Golf has been secondary for Scottie Scheffler of late. It's hard to know what to expect at Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Scottie Scheffler's son Bennett turns 2 next month, and Remy was born less than two weeks ago. Neither is old enough to understand the significance of Augusta National, the Masters and the green jacket their father sometimes wears.

“(His wife Meredith) got this great picture of me and Bennett walking into the clubhouse with me with my green jacket and holding his hand. But, I mean, he has no idea what it means,” Scheffler said. "This place signifies so much for me in my golf journey, and that’s something I’d love to be able to share with my kids. We’ll see how that goes as they age.

“Right now I just — if I’m wearing it near him, I’m just hoping he doesn’t ruin it or anything like that.”

Scheffler has two kids — one for each of his Masters titles. He's the favorite in this week's tournament, as he tends to be for all majors these days, but his family life has been more exciting than his golf recently. The Scheffler who tore through the 2025 season, winning six times in a 4 1/2-month span, hasn't arrived yet this year.

It was business as usual when Scheffler won his first tournament of the year at The American Express in January. He followed that up by closing strong for top-five finishes at Phoenix and Pebble Beach, but since then he's been outside the top 10 in three straight events — and outside the top 20 in the last two of those.

A slump by his standards? Well, it's hard to call it that because Scheffler hasn't played at all since The Players Championship in the middle of last month. He withdrew from the Houston Open because his wife was expecting their second child, and little Remy was born March 27.

The word “rested” isn't often used by parents of newborns, but being away from the course may leave Scheffler refreshed.

“I’m getting plenty of sleep. My wife’s a trouper,” Scheffler said. “Remy is so young right now, they sleep a lot of the day. I think he’s used to being in the womb at this point. Yeah, I’ve been able to get a decent amount of sleep.”

It was hard to tell which of the kids was more of a hit at Wednesday's family friendly Par 3 Contest — Remy being carried by Meredith in a baby wrap or Bennett knocking the ball around with a blue toy club.

Bennett was born just before the PGA Championship in 2024. That major proved to be a wild experience for Scheffler at Valhalla. He was arrested before the second round for not following police instruction — a felony charge and three misdemeanors were later dropped — but made it back from jail in time to shoot 66 that day on his way to finishing tied for eighth.

His obstacles this week are likely to be on the course. Scheffler will try to become the first player since Adam Scott in 2013 to win at Augusta National after having three weeks off.

If there's been a problem for Scheffler this year, it's been his starts. In his past five tournaments, he's played the first round in a combined 3 over par while shooting 56 under the rest of the way.

Of course, all that might feel like ancient history to Scheffler after he's been otherwise occupied in recent weeks. A major like the Masters doesn't offer much of a chance to ease back into competition mode, but it does have its advantages.

“Augusta keeps going above and beyond to make things special and easy for us as players. Especially the practice rounds,” Scheffler said. “The practice rounds are very peaceful. There’s no phones. There’s no people asking for selfies in the middle of the round. It’s very calm out there, and people follow the rules here.”

Scheffler will play with Robert MacIntyre and Gary Woodland in the first two rounds. He was a 6-1 favorite per BetMGM Sportsbook on Wednesday morning. That's similar to his +550 odds before the previous major — the British Open in July, which he won — but not as short at the +275 price on him leading up to last year's U.S. Open.

“Game feels like it’s in a good spot,” Scheffler said. “I got some rest the last few weeks at home. So I feel rested and ready to go this week.”

AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf

Scottie Scheffler hits from the bunker on the sixth hole during a practice round ahead of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Tuesday, April 7, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Scottie Scheffler skips a ball on the 16th hole during a practice round ahead of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

Scottie Scheffler, left, carries his son, Bennett, on the sixth hole during par-3 contest ahead of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Scottie Scheffler watches his tee shot on the 17th hole during a practice round ahead of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Scottie Scheffler, left, speaks with his son, Bennett, center, as his wife Meredith holds their son Remy, on the third hole during par-3 contest ahead of the Masters golf tournament at the Augusta National Golf Club, Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)

NEW YORK (AP) — Oil prices plunged below $95 per barrel, and stock markets surged worldwide Wednesday after President Donald Trump pulled back from his threat to force a “whole civilization” to die in the war with Iran.

