Stefan Schauffele’s coaching methods of his PGA Champion son Xander often extended out to his friends
Xander Schauffele said his father was so insistent on him not watching a video of his golf swing, he even scared his friends away from taking a recording of his technique.
Schauffele, 30, recently won his first PGA World Championship by overcoming fellow American Bryson DeChambeau by a single stroke at Valhalla Golf Course.
As is often the case with sports stars, Schauffele’s father, Stefan, who recently said there is “no chance” of his son defecting to LIV Golf, was his first coach in the sport. Schauffele is now working with Chris Como, who is providing plenty of guidance on his game.
Before, it was Schacuffele senior who would be providing the tricks of the trade to the California native. However, the 30-year-old’s father is still a staunch defender of his son, particularly if there is something he disagrees with
He is definitely a character, his nickname is the ogre,” Schauffele said on the ‘Pardon My Take’ podcast. “He handles conversations and tough situations in an ogre fashion – he’s not afraid to get in your face to put it like that.”
While Stefan always ensured his son was as well equipped as he could be, he also knew of the risk of trying to be too precise in his coaching. So much so that, no matter how many times Xander asked to watch a video of his golf swing when he was younger, Stefan would always refuse.
He also knew that he would struggle to stop his son from asking a friend or acquaintance to take a video of his technique. To make sure he covered all bases, Schauffele claimed his old man would intimidate his friends into not recording a video.
When asked if it was true that he threatened his friends, Schauffele laughed and said: “Yeah. I’ll be like ‘Come on, I need to see what’s going on, I know you don’t feel good about this’.
“They’re like ‘No, sorry man, I can’t do it, get someone else to do that’.” Stefan is still regularly by his son’s side, although his iconic stetson hat and linen shirt were nowhere to be seen in Kentucky.
When he won the Championship, Xander cheered, hugged his wife, signed his scorecard and phoned his father, who was in Hawaii living in the tiny shipping container he spends plenty of time in.
While he is working with Como, he still recognises the impact his father had on his career. “He’s been much coach forever,” Schauffele said.
“I actually ended up hiring Chris Como in November of last year so I’ve known him for quite some time. We have a mutual friend who introduced us way back, so my dad knows Chris pretty well.
“Chris did a little golf channel thing with us when he was working with them so my dad just felt comfortable. He is always going to be my dad, but in terms of golfing capacity, he sort of passed the torch over to Chris and felt like there’s no need for him to be there if I am there with the rest of my team.
