Rick Shiels has shared what he finds absolutely unbelievable about the swing of Scottie Scheffler after the world number one clinched victory at Bay Hill at the weekend.
Scottie Scheffler made a real statement ahead of The Players’ Championship, and The Masters in a few weeks. The 27-year-old won the Arnold Palmer Invitational by five shots.
Of course, much of the talk following his win surrounded his putting. That did previously appear to be the 2022 Masters champion’s Achilles heel. Rory McIlroy noted at Riviera that it would be bad news for everyone if Scheffler found a breakthrough with the flat stick.
Rick Shiels baffled by swing of Scottie Scheffler
It turns out that McIlroy may have been absolutely spot on. Scheffler was exceptional with the mallet putter at Bay Hill. But that is not the only remarkable thing about his game.
Scheffler is known for lifting his right foot just before impact; almost dragging it back and towards his left. It certainly goes against the idea that you need to have a super stable base to hit the longest distances.
And speaking on The Rick Shiels Golf Show, Rick Shiels admitted that he still cannot fathom how Scheffler manages to make that work for him.
“It’s honestly so bizarre,” he said.
“It’s one of the most bizarre golf moves ever. Because there’s been wacky golf swings: Jim Furyk, Matt Wolff, Bubba Watson. But a lot of them, you actually look at impact and you think, well actually, everything’s pretty awesome there. Yeah, they’ve got some mad characteristics.
“With Scottie Scheffler, his actual mechanics going back look okay. Coming down, his impact obviously must be sensational. But it doesn’t look it. The way he slides that right foot back, it’s unbelievable.”
Ominous start to the year
As Shiels notes, several golfers have made swings you would not find in a textbook work for them. Both Furyk and Watson are major champions. And Wolff can hit the ball a mile.
It will be interesting to see if Scheffler can extend this period of dominance. We have seen players enjoy incredible runs over a couple of years before falling back slightly. Few would have ever imagined in 2017 that neither Rory McIlroy or Jordan Spieth would win a single major in the years which have followed.
But certainly, Scheffler looks to be the man to beat for 2024.
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