Despite his three wins, one of the big talking points from Scottie Scheffler’s year seems to have been how well he has done while so often looking to be well short of his best.
It has been an odd year for Scottie Scheffler. Since finishing 20th at The Players Championship in March, he has not finished any lower than eighth. That run includes his three wins, with the highlight being his third major win at the PGA Championship.
More recently, the 29-year-old never seemed to be in contention at the US Open until the leaders started to move back towards the field on Sunday at Oakmont. Meanwhile, his third round of 72 took him out of the mix at Travelers Championship.
He is actually only five shots off the lead going into the final round of the Genesis Scottish Open, in a tie for 15th. However, it feels as if he is yet to really steal the show at the Renaissance Club.
Trevor Immelman discusses Scottie Scheffler’s performance at the Scottish Open ahead of The Open Championship
That could perhaps hint that Scheffler is indeed one of a number of players who is yet to master the art of playing links golf – when you compare it to his best performances. And so, some may have real questions about how the world number one will fare at Royal Portrush next week.
However, speaking on CBS Sports, Trevor Immelman has insisted that he has seen enough over the first three days to believe that Scheffler will be in contention at The Open Championship.
“He seems a little frustrated, but absolutely not anything to panic about for sure. I’m not concerned about his chances at all going into The Open. He’s still really in a lot of ways still trying to come to grips with links golf, but as I’ve watched him on the range and throughout the course of the last few days, the game still seems there,” he said.
“He just needs to tidy up the driver. Off the tee today, didn’t really give himself many opportunities, just the five fairways. And like we touched on earlier, it’s very hard to be aggressive and attack when you’re constantly coming out of these pot bunkers or the rough. I think he’ll probably finish off with a nice strong round tomorrow, work his way into the top 10 at the very least, like we see all the time; the last nine tournaments he’s played, eighth is his worst finish, which just goes to show how incredibly good Scottie Scheffler is. I’m not worried about him at all, so you can take it easy on that call, he’s going to be just fine.”
The moment which ended Scottie Scheffