler ran off five straight birdies in the middle of his round, built a six-shot lead and left all the drama to everyone else on his way to a 3-under 69 to win the richest prize on the PGA Tour by five shots.

The victory was worth $4.5 million and sent Scheffler back to No. 1 in the world for the second time this year. He now has six victories in his last 27 starts on the PGA Tour, including the four wins he had last year culminated by his Masters title.

When he poured in a 20-foot par putt on the final hole, Scheffler had the largest margin of victory in The Players since Stephen Ames won by six in 2006.

«I got hot in the middle of the round and tried to put things away as quickly as I can,» Scheffler said. «Gosh, it's fun.»

And then the celebration was on with his wife, parents, sister and 87-year-old grandmother, who kept pace with him for so much of the day.

That's something the strongest field of the year couldn't do.

Tyrrell Hatton birdied his last five holes for a 65, finishing when Scheffler was making the turn. Viktor Hovland (68) and Tom Hoge (70) were seven shots behind in a tie for third, each making nearly $1.5 million from the $25 million purse.

Scheffler, who finished at 17-under 271, became only the third player to win at the TPC Sawgrass with all four rounds in the 60s.

Min Woo Lee of Australia, making his Players Championship debut, briefly was tied for the lead but finished with a 76.

Lee made one too many blunders, not that it would have changed anything the way Scheffler lit