Rory McIlroy and Viktor Hovland in heated debate over top golfers

Rory McIlroy and Viktor Hovland are in disagreement over who's had the standout season between Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele as the PGA Tour heads toward its grand finale.

As the playoffs kick off this Thursday at TPC Southwind in Tennessee, World No. 1 Scheffler boasts a hefty lead in the FedEx Cup rankings .

The 28-year-old has notched up six PGA Tour victories this term, including a triumph at The Masters, and topped it off with an Olympic gold medal win in Paris.

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Schauffele, on the other hand, has solidified his place among the elite of his era by clinching the PGA Championship and The Open within two months, putting an end to his major tournament woes. The question of who's had the superior season sparked debate, with four-time major champ McIlroy and current FedEx Cup holder Hovland sharing their views before the upcoming FedEx St Jude Championship.

When quizzed on which player's season he'd choose, McIlroy didn't hesitate: "Scottie's," he said. "I think winning the Masters, an Olympic gold medal, winning, whatever it is, six times, it's pretty hard to top that."

Hovland, however, was quick to counter with a different take. The Norwegian remarked: "I mean, two majors. That sounds pretty nice to me."

McIlroy was particularly taken aback by Scheffler's stunning display at Le Golf National, where he fired a nine-under-par final round highlighted by an astonishing 29 on the back nine to leapfrog Tommy Fleetwood by a single stroke for the gold.

"It's up there [with the best rounds I have seen]," McIlroy said. "I thought I was on course for a 29 as well at one point. But for him to just keep it going, he's amazing even when you think he's not really in the tournament or he's sort of on the fringes of contention. He always seems to find a way to hit the shots or hole the putts."

"I've described Scottie as relentless, and this is just another example of that. He's had an incredible couple of years. It was sort of like once he won that first one, it's just like the floodgates have opened and he's found a next gear and a next level. As a golf fan, it's really cool to see."

Scheffler has expressed his discontent with the Tour Championship format, which looks set to have him teeing off merely two shots ahead of Schauffele at East Lake in a fortnight, despite his dominant season. He's adamant that the playoff results won't affect his perception of his season's success.

"I talked about it the last few years. I think it's silly," Scheffler remarked. "You can't call it a season-long race and have it come down to one tournament. Hypothetically we get to East Lake and my neck flares up and it doesn't heal the way it did at THE PLAYERS, I finish 30th in the FedExCup because I had to withdraw from the last tournament. Is that really the season-long race? No. It is what it is."

"It's a fun tournament. I don't really consider it the season-long race like I think the way it's called. But you've got to figure out a way to strike a balance between it being a good TV product and it still being a season-long race.

"Right now, I don't know exactly how the ratings are or anything like that, but I know for a fact you can't really quite call it the season-long race when it comes down to one strokeplay tournament on the same golf course each year."

"I'm not going to look back on my season really any differently if I don't win East Lake."

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