logo
'He’s Not Afraid to Fight': Xander Schauffele and Austin Kaiser Reflect on Their Journey
News

5 MIN READ

July 16, 2025

'He’s Not Afraid to Fight': Xander Schauffele and Austin Kaiser Reflect on Their Journey

As the long-time friends prepare to defend at The Open, they remember the broken-down-car days and laugh.

Xander Schauffele put an exclamation point on his 2024 campaign in winning the Open Championship for his mind-boggling second major in three tries that summer at Royal Troon over a start-studded group of players and led to a title he reveled in for the past calendar year: Champion golfer of the year.

What a distinction.

Schauffele likes to say that he’s always had a deep appreciation for The Open Championship and its many traditions, and getting awarded the Claret Jug in front of thousands at Royal Troon was a day that even now, he still recalls with affection.

“It was extremely validating to get that win, it was just a dream come true for me,” Schauffele said. “That walk up eighteen with the leaderboard, the standing ovation from the crowd and everything that comes along with winning the Open Championship was special. That tradition of having that title for an entire year is a really cool thing.”

You often hear the term ‘man of the people’ to describe popular athletes, but in Xander’s case, he feels a deep sense of gratitude for the fans who are part of this championship and who certainly cheered him on last July during his two-shot win over Billy Horschel and Justin Rose.

GettyImages-2225023278.jpg

“All Open Championships have their own, individual flair. I’d say the fans are awesome, and not just once in a while, I mean ten out of ten times they are amazing,” Schauffele said. “The courses are always fun to me. Being a west coast kid and living in the states, it’s just an appreciation of playing golf across the pond that is something I always look forward to doing.”

The 31-year-old will tee it up this week with fellow San Diego State Aztec former teammate and recent U.S. Open champ J.J. Spaun, and the man who could effectively run for mayor of San Diego in Jon Rahm, who’s won there more times than most players not named Tiger Woods over the last quarter century.

Though Schauffele played the Open Championship here at Portrush in 2019 (he finished tied for 41st), the two-time major winner is giving it a second look this week, and understands he needs every aspect of his game.

“I think that's why this is an unbelievable venue. It's everything,” Schauffele said in his Tuesday presser. “If you pick the correct club off the tee, you can maybe get away with a few loose drives, but then again, it's very lie biased. Chipping is tricky. Greens are firm, and they're a little bit slower than what we played even last week (Renaissance Club). Thank goodness because if they were faster it would be even more difficult. Then putting, putting is always tricky with wind.”

That’s why you lean on your caddie for help in windy conditions, and there might not be a closer player/caddie team in today’s game than Schauffele and his former college teammate and longtime friend Austin Kaiser.

GettyImages-2175527388.jpg

Reflecting on his player’s big win last July at Troon, Kaiser points to the strong weekend poise Schauffele showed in delivering a low one on Sunday after grinding out a miserable weather day in Saturday’s third round.

“Xander was in go mode and shot 6-under at The Open on Sunday which is just crazy to think about in those conditions,” Kaiser said of the 30-40 mph winds and torrential rain of that third round.

So, what does that low round show others about who Xander is?

“I think it’s representative of him as a whole. He’s a fighter, he never gives up, I’ve never seen him mail in any tournaments or anything. That’s why he has so many back door top 10s is because he’s not afraid to fight, and that’s what I think that day came down to,” Kaiser said. “He was fighting, because we played Saturday on one of the hardest days I’ve ever seen a golf course play. That day we won the tournament and the next day just felt so easy to him. And he went out and shot 6-under no problem.”

Kaiser worked closely with Schauffele every step of the way that weekend, and swing coach Chris Como has noticed the strong bond, himself.

“They are one of the best teams in golf. Austin has been on his bag since way before Xander had status on the PGA Tour. I love watching them do their thing,” Como said. “They both are some of the hardest workers out there and have so much trust in each other. This week is obviously always special for everyone but for them to be defending and to breathe in the journey they’ve been on together has to be incredible.”

Incredible, too, that these old friends both started this journey from humble beginnings.

Their story is one of good old hard work and tenacity, even going back to Schauffele playing on the mini tour days. Kaiser insisted on driving around Southern California in his car because it was more reliable. Schauffele explains his side of things.

“Austin had a Honda Accord, I had a Mitsubishi Montero, something that my parents gave me which was really nice of them. I can’t remember what year his was, mine was a 1997 but it wasn’t reliable enough to drive to Arizona or two and a half hours away from home-inland of LA,” Schauffele said. “So Austin was nice to let us use his car and he’d drive me and kind of took care of me, and he was my (Joe) LaCava to Freddy Couples.”

That all sounds like a feel-good story and all, until you hear that Kaiser’s trusty Accord would turn off randomly throughout the day. From the fast food drive thru to anxious moments even while driving on the freeway.

“His car did turn off randomly, so shoutout to that moment. That happened a few times (actually). But we were lucky because it turned back on. I don’t know if it was a battery issue, an old car issue, or the-way-he-drove issue, but it could have been any of those,” Schauffele smiled.



Share this article

Share this article

skratch logo

JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER

Get our top stories in your inbox, including the latest drops in style, the need-to-know news in pro golf, and the latest episodes of Skratch’s original series.

golf stick
golf stick

RELATED ARTICLES

Did Someone Say...Hybrid!? Watch Out for These Interesting Gear Changes at The Open

Did Someone Say...Hybrid!? Watch Out for These Interesting Gear Changes at The Open

Ryan Barath

FootJoy's Legends Series Is the Brand’s Victory Lap in Style and Storytelling

FootJoy's Legends Series Is the Brand’s Victory Lap in Style and Storytelling

Raymond Williams

Grant Horvat Turned Down a PGA TOUR Invite and the Social Media Reaction Has Been…Mixed

Grant Horvat Turned Down a PGA TOUR Invite and the Social Media Reaction Has Been…Mixed

Riley Hamel

logo

Skratch 2025 © All rights reserved

Follow us on social media

Every product is independently selected by editors. Things you buy through our links may earn us a commission.