Scottie Scheffler is the favorite to win the Masters. After all, he is the world’s top-ranked golfer and is rolling into Augusta National on a hot streak.
But there is one advantage other challengers may have in battling Scheffler. if the former Texas Longhorn receives a call late in Sunday’s round from his wife, Meredith, then Scheffler is leaving Augusta to fly home. It doesn’t matter where he is on the leader board.
As Scheffler told ESPN, you only get one chance to watch your first child being born. Meredith Scheffler is almost nine months pregnant. She’s due at the end of April. That’s bad timing for the wife of a champion golfer, given that the Masters is akin to golfing nirvana. Then again, celebrating the birth of a child is a miracle.
“If she calls me while I’m on the 17th, then I better go home,” Scheffler told ESPN Wednesday afternoon. Scheffler added this caveat. He said Meredith wouldn’t place the call unless the birth was imminent. If he sees her name pop up on caller ID Sunday afternoon, it won’t matter if he’s the leader or deep down in the standings.
Earlier, Scheffler talked about the birth of his first child during an interview with Golf Digest.
“It’s going to be pretty wild. I don’t think it’s hit either of us quite yet, but it’s an exciting time for us as a family,” Scheffer said. “It’s been a pretty exciting last seven months or so, and we’re looking forward to hopefully getting the baby out of there nice and healthy and with a healthy momma, and then we’ll go from there.”
Meredith and Scottie married four years ago. But they met years before when they were high school sweethearts back in Dallas. When Scheffler won the Masters in 2022, he credited with Meredith with calming his anxieties. As he finished the 18th hole, cameras found Meredith. She was crying happy tears.
Scheffler isn’t the only golfer in the Masters field who could withdraw because of a special delivery. Sam Burns, the former LSU star, and his wife, Caroline, also are expecting their first child. Caroline could go into labor any day now. Coincidentally, Scheffler and Burns are staying in the same home near Augusta National. Their wives are back at their respective homes.
Burns, like Scheffler, said he’d withdraw from the Masters if Caroline went into labor. His best finish in the tournament was a tie for 29th. Oddsmakers place Burns’ odds of winning at +5500. That places him in the middle of the pack.
Meanwhile, Scheffler, as befitting his ranking, is the hottest golfer in the world. In March, he won the Arnold Palmer Invitational and then the Players Championship the next week.
As Golf Digest pointed out, it’s not uncommon for golfers to be worried they’ll get a call about a special delivery.
Twenty five years ago, Phil Mickelson was trying for his first major. He was in contention for the U.S. Open, but his caddie carried a beeper during the final round in case Amy Mickelson went into labor. A charted jet was on standby, just in case. However, Payne Stewart sunk a 15-foot putt on the 18th to clinch the title, his third Major/
Several moment after the putt, Stewart walked over to a disappointed Mickelson. He reached out to the younger golfer, telling him “You’re going to be a great father.” Amanda Mickelson, the couple’s first daughter, was born the next day. Tragically, Stewart died four months later when his plane crashed as it was traveling from Florida to a tournament in Texas.
Now, back to Augusta. The Masters begins Thursday morning, weather permitting.
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