Scottie Scheffler Becomes First Player Since Tiger Woods To Successfully Defend Memorial Tournament Title

WELCOME

Hello and welcome to Golf Monthly's coverage of the Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Ohio. We've joined the action as the leaders make the turn, with Scottie Scheffler out in front on nine-under for the week.

The World No.1 has been faultless so far today, moving from eight to nine-under without a bogey on the card. Meanwhile, his playing partner and closest rival - as it stands - is Ben Griffin on seven-under-par. Griffin started out with a bogey but immediately corrected it before going bogey-birdie once more, reaching the turn in 36 strokes. If he wants to catch Scheffler, Griffin is going to need a few more birdies coming in.

Canada's Nick Taylor is third on six-under while Patrick Cantlay and Sepp Straka or both on five with Jordan Spieth at four-under. All of those players still stand a chance of reigning supreme today. We're about to see if there will be a new name on the trophy or whether Scheffler and Jack Nicklaus will be reunited.

Without further ado, let's get out to the course. Thank you for tuning in!

SCOTTIE STIFLED OFF THE TEE

The leader made the turn two strokes clear, but a loose tee shot at the 10th has eliminated any hopes he had of extending that. Scheffler's drive came to rest just in front of a tree, meaning he had to jab one back out to the fairway and then take aim from the centre cut. The World No.1 has an eight-foot putt remaining for par.

No such problems for Griffin, though, who is on the dancefloor with a makeable birdie chance to come.

LEAD DOWN TO ONE

Well now. Scheffler rolls his par attempt wide left and loses his first stroke of the day. Griffin can't pour his birdie chance in from a way out, but it matters not to an extent as he edges within one prior to the 587-yard par-5 11th.

MCNEALY HOLE OUT

Maverick McNealy has jumped up into a share of 12th after holing out for eagle from the fairway at the par-5 15th. That was a superb shot from the World No.11 and a great camera angle as well. TV viewers saw the ball trickle into the cup from directly behind the hole. Perfect all around.

GRIFFIN GOING FLAG HUNTING

Sensing that now might be the time to strike, Griffin rifles a fairway metal towards the tucked-left flag from circa 270 on the par-5 11th and sees it bounce just into the rough some 10 yards away. It's not a great lie, but he should be able to muscle one out to tap-in range.

Scheffler, meanwhile, was a little off target with his approach and has had to rely on his razor-sharp short game to present a half chance for birdie.

CLOSE CALLS

Following a brief respite for a rules conversation (nothing doing for Griffin with a sprinkler head nearby), the man in second place dabs a delicate little chip towards the hole. It threatens to drop but rather looks in the cup on its way past.

Away from the final group, Nick Taylor is perilously close to making a surprise birdie at the par-3 12th from way downtown, but the ball stops millimetres behind the hole.

MOMENTUM SWITCH

Scheffler uses the time waiting for Griffin to line up his putt thoroughly, and it was time well spent as he drains the birdie putt to return to nine-under.

Moments later, there's a shock twist in the tale as Griffin somehow misses his three-to-four-foot birdie chance and disappointingly taps in for par.

ADVANTAGE SCOTTIE

The pin position on 12 is a real tease today. It's right in the far-right corner of the diagonal green, saying to the players "I'm over here, you can do it." only to lure their golf balls into a watery grave.

Scheffler ignores the calls and fades a beauty from the centre of the green out to 12 feet. Griffin powered his tee shot into the back bunker and thrashed one out to the fringe past the hole. If there was marginally less rough protecting the green, that might have carried on. As it is, Griffin has a pretty nasty par chance coming up.

GAP WIDENING

That looked in 99% of the way, but Scheffler's birdie putt turned its nose up at the last moment and it'll be a par.

Effectively, it's another shot gained, though, as Griffin can't save par from the collar and he returns to six-under-par. The gap is three strokes.

The group behind is bunching after a birdie for Straka at 13 and a super par save for his playing partner, Taylor.

FINAL GROUP ON THE CLOCK

Per the TV coverage, the final group of Scottie Scheffler and Ben Griffin have been informed they are on the clock. Watch this space for a little bit of a faster final group!

STRAKA LOOKING TO STRIKE

Sepp Straka is putting together a really nice final round. He's two-under for the day and coming off a birdie at the last. A wonderful wedge into 14 has set up another chance, too.

GRIFFIN STRUGGLING

This has not been a great hole for Griffin. Having pushed his drive right near the base of a tree in the rough, he was forced to hack towards the green but only succeeded in finding the rough on the other side. His third shot was thumped out to 31 feet, and the par putt never really stood a chance. It's all falling apart from the man with the aviator-style sunglasses.

