Amanda Balionis’ question leaves Scottie Scheffler close to tears

Scottie Scheffler won the CJ Cup Byron Nelson by five strokes on Sunday, with the 28-year-old almost overcome with emotion after the tournament as he spoke with Amanda Balionis

Amanda Balionis covered this week’s event for CBS Sports(Image: Getty Images)

Scottie Scheffler was visibly moved after clinching the CJ Cup Byron Nelson on Sunday.

Scheffler dominated the tournament for his 18th professional victory and first triumph of 2025. It was a sweet victory too, coming within two months of Phil Mickelson claiming the world No. 1 would not win another tournament before the Ryder Cup in September.

It was also a good day for Jordan Spieth, who produced his lowest ever round on the PGA Tour (62) to find some form ahead of the PGA Championship. Rory McIlroy, who recently received a message from Tiger Woods following his win at the Masters, did not play at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

Scheffler sailed to a comfortable victory and later discussed his emotions with Balionis. During the interview, a question from Balionis nearly brought him to tears. Holding his son, Scheffler responded tearfully: “This tournament means a lot to me.”

With his voice trembling, Scheffler added: “It’s my first start as a pro, 11 years ago, when I had my sister caddying for me – she’s back there too. It feels like a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice for little moments like these, and they’re pretty special.”

As the first local Dallas-area player to claim the event title in almost two decades, the win carried extra significance for Scheffler. In an emotional moment during the interview, Balionis showed him a childhood photo of himself with the namesake of the tournament, emphasizing the deep connection he has with the event.

Scottie Scheffler was emotional after his CJ Cup Byron Nelson win, with his child in his arms(Image: CBS)

When asked about his memories from an encounter over two decades ago, Scheffler responded: “He’s a great man, he was great for the game of golf. He was a great person and family man, and I’m proud to be the champion of his event.”

It seems that Scheffler’s victories on the PGA Tour were almost predestined. From a young age, he had done everything possible to shape himself into a golfer, even opting to dress like one during his childhood in emulation of the stars he admired.

CBS Sports reporter Balionis had a conversation with Scheffler’s coach, Randy Smith. As they reminisced about their history with the 28-year-old, Balionis recalled a story about how Scheffler used to dress as a child.

She shared: “My favorite story, and I think (former PGA Tour star) Colt (Knost) was the one who first told me about this, is that Scottie would only wear long pants at the golf course.

“Starting at age like, six or seven, when he was following Colt and some of those other guys around. Because, he knew he wanted to be a PGA Tour player, so he figured, he might as well start dressing like one.”

Meanwhile, Smith expressed that the moment he saw Scheffler hitting balls, he knew there was something extraordinary about the young boy.

“Take a six and seven-year-old kid, they’re hitting… with him. Little baby guy. He’s hitting it at targets. He’s always hitting at a target,” he said.

“I mean, target here, target here. Different club to the target. And I knew there was something very special about him at that age.”