PONTE VEDRA BEACH — A Tiger Woods sighting didn’t happen as many had hoped during the 50th edition of The Players Championship.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler picked up the slack and delivered a pretty good impression of golf’s ultimate closer. He also did something Woods didn’t at the PGA Tour’s showcase event.

With a bogey-free 8-under 64 Sunday at TPC Sawgrass, Scheffler tied the lowest final round by a winner — joining David Love III (2003) and Fred Couples (1996) — to become the tournament’s first back-to-back winner.

Scheffler’s 20-under-par 268 total is the lowest winning score since Greg Norman went 24-under in 1994.

“It’s tough enough to win one Players,” he said. “To have [done] it back-to-back is extremely special.”

Scheffler is starting to make winning look easy.

A week after he cruised to a 5-shot victory at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Scheffler erased a 5-shot deficit to equal the largest comeback at TPC Sawgrass, joining Justin Leonard (1998) and Henrik Stenson (2009).

But Leonard trailed just two players while Stenson was behind just one entering the final round. Scheffler had to leap-frog five players.

“That’s why we put in all the work to be able to finish off tournaments and to play well at the right time,” he said. “Going into days like today it’s nice coming out on top, for sure.”

Scheffler picked up his eighth PGA Tour win while nursing an injury.

Early in his second round Friday, the 27-year-old felt a painful tweak in his neck on the 12th hole. He sought on-course treatment for it while awaiting his tee shot on No. 14.

Despite the discomfort swinging the club, Scheffler did not consider withdrawing. He played the past two days with black kinesiology sports tape peaking out above the back collar of his shirt.

A pain in the neck did not keep him from continuing to grab golf by the throat.

“I’m a pretty competitive guy, and I didn’t want to give up in the tournament,” he said. “I did what I could to hang around until my neck got better. Today it felt really good.”

With Scheffler at full strength, his peers weren’t surprised to see him charging into contention.

“It’s just another week,” said 54-hole leader Xander Schauffele, one of three who finished a shot back.

Fellow runner-up and 36-hole leader Wyndham Clark said he peeked at a leaderboard on the 11th hole.

“I kind of chuckled and I said, ‘Yeah, of course,’ ” he said.

Clark was dumbfounded by day’s end.

Clark, Schauffele and red-hot Brian Harman each had a chance to force a three-hole playoff against Scheffler with a birdie on the par-4 18th, one of golf’s toughest closing holes.

Following a miss by Harman in the group ahead and Schauffele from outside 60 feet, Clark stepped in from 17 feet, 4 inches — the exact distance Harman faced. Clark’s ball fell halfway into the hole before horseshoeing out, leaving him and onlookers stunned.

“I don’t know how that putt doesn’t go in,” he said following a 3-under 69. “I’m pretty gutted.”

Schauffele could relate, but for different reasons. Leading Clark by a shot, the world’s No. 6 player came up short again on the final day.

Schauffele was 20-under and in the lead when he reached the tee at the difficult par-4 14th, the week’s toughest hole. When he exited the 15th, he was 18-under after he failed to save par from the deep rough around the green on both holes.

“I’m going to lick my wounds,” he said. “These suck. When I went to bed last night, it’s not exactly how I envisioned walking off the 18th green.”

Following rounds of 65 and 64, defending British Open champion Harman got off to a slow start before he rallied with four birdies in a five-hole stretch ending on No. 12. Another birdie, this from 15 feet on the 15th hole, pulled him with a shot. But he parred in from there, including a 5 on No. 16 — the day’s second-easiest hole.

“I had my chances; just didn’t cash in,” he said. “I’m proud of the way I fought back. I wish I could have the drive on 16 back. I wish I could have the putt on 18 back.”

Scheffler’s scorecard was unblemished, but his round was not flawless.

During last week’s resounding win at Bay Hill, he exorcised his putting demons with a flat stick switch. But Scheffler’s miss from inside five feet on the par-3 13th was his first in two weeks from short distance, a nagging issue for much of the past 12 months.

Scheffler shook it off, though, and took the lead with an up-and-down from the greenside bunker on No. 16.

Following consecutive pars, he then faced some anxious moments as the final few groups finished.

“I sat down and watched for a few minutes just to pass the time,” he said. “It’s not fun sitting around being helpless just watching guys be in control.”

Scheffler soon headed to the practice putting green to prepare a potential playoff. He didn’t even see Clark’s gut-wrenching finish.

“I heard a groan,” he said.

Scheffler immediately turned and hugged caddie Ted Scott to celebrate the victory, good for a $4.5 million winner’s check.

“Those moments of victory are always really special,” he said. “It’s really not just me out there putting in the work. There’s so much stuff that goes on behind the scenes.”

Scheffler thrives in the spotlight with a flair for the dramatic. A hole-out for eagle from 92 yards on par-4 No. 4 got his round going after three pars to open his day.

The clutch play and closing ability are certainly reminiscent of Woods, though Scheffler laughed off the comparison. The unassuming Texan instead recalled a fan reminding him in February at Riviera how far he has to go to measure up to Woods, who won 82 times on Tour and was No. 1 for 638 weeks — compared with 78 for Scheffler.

“I hit my tee ball and this guy yells out ‘Congrats on being No. 1, Scottie; 11 more years to go,’” he recalled. “Anytime you can be compared to Tiger is really special, but the guy stands alone I think in our game.

“He really does.”

But Sunday at TPC Sawgrass, Scheffler stood alone himself once again.

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