Justin Rose has revealed one of the most underrated aspects of Xander Schauffele’s game after the American clinched The Open Championship title on Sunday.
It was Xander Schauffele who emerged from a congested leaderboard to seal the Claret Jug at Royal Troon, with the 30-year-old shooting a flawless 65 to win by two over Justin Rose and Billy Horschel.
It was a bittersweet day for Rose, who played so well in the early stages on Sunday to put himself at the top of the leaderboard. But after the turn, the putts simply did not drop for the Englishman and he just could not keep up with Schauffele as the 43-year-old looked for his first major title in 11 years.
Schauffele definitely benefitted from winning the PGA Championship earlier this season, and he did not give any of his rivals a chance down the stretch on Sunday in South Ayrshire.
Justin Rose lauds Xander Schauffele after Open Championship
It does appear that Schauffele is the most well-rounded player on the PGA Tour, particularly with Scottie Scheffler struggling with the putter. But perhaps there is one area of Schauffele’s game which still does not get enough credit.
Speaking in comments reported by BBC Sport, Rose – who played alongside his Ryder Cup rival on the final day – lauded the champion golfer of the year.
“A guy at the top of his game. A guy that has all the attributes that make him a great player and a great champion,” he said.
“He’s obviously now learning that winning is easy. He has a lot of horsepower, do you know what I mean? In the sense of he’s good with a wedge, he’s great with a putter, he hits the ball a long way and obviously his iron play is strong. So he’s got a lot of weapons out there.
“I think probably one of his most unappreciated ones is his mentality. He’s such a calm guy out there. I don’t know what he’s feeling, but he certainly makes it look very easy. He plays with a freedom, which kind of tells you as a competitor that he’s probably not feeling a ton of the bad stuff.
“He’s got a lot of runway ahead and a lot of exciting stuff ahead, I’m sure.”
All doubts over American put to bed
Schauffele has had an incredible year, but he had to deal with a number of questions after the Wells Fargo Championship when he was blown away by the performance of Rory McIlroy on the final day.
At that stage, Schauffele had not won a major, despite some outstanding showings in golf’s biggest events – and there appeared to be a question mark over whether he would become the latest world-class player to never win a major.
But those doubts were put to bed days later, and he has now doubled that tally of major wins within a matter of months. Certainly, many will be expecting him to add to the two he now has in 2025.
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