Dubbed the ‘Crying’ Teddy Bear, Xander Schauffele’s Biggest Family Affair Missed His Father: ‘He Was a Mess’

The 30-year-old Xander Schauffele finally marked his name into the annals of history with a win at the PGA Championship. However, for the special moment, a certain someone was absent at the golf course in Valhalla, none other than the golfer’s father. Even so, his mind was filled with the thoughts of his dad, Stefan Schauffele, who was in Hawaii.

The PGA Tour Pro was spotted in an interview post his win at the major championship. He went ahead to divulge how important his parents were to him all the while dubbing his father as nothing short of a “big teddy bear!”

“He crept into my mind yesterday during an interview,” confessed Schauffele while recounting the presser after his third round in which he divulged his parents’ whereabouts. The pro also revealed how he called his father before walking down into the greens of the par-5, 18th (Photo Finish); “He was a mess. He was crying on the phone. It made me pretty emotional. I told him I had to hang up because I had to walk down. I couldn’t show up looking like the way I was.”

Schauffele was then queried on whether he remembered his dad getting teary-eyed. Quick to his response, he disclosed how his father is an emotional man despite his big stature; “My dad is actually – he’s referred to as the ogre, but he’s a big teddy bear. Steve Stricker wins a tournament and he’s crying… That’s the kind of guy he is.”

Though Schauffele’s father has been portrayed as an emotional person, he has been a very vital presence in the golfer’s life, being his swing coach, and mentor. Even in his absence, his dad had sent him positive text messages throughout the week and the previous one. However, with the arrival of Chris Como, his coach, the athlete’s father could finally take a break; “He feels like he can kind of take his hands off the wheel. He trusts him a lot, I trust him a lot,” while alluding to his swing coach.

Meanwhile, the PGA Tour Pro’s mother was also absent from Valhalla this week as she was back in their home in San Diego. He was, regardless of their nonattendance, very expressive of his love towards them and was sure of their happiness in his win, especially his father’s; “My dad is at that stage in his life, I really want him to be happy, and I know this is going to bring him a ton of joy where he’s at in Hawai’i right now.” But then again, who was with the professional at the major?

Here are the people who made Xander Schauffele’s 2024 PGA Championship win truly special!

At the press conference, the reporter asked Shauffele about the people “who were there at Valhalla?” and “how influential or great they’ve been?” for his life and golf. “My uncle is my agent,” revealed Schauffele before adding how he has been with him from the start of 2024. He also came out candid on his other family members who were accompanying him on the major; “My brother cooks for me. He’s not a professional cook, but he can make some tasty food, so he’s been willing to help me.”

His next focus was on his wife as the athlete dubbed her the “rock in my(sic) life.” Schauffele then went ahead to name his two dogs. Besides this, Schauffele mentioned an old buddy from New York and his girlfriend, along with Max Homa’s caddie – Joe Greiner, and Taylor Moore’s caddie – Chris Tichenor. “Those are the people that I saw coming off the green,” recollected the pro when asked about the people who he was looking forward to celebrating with. It truly does seem like a family affair for the golfer who finally won his first major and he couldn’t have been happier.