Xander Schauffele ready to join his heroes in colorful Masters history

When Xander Schauffele daydreams about the Masters Tournament, two legends appear in his mind: Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus.

Now, as the 27-year-old prepares to compete in his fourth Masters, Schauffele hopes to shift the narrative to himself.

“You know, I've had some success here, but when someone says ‘The Masters,’ I either imagine Jack and yellow or Tiger and red,” the San Diego native said Tuesday. “I'm looking forward to creating some memories for myself here.”

Schauffele’s best finish was runner-up to Tiger in 2019, before falling to 17th in November. For Schauffele, he’s welcoming the expected fast-and-firm conditions this week.

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“I think every guy who plays professional is a little bit of a masochist, so I'm here for the torture,” Schauffele said.

When speaking to the media Tuesday, the Californian referenced Jordan Spieth’s victory on Sunday and said he’s using it as motivation for his two-year victory drought.

Schauffele won twice on Tour during his rookie season in 2017 and padded his trophy case in 2018 and 2019. But since capturing the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January 2019, Schauffele has gone winless.

“Watching Jordan win last week was really inspiring,” Xander said. “Everybody knows how good he was and how good he is, and he proved it last week, and the up and downs and the patience he's shown.

“My rookie year I won twice, but it was sort of an up-and-down year, and I figured I'd have more fun if I was a little bit more consistent. And now that I've been more consistent, I just want to win tournaments.”