Winning doesn't get old for Scottie Scheffler. Neither does the time it requires to be good

LA QUINTA, Calif. (AP) — The question was a little on the morbid side, which Scottie Scheffler enjoyed only because it was different from anything he had heard the last four years while winning a staggering 27% of his tournaments. The answer made perfect sense.

If he were to be cremated when his time on Earth was done, where in golf would he want some of his ashes to be scattered?

It took only a few seconds before Scheffler replied: “The range at Royal Oaks. That's where I spend most of my time.”

That's where Scheffler spent his time in the weeks before leaving Dallas to start his season in the California desert, where he lurked around the lead for three days at The American Express and then suddenly — but not unexpectedly — he was up by six shots. That seems to happen a lot with him.

There is skill, yes, but there is work.

Scheffler speaks endlessly about preparation, whether that's getting stronger in the gym or grooving a swing that rarely misses. When he wins, he picks the ball out of the cup and stuffs it in his pocket like he just finished a money game at Royal Oaks. Then it's time to go home and get ready for the next one.

“Rinse and repeat,” he said with a grin on the 18th green Sunday at PGA West.

How long can it last? Winning doesn't get old, but the work that goes into it can. It's reasonable to wonder if the routine, the grind, can lead to burnout.

But there's always the range at Royal Oaks, where Scheffler first showed up as a 6-year-old and Randy Smith spent two hours watching the kid's long swing make solid contact, time after time.

“At certain levels there's definitely risk of burnout,” Scheffler said after his four-shot victory, his ninth time winning by at least that much on the PGA Tour. "I think that's why you have to strike a balance. But I like routine. I like practicing. I like working out. I like doing what I need to do in order to play well. That's still fun for me.

“I think if somebody was making me do it, then it would be a lot harder,” he said. “But I don't feel pressure from anything external to do the things I do.”

It's not all fun. But everything has purpose.

“Like when I wake up early, do I want to get in the cold tub every morning? Absolutely not,” Scheffler said. “But it's something that helps me in order to play well. Did I dread doing cardio? Yeah. But I always love to practice.”

Scheffler uses the word “fun” regularly, and winning makes it more enjoyable. Fun is not so much the art of lifting a trophy but seeing the work pay off.

His latest victory was his 20th on the PGA Tour and 23rd overall — one of those an Olympic medal in Paris — all within the last four years. He joined Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus as the only players with four majors and 20 PGA Tour wins before turning 30.

Jason Day is among those amazed at what Scheffler is doing. He speaks from experience of not only of being No. 1 in the world but winning seven times over 17 starts on the PGA Tour a decade ago. Scheffler has won 14 times over his last 35 starts, with no indication of slowing.

“That is one of the most difficult things to do, to stay hungry to the point of not being satisfied,” Day said. "Because it’s very easy to get satisfied out here. You win a couple of times, you’re like, ‘Well, I’m kind of relaxed and I can coast for a little bit.’ And it seems like he never wants to relax.

“He always does his work, needs to do whatever he needs to do to be able to prepare, and he’s always around the lead.”

Rinse and repeat, along with the range at Royal Oaks.

This is a golf nerd to the highest degree. Maybe the toughest challenge facing Scheffler is how to switch off. He played pickleball a few years ago. He was big into coffee. Those are diversions but also distractions. He needs them.

“I spend most of my time thinking about golf,” he said. “I have to force myself to think about other things or I'll start thinking about golf. So if I want to take a break, I have to dive in to do something. It's not just a game. This is my work.”

While it's a new year, he said at the start of last week it didn't feel like one. The difference is Scheffler comes into 2026 with momentum, not stitches in his right hand that he sliced open with a wine glass while making ravioli during the holidays in 2024.

Last year he technically missed only two tournaments he normally plays. It felt like it cost him three months considering he effectively had to start over with his offseason plan of conditioning and practice. He didn't really start hitting his stride until the end of March. That was the last time he finished out of the top 10, a streak now at 16 in a row on the PGA Tour.

Maybe he's just getting started. What's next? A week at home, for starters, that no doubt will include time on the range at Royal Oaks.

“There's nothing better than hitting the ball exactly the way you want to,” Scheffler said. “That’s one of the best feelings ever.”

