2025 CJ Cup Byron Nelson leaderboard: Scottie Scheffler wins with lowest 72-hole score in PGA Tour history

Scheffler went wire to wire just outside his home in Dallas to pick up his first win of the season and 14th of his PGA Tour career

There's going low and then there's what Scottie Scheffler accomplished at the 2025 CJ Cup Byron Nelson. Running away from the field in his hometown event, the native Texan left his competitors all in the dust -- and playing for second place -- as he reached 31 under at TPC Craig Ranch for an eight-stroke victory over Erik Van Rooyen, his first of the PGA Tour season.

Scheffler's 31-under mark tied for the lowest 72-hole total in PGA Tour history. The 253 final score matches the record shared by Justin Thomas (2017 Sony Open) and Ludvig Åberg (2023 RSM Classic). (Scheffler actually had sole possession of the record in his sights before a bogey on the 71st hole pushed him to his final number.) He also became the ninth player in PGA Tour history to finish a tournament at 30 under or lower.

Holding the lead after every round following his opening 10-under 61, Scheffler stands as the third wire-to-wire winner in tournament history and the first since Tom Watson in 1980. He now holds the Byron Nelson scoring record as well after besting K.H. Lee's 26-under mark from 2022.

Making the victory even more meaningful is that Scheffler made his PGA Tour debut at this tournament 11 years ago. He is now the first Texan since Scott Verplank in 2007 to win the event.

The victory represents Scheffler's first of the 2025 season following a 2024 campaign that included nine wins worldwide. He now has 14 career PGA Tour wins, all of which have come over the last four seasons and one more than Jordan Spieth, a fellow Texas Longhorns star who finished 4th on Sunday.

"What he's doing is inspiring. What he's been doing is inspiring given it wasn't that long ago I was definitely better than him, and now, I'm definitely not right now," Spieth said of Scheffler. "I hate admitting that about anybody, but I just watched it those first two rounds, and like, I've got to get better. It's very inspiring."

After rounds of 61-63-66, Scheffler entered the final 18 holes with an eight-stroke lead at 24 under. As such, he was the first world No. 1 since Tiger Woods at the 2008 Farmers Insurance Open to lead by eight strokes or more heading into a final round of a PGA Tour event.

It didn't take long to see Scheffler's lead trimmed to six strokes, however, as one of his few mistakes of the week on No. 3 coincided with a birdie from the blade of Van Rooyen. That is as close as anyone got; Scheffler started his front-nine surge shortly after his miscue.

Four straight birdies came flying onto the scorecard before an absurd eagle landed on the par-5 9th. Scheffler turned in 30, matching the front-nine score of Van Rooyen, who was left helpless wondering what he could do to eat into the margin. The answer was nothing.

From there, it was all about scoring records and continued to be all about Scheffler. Another nifty approach on the par-4 11th from the rough led to a kick-in birdie and pushed Scheffler to 30 under. He didn't stay there for long penciling another circle onto his scorecard on the short par-4 14th to get one deeper.

With the tournament in hand, Scheffler needed to play his final four holes in under-par fashion for the all-time PGA Tour scoring record. He grabbed the needed birdie on No. 15 but backtracked with a bogey two holes later. Sauntering down the par-5 finisher with the tournament well in hand, Scheffler still had work to do for the record.

While he was unable to grab the on last birdie, he instead gripped the trophy and capped off a dominating performance that reminded everyone, oh yeah, Scottie Scheffler is still the top player in the game. Grade: A+

2025 CJ Cup Byron Nelson leaderboard: notables

2. Erik Van Rooyen (-23): The South African acquitted himself nicely in the final pairing alongside Scheffler, but he was never a real threat to take him down. Van Rooyen cut the lead to six early in the final round, but a string of birdies from his counterpart meant he was playing for second place. No matter how far back he finished, the two-time PGA Tour winner still receives the full load of second-place FedEx Cup points. The influx of points moves his name from outside the top 125 and battling for his status to just outside the top 50 and battling for his position in the playoffs. Big week. Grade: A

3. Sam Stevens (-20): Rocketing up the leaderboard with a Sunday 64, Stevens atoned for a paltry 70 on Moving Day to place his name high atop some notable golfers. It's the 28-year-old's second top-three finish on the PGA Tour this season (Farmers Insurance Open), the most he has ever had during a single campaign as he continues to seek a first career win. Grade: A

4. Jordan Spieth (-19): Don't look now, but Spieth is Spiething. The three-time major champion maneuvered his way through TPC Craig Ranch courtesy of some high-quality ball striking the first three days before everything synced up Sunday. Spieth's final-round 62 pushed him from outside the top 20 to inside the top five for his second such result this year. He now has four straight finishes inside the top 20 only a couple weeks ahead of the PGA Championship -- the lone major missing from his mantle. 

"The ultimate goal is consistent play, but it's not bogey avoidance or anything like that. I'm not changing strategy," Spieth said. "It's just that my mechanics are just getting a little bit better each week. I'm able to do sufficient stuff maybe that I wasn't able to do last year that maybe my wrist is holding me back, I'm not sure. I feel really good about what we're working on. … I started to get some nerves going on the back nine. I didn't drive it great when I was driving it really well, so I need to figure out why that was. 

"Little nuances like that when you start to feel like you're in contention -- I mean, contention for second place, but in contention nonetheless. The more you can do that, the easier it feels the next time. So just try to go in the next week and just get off to -- you know, just cap off what these last really 19 holes were here." Grade: A-

T5. Sam Burns (-17): After an immensely poor Florida Swing, Burns has found a little something in recent weeks with back-to-back top-20 finishes. The putter continues to be lethal, and while the iron play still needs to improve, the good news is that progress has been made. For a player who has been a part of three straight American teams since the 2022 Presidents Cup, it's crunch time. He heated up around this time last year, and he'll need to do so again. Grade: B+

T15. Si Woo Kim (-15): The Dallas resident shared a tee time with Spieth in every round, and he did well considering how he performed on the greens. Still without a consistent stroke with the putter, Kim carried his way inside the top 20 thanks to another stellar week from tee-to-green. Kim's game is just not conducive to low-scoring affairs at the moment given the state of his putting, but when the going gets tough, he should be a name to keep an eye on. Grade: C+

MC. Tom Kim: Since contending at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, Kim has lost all semblance of form. He has employed a new putting grip, looks lost at times with his full swing and continues to play at a methodical pace. He is without a top-30 finish since early February and has now missed three of his last six cuts. Kim is down to No. 78 in the FedEx Cup standings at the halfway point of the season. Grade: F