AUGUSTA, Ga. — The Masters this week is being billed — and rightfully so — as the Rory McIlroy-Scottie Scheffler Show. McIlroy is seeking a Masters victory to complete the elusive career Grand Slam only five other players have accomplished. And Scheffler, the defending champion, is trying to become the only player other than Jack Nicklaus to win three Masters in a four-year span. Don’t, however, sleep on Xander Schauffele. A Schauffele victory this week at Augusta National would make him the winner of three of the past four majors, dating back to last year when he won the PGA Championship and the British Open. That’s Tiger Woods territory, high ground. Schauffele’s 2025 season, though, has been interrupted by an intercostal strain and a cartilage tear. He first felt pain in December, ignored it and made it worse to the point he had to sit out tournaments and let it heal. While he did that, he watched the likes of McIlroy [two wins this year] and Scheffler excel, which drove him nuts while helplessly resting at home. “Everything is gravy when it’s gravy,’’ Schauffele said Monday. “It was a nice wake-up call to maybe be a little more responsible when need be. It was a reminder of how much I love to play and compete. “To be able to take a step back after winning two majors and sort of accomplishing a lot, to still feel some fire burning watching other guys playing really well is a huge thing because at some point in my life that’s not going to happen, so I’m lucky that it’s still learning. “I’ve never really dealt with injury before, so I’ve never really been sidelined. Sitting at home thinking all these thoughts, watching everyone else play golf and sort of fly by me, it’s been very motivating. Just trying to use that to perform at a higher level.’’ His results this year have not been up to his standards: a tie for 30th at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in early January before taking time off to heal ; a tie for 40th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March; then a 72nd-place finish at the Players Championship. Those results frustrated Schauffele as he tried to find his form. He believes his tie for 12th at the Valspar Championship a few weeks ago restored some of his game and his faith, mainly because he feels closer to 100 percent. “Maybe I freed myself up that week, just sort of let the ball go wherever it’s going to go, instead of two hands on the steering wheel, gripping tight, just kind of let it be,’’ he said of his performance at the Valspar. “I know what I’m capable of when I’m feeling good, when I’m not thinking of anything but getting the ball in the hole. It’s been a process to get back to that. I don’t have a ton of reps doing it, but there’s a lot for me to draw back on, sort of previous accomplishments to sort of let that confidence grow. “When I say ‘draw from,’ I mean last year I was firing on close to all cylinders at some points, and I sort of saw what that got me and how far that got me.’’ It got him two major championships. “Not that anything terrible happened, but you sort of take it for granted when you’re playing healthy golf,’’ Schauffele said. “It’s nice to be back playing and feeling healthy and strong.’’ Schauffele said “self-belief [has] been hammered into my brain’’ by his father, Stefan. Asked if he needs some “validation,’’ Schauffele smiled and said, “At some point it would help. Yeah, definitely some validation helps along the way. You can’t come in last place every week and tell yourself that you’re really good.’’ McIlroy and Scheffler will draw most of the pre-tournament hype, but don’t overlook Schauffele. “There’s so many guys that have played at a really high level,’’ Schauffele said. “They’ve been playing incredible golf. Rory has been playing unbelievably well this year with a couple wins already and kind of breezing through what looks like hard golf courses. “Luckily, I was able to do that last year, and there’s no reason I can’t do it again.’’