Xander Schauffele has some of the most prestigious hardware in sports: an Olympic gold medal, a Claret Jug and a Wanamaker Trophy.
But they’re hardly his most prized possessions.
“I don’t have any trophies at my house,” Schauffele said Tuesday ahead of his British Open title defense. “I don’t really think about winning. You always, I think, if you’re really competitive, you just think about how to get better and you think about what's next, which is good and bad.”
In addition to his major triumphs, the world No. 3 has also won an additional six PGA Tour titles. So, where could all of his prizes be?
“My parents’s house probably in a bank vault,” he said. “I think that’s where some of the—like one of the trophies was when they travel.”
That doesn’t include the gold medal, though.
“I actually have no idea where that is to be completely honest,” the 31-year-old said.
Many players have a shrine of their accomplishments. Schauffele, however, doesn’t feel it’s necessary.
“What am I going to do with it?” he said. “I don’t really invite people over to my house. Am I just going to go look at it myself? That’s the way I feel about it. I don’t want to walk into a trophy room like, look how great I am. I was just raised to think that way, and it’s kind of stuck. I really don't sit at home, you know what I mean?”
So what’s the decor in his home?
“My wife hung up some pictures of me in my gym of like me winning the Olympic medal, and she put it so high up I can’t reach it. I have to get a ladder now, and it bothers me.”
If Schauffele’s accolades are going to be represented in his house, he’d rather it be a source of motivation.
“If anything, put up like me in a Masters jacket, like that would piss me off, you know what I mean?” he said. “Something like that is more motivating ... I don’t want to look at that.”
What does he want to fill the empty space with?
“A photo of my dogs or nothing, a clock maybe,” he said. “I’m always late, so maybe a clock would be good for me.”
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Xander Schauffele Has ‘No Idea’ Where Olympic Gold Medal Is, or Other Trophies.