Scheffler starts 2026 dominant and Pat Reed is in the Tour portal (and a winner)

Jan 26, 2026

Scottie Scheffler’s hot start and ruthless Sunday play after winning in Palm Springs. The rise of 18-year-old Blades Brown and course volatility that shaped the leaderboard. Patrick Reed’s surprise DP World Tour win and hints about his 2026 plans. Champions Tour broadcast drama and a rant about remote production values. LIV Awards highlights and where top players might be headed.

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INSIGHT

Wins From Both Styles

Scheffler wins both birdie-fests and grinding, defensive events by staying error-free and capitalizing on birdie chances.
That combination forces competitors to take risks and often leads them to falter under pressure.

ADVICE

Don't Change What Works Mid-Run

Let elite players keep equipment they trust rather than forcing upgrades during hot stretches.
Changing gear mid-peak can introduce avoidable disruption to performance.

ANECDOTE

Blades Brown's Eight-Day Sprint

Blades Brown played eight PGA Tour sanctioned rounds in eight days and reached the final group at 18 years old.
He finished T18 but earned Korn Ferry Tour status and huge attention from the tour.

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Scottie Scheffler is one-for-one in 2026! Andy and Brendan return to recap yet another victory by the best player in the world, his 20th on the PGA Tour and first at The American Express in Palm Springs. Andy immediately wonders if Brendan and PJ regret "fading Scottie" by taking the under on 6.5 wins this year. Neither of them relent, but they do admit that the over is off to a hot start. Andy and Brendan highlight Scheffler's ability to win both birdie-fests and hard-fought events, as well as his ability to never hurt himself, putting pressure on those playing in the same group as him on Sunday. One such example was Blades Brown, the 18-year-old phenom who entered Sunday tied with Scottie in second place. He had one of the few over-par rounds on Sunday playing alongside the World No. 1, pushing the Korn Ferry Tour member out of the top ten with a t18 finish. In Dubai, Patrick Reed won again on the DP World Tour during some rainy coffee golf. Afterwards, he revealed that he's not currently signed with LIV for 2026 and is contemplating playing a DPWT schedule to try to earn a PGA Tour card for 2027. Andy and Brendan wonder whether he'll actually do this and give Reed some props for being a golf sicko and world player. Stew Cink continued his reign over the Champions Tour, winning the season opener in Hawaii. Adam Schupak wrote up an article detailing the struggles of Zinger, Papa, and Peter Jacobsen calling Champs Tour action from PGA Tour Studios, sending Andy and Brendan over the edge with how serious they were. Peter Jacobsen just wants to see if Tommy Two Gloves is using the same gloves every week, and he can't do that from inside the moat! To end the show, Brendan runs through the LIV Awards results, including Jon Rahm winning Clutch Player of the Year, as predicted by Andy on Thursday afternoon. Andy then slightly amends his northeast snow take from last week after hearing from many listeners. For those wondering, yes, there are plenty of Football Minutes within this episode as well!