Catriona Matthew issues verdict on how Scottie Scheffler played in his third round at The Open

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Catriona Matthew has suggested how Scottie Scheffler will feel about his third round at The Open Championship, with the world number one a handful of shots away from the lead at Royal Troon.

Scottie Scheffler was one of the players looking to close the gap on Shane Lowry heading into the weekend at The Open Championship. Lowry himself, suggested that Scheffler would not be worried about the deficit after his first two rounds.

Unfortunately for the Irishman, it proved to be a pretty miserable day as he moved back towards the field. Scheffler meanwhile, has kept himself right in the mix ahead of the final round at Royal Troon.

The 28-year-old made one birdie and eight pars on the front nine, while he made two bogeys after the turn before a sublime birdie on 17 to move himself back to even for the day.

How Scottie Scheffler played during his third round at The Open

In those conditions in South Ayrshire, standing still must have felt like moving forward on the leaderboard. And many will be waiting to see what The Masters champion will do over the final 18 holes.

Certainly, speaking to BBC Sport, former Solheim Cup captain Matthew believes that Scheffler will be relatively content with his performance, even if he had a particularly tough day on the greens.

“Scheffler will feel he’s not played that badly,” she said.

“He’s just had nothing really going for him. 

“A cold putter and this back nine has been pretty brutal for him this afternoon.”

The man the field will fear

Scheffler has that aura that only a handful of golfers have had, where you feel as though their rivals can never relax while he is within a few shots. He has had an unbelievable year, winning six times already.

And the lack of drama in his level par round may give him real belief with so many struggling in the weather conditions in Scotland.

Justin Rose is a major champion, but that win came 11 years ago, and the Englishman had to qualify just to be in the field this week. Meanwhile, this is uncharted territory for Daniel Brown, while Billy Horschel has never finished inside the top 20 in this major.

Scheffler will obviously start his final round a little while before the leaders, and that could be significant as he will have the chance to put a bit of early pressure on.

If his putter can get hot on Sunday, the world number one will surely become the man to beat – despite having a few shots to make up.