On The Fringe analyzes the biggest topics in golf during the season. AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Fans cheer on Scottie Scheffler as he walks to the 17th green during the final round of the American Express golf event on the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in La Quinta, Calif. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Scottie Scheffler hits onto the 18th green during the final round of the American Express golf event on the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in La Quinta, Calif. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Scottie Scheffler waves to the cheering crowd as he walks to the 18th green during the final round of the American Express golf event on the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in La Quinta, Calif. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Scottie Scheffler smiles after winning the American Express golf event on the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in La Quinta, Calif. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

Scottie Scheffler hits his tee shot at the fifth hole during the final round of the American Express golf event on the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West Sunday, Jan. 25, 2026, in La Quinta, Calif. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A heavy Russian drone bombardment of Ukraine’s southern city of Odesa killed at least three people and wounded 23, including two children and a pregnant woman, officials said Tuesday, as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for speedier U.S. efforts to end Russia's almost 4-year-old invasion of his country.

The Odesa attack involved more than 50 drones, some of them models recently upgraded by Russia to improve their range and strike power, according to Ukrainian authorities.

The drones targeted the power grid, which Russia has repeatedly bombarded during the coldest winter in years, and also hit five apartment blocks, officials said. Emergency crews retrieved the bodies of two men, aged 90 and 52, and a woman from the rubble, authorities said.

“The rescue operation will continue until the fate of all people who may be under the rubble is clarified,” Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app, adding that an informal Protestant place of worship was also damaged.

“Each such Russian strike undermines diplomacy, which is still ongoing, and hits, in particular, the efforts of partners who are helping to end this war,” he said.

A diplomatic push by the Trump administration to end the war has made progress, according to officials, but has delivered no breakthrough on the key issue of what happens to Russian-occupied Ukrainian land and other territory that Moscow is demanding.

Analysts says that Russian President Vladimir Putin is in no rush to find a settlement, despite his army’s difficulties on the roughly 1,000-kilometer (600-mile) front line. He believes that time is on his side, that Western support for Kyiv will fade and that Ukraine’s resistance will eventually break under pressure, according to analysts.

To replenish its forces and keep up the pressure on Kyiv, Moscow is offering cash bonuses, freeing convicts from prison and luring foreigners to its army.

An Associated Press investigation found that unwitting Bangladeshi workers were enticed to Russia under the false promise of civilian work before being thrown into combat in Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said late Monday the next round of talks with the United States and Russia is penciled in for Feb. 1. but that “it would be good if this meeting could be accelerated.”

He also urged that, in the meantime, additional sanctions be imposed on Russia to compel the Kremlin to make compromises.

Russia fired 165 drones at Ukraine overnight, with 24 of them that got through air defenses hitting targets in seven regions, according to Ukraine’s air force.

In recent weeks, the relentless barrages have damaged some of Ukraine’s protected world heritage sites in Odesa, the western city of Lviv and the capital, Kyiv, UNESCO said Tuesday.

They have also knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of civilians. More than 900 apartment blocks remained without heating Tuesday in several districts of Kyiv, Zelenskyy said. Kyiv, a city of about 3 million people, is dominated by tower blocks, many from the Soviet era.

Russia has been improving its drone technology and tactics, striking Ukraine with increasing success.

The Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s main intelligence directorate said earlier this month that Russia had deployed the new jet-powered “Geran-5” strike drone against Ukraine for the first time. The Geran is a Russian variant of the Iranian-designed Shahed.

According to the directorate, the drone can carry a 90-kilogram (200-pound) warhead and has a range of nearly 1,000 kilometers (600 miles).

In response, Ukraine has significantly expanded production of interceptor drones, as well as developing its own long-range drones.

The Russian Defense Ministry said Tuesday that its air defenses shot down 19 Ukrainian drones overnight over several Russian regions.

Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

Broken window glass is seen in an apartment following a Russian air attack in the city center in Odesa, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Shtekel)

Rescue workers clear the rubble of a residential building which was heavily damaged after a Russian strike in Odesa, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Shtekel)

Rescue workers clear the rubble of a residential building which was heavily damaged after a Russian strike in Odesa, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Shtekel)

Rescue workers clear the rubble of a residential building which was heavily damaged after a Russian strike in Odesa, Ukraine, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (AP Photo/Michael Shtekel)