The S&P 500 leaped 2.1% after Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran, less than 90 minutes before a deadline Trump had set for it to open the Strait of Hormuz and allow oil tankers to exit the Persian Gulf. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1,101 points, or 2.4%, with an hour remaining in trading, and the Nasdaq composite was 2.3% higher following even bigger gains in European and Asian stock markets.

To be sure, stock prices are still below where they were before the war. And oil prices are still significantly higher because the threat remains that the war could continue and keep oil tankers blocked in the Persian Gulf. The ceasefire already looks precarious, with drones and missiles hitting Iran and Gulf Arab countries and Israel intensifying attacks in Lebanon.

Some of the euphoria that fueled financial markets in the morning faded as Wednesday progressed, and financial markets have been prone to sharp and sudden reversals because of deep uncertainty about what will happen next in the war.

“There is a reason to be optimistic, but it is still too early to tell, because, as you know, after all, it is Trump,” said Takashi Hiroki, chief strategist at MONEX.

So far in the war, Trump has set several deadlines for Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz, a main thoroughfare for oil to reach customers worldwide from the Persian Gulf, and has threatened big repercussions if Iran doesn’t, only to delay them.

It’s similar to a year ago, when Trump threatened stiff tariffs on imports from other countries on “Liberation Day.” After a couple delays, his administration eventually negotiated lower tariffs with many countries, though they were still higher than from before his second term. That led some investors to allege Trump “always chickens out,” or “TACO,” if financial markets show enough pain.

“Is it just kicking of the can down the road, moving the goalposts, TACO Tuesday, or whatever metaphor we’d like, to only to have tempers flare and bombs drop again?” Brian Jacobsen, chief economic strategist at Annex Wealth Management, asked about the two-week ceasefire with Iran. “Who knows? But it’s good enough for now to elicit a positive response from the markets.”

The price for a barrel of benchmark U.S. crude oil plunged 16.4% to settle at $94.41 after almost dropping to $91 earlier in the morning.

Brent crude, the international standard, tumbled 13.3% to $94.75 per barrel. It had briefly topped $119 when worries about the war with Iran were at their highest, but it's still above its roughly $70 price from before the war.

The next moves for oil prices will likely depend on how many oil tankers can start exiting the Strait of Hormuz and how easy their passage is. Iran closed the strait again Wednesday in response to Israeli attacks against the Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon.

In Asia, where countries are more reliant on oil from the Middle East, South Korea’s Kospi stock index surged 6.9%. Japan’s Nikkei 225 leaped 5.4%, and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng jumped 3.1%.

European stock indexes rose nearly as much. Germany’s DAX returned 5.1%, and France’s CAC 40 rallied 4.5%.

On Wall Street, companies with big fuel bills roared back to trim some of the sharp losses taken on worries about oil prices staying high.

United Airlines soared 7.9% and cut into its loss for the year, which came into the day at 20.1%. Cruise ship operator Carnival climbed 9.6%.

Delta Air Lines rallied 4.2% after it reported stronger results for the latest quarter than analysts expected. CEO Ed Bastian said demand for flights remains strong, and it's making moves to make up for higher fuel bills. Delta on Tuesday became the latest airline to raise its fees for checking bags.

In the bond market, Treasury yields dropped as hopes built that easing oil prices could let the Federal Reserve resume its cuts to interest rates later this year.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.29% from 4.33% late Tuesday. Lower Treasury yields give a boost to prices for stocks, bonds and all kinds of other investments. They should also ease some of the recent rise in rates for mortgages and other loans taken out by U.S. households and businesses.

When oil prices were screaming higher because of the war, some traders were betting on the possibility that the Fed would have to raise interest rates to keep a lid on inflation. Now, they're seeing a nearly 24% chance that the Fed could resume its cuts to rates in 2026, according to data from CME Group.

AP journalists Yuri Kageyama, Matt Ott, Mayuko Ono and Jon Gambrell contributed to this report.

Currency traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

U.S. President Donald Trump is seen on a screen as traders work at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

A person walks by an electronic stock board showing Japan's Nikkei index in Tokyo Wednesday, April 8, 2026. (Yuya Shino/Kyodo News via AP)

John Mauro works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Ed Curran works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)