CHALLENGERS FALLING AWAY

As Scheffler tidies up for par at 13, there has just been a missed birdie for Straka, a bogey for Griffin and a double-bogey for Nick Taylor. No one looks capable of making a run at the World No.1 and defending champion right now.

RACE FOR THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP

Just a reminder, there is one Open Championship exemption available for the leading player at the Memorial Tournament this week. Right now, Rickie Fowler - playing this week via a sponsor's exemption - is leading the way in a tie for sixth. Brandt Snedeker, who carded a stunning seven-under round today, is back in T11th having finished at one-under.

DESPERATE TIMES

As the old saying goes: desperate times call for desperate measures. Ben Griffin is going all out now. On the 370-yard 14th, he pulls out driver and sends one all the way down there. Luckily, it stops in the rough just short of the putting surface with water lurking close by. The subsequent chip wasn't quite as good as he'd have liked, though, and it's a mid-range birdie putt to come.

His playing partner has navigated down the par-4 hole in a slightly more traditional fashion, but an awkward bunker shot has left a testing par putt to say the least.

SCOTTIE SAVE

You'll never guess what the best player in the world has just done! He's only gone and rolled his 10-foot par putt in from the fringe. The four-shot lead is maintained in classic style, but it could have been three if Griffin's short game had been a little sharper. It seems as though the wind has really gone out of the two-time PGA Tour winner's sails...

ANYTHING YOU CAN DO...

From 251 yards, Griffin powers one to maybe 12 feet at the 15th. He has to be pleased with himself with a great eagle chance on the way.

However, seconds later, Scottie says 'sit down, sport' and follows suit, leaving his effort from 250 yards to a similar distance. Humbling.

EAGLE HAS LANDED

Just about. Ben Griffin rolls home his eagle putt to mark the fifth three at this hole on Sunday. Moments earlier, Scheffler's own attempt had somehow wiggled like a worm but stayed above ground.

The lead is down to three with a hat-trick of holes still to play...

NOT OVER

Here we go! Don't put the kids to bed just yet! Ben Griffin finds the centre of the par-3 16th and then promptly chucks a long-range birdie putt into the hole to reach eight-under. He's only two strokes back of Scheffler after the leader's second stroke slammed the brakes on a few inches out.

RICKIE FOWLER SEALS OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP BERTH

Despite a late wobble, Rickie Fowler produces a sublime up and down at the 18th to remain on one-under and clinch the one exemption spot available for the year's final men's Major. He ended on the same score as Brandt Snedeker but will head to The Open courtesy of his higher world ranking. See you at Royal Portrush, Mr Fowler!

FORE LEFT

Now with the honor, Griffin pulls his drive towards the crowd and strikes a guy walking towards the green on the back. He has a pretty wicked bruise already, but he seems pretty happy after receiving a signed glove.

Scheffler, completely unbothered by Griffin's late charge, fires a perfect drive down the 17th before clipping a dreamy iron hole-high.

BED TIME

Now the kids can go to bed. This one is over. Griffin hacked his way down the 17th, playing poor shot after poor shot, and was left with an outside bogey putt. He didn't make it, and that's a double-bogey six at the penultimate hole.

Griffin will have walk down 18 concentrating on trying to hang onto second place on his own. After Straka signs for a 70 to post five-under, he will need a par or better to make it happen.

GRIFFIN DOWN THE CENTRE

Moments after his costly mistake, Griffin crunches his final drive of the week down the middle and leaves it in position A1. Scheffler is a little further back and in the first cut, but it shouldn't affect his approach too much.

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER CLOSES TOURNAMENTS

TWO PUTTS AWAY

Both players find the green with their second strokes, and we're closing in on Scheffler's third win in his past four starts. That's incredible.

He is also set to become just the second player ever to defend this title following Tiger Woods in the early 2000s.

SCOTTIE SCHEFFLER WINS THE MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT

Scheffler defends his Memorial Tournament title thanks to a brilliant 10-foot par save at the last. His birdie attempt was way too heavy handed - perhaps the adrenaline finally set in - but he saved it in classic Scheffler style to seal his third victory in the past four starts.

His immediate rewards is a firm handshake from tournament host, Jack Nicklaus and a hug from wife, Meredith and son, Bennett. Life is good for Scottie.

SCHEFFLER TAKES 16TH PGA TOUR TITLE

FORM IS TEMPORARY, CLASS IS PERMANENT