Getty
Xander Schauffele is currently competing in the British Open, but has fallen out of first place. It may be difficult for him to find his way back to the top of the crowded, contentious leaderboard, but there is still a lot of golf left to play today. Schauffele is currently separated by only a few strokes, in either direction, from the likes of Jordan Spieth, Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Kevin Kisner, Francesco Molinari and Justin Rose.
He was born Alexander Victor Schauffele on October 25, 1993, but he goes by Xander for short. As far as Schauffele’s nationality goes, his father, Stefan, is German and French (hence his last name) and his mother, Ping Yi, was born in Taiwan and raised in Japan.
Schauffele credits his dad with getting him interested in golf.
“I hated team sports. My Dad played golf but he wouldn’t let me come play with him until I could carry my own bag. I didn’t take golf too seriously until I was 15-ish, where I threw all my eggs in one basket,” Xander Schauffele told PGATour.com back in 2016.
Stefan Schauffele was a “German Olympic hopeful in the decathlon,” according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. However, he was involved in a head-on car accident with a drunk driver that changed his destiny. Stefan ended up moving to San Diego, California, where he attended the U.S. International University. It was during his college years that he met Ping Yi.
Stefan went on to study at San Diego Golf Academy and later traveled to Hawaii, where he spent some time as an assistant club pro. His experience in the golf world has greatly helped him coach his son. Since Xander started taking up golf, his dad has been by his side, coaching him, mentoring him, and helping him perfect his craft.
“As much as I hated confronting him all the time and us butting heads in the middle of tournaments, which was bad, there was a feeling of comfort when he was with me. I grew out of that. He’s taught me everything he knows about golf. I feel like I know my own swing now and I tinker less. And I can always call him if I need some help. I think we get along better now that he’s not on the bag,” Xander Schauffele told the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Xander Schauffele won his first PGA Tour event at the Greenbrier Classic on July 9, 2017. Two months later, Schauffele took home his second victory on the PGA Tour, winning the Tour Championship.
