Scottie Scheffler was well off the boil at The Scottish Open this week, but that could actually be good news ahead of The Open Championship which starts on Thursday.
Scheffler didn’t play terribly at The Scottish Open but he was nowhere near his imperious best.
In fact, the 29-year-old hasn’t been anywhere near his best since his win at The Memorial Tournament last month.
But guess what? He has finished inside the top-10 in his last three events.
Scheffler is a self-confessed fan of links golf, and many fancied him to win at The Renaissance Club this week.
It wasn’t to be for the world number one though.
Next up for Scheffler is The Open Championship at Royal Portrush next week, and he will be looking to tick the third leg of the grand slam off the list.
Scheffler has cut a frustrated figure at the Scottish Open this week, and that has been a common theme for him over the past month or so.
Scottie Scheffler’s old problem comes back to haunt him ahead of The Open
Scheffler finishing inside the top-10 once again just goes to show how good he really is. When he hasn’t got his best stuff, he is still better than most players on the PGA Tour.
However, the 29-year-old has been suffering with a clear and obvious problem at The Renaissance Club this week.
The 16-time PGA Tour winner’s woes with his putter returned with a vengeance at The Scottish Open.
Scheffler was ranked first in strokes gained tee to green this week but 108th in strokes gained putting!
He actually lost strokes on the greens this week.
However, his struggles with the putter will serve as a great experience for him. Sure, the greens will be quicker at Royal Portrush, but the grass will be identical.
Getting used to links surfaces takes time, so this week in Scotland could end up being invaluable for Scheffler by the time The Open rolls around.
Yes, he will be hugely frustrated with the way that he putted this week.
However, he will be under no illusions now regarding what his priority should be when he lands in Northern Ireland.
Scottie Scheffler’s putting problems a blessing in disguise ahead of The Open
Scheffler’s putting has actually improved exponentially over the past couple of years.
He is ranked 15th in strokes gained putting in 2025 – a quite remarkable turnaround given his struggles with the flat-stick during the last two seasons.
| Putting categories | 2025 rank | 2024 rank | 2023 rank |
| Strokes gained putting | 15th | 77th | 162nd |
| Putts per round | 11th | 21st | 110th |
| One-putt percentage | 16th | 22nd | 136th |
However, Scheffler’s performance on the greens at The Scottish Open this week has been very much like the old days.
He seems to have lost all confidence with his putter. That said, it should be very clear to Scheffler now what he has to work on ahead of The Open at Royal Portrush next week.
As soon as he arrives at Portrush, he should be focused entirely on ironing out the creases in his putting stroke.
If he can get his putter working again, it should surprise nobody if he wins The Open by a substantial margin.
Even if he has an average week on the greens, he will have a great chance of winning, that’s how good he is tee to green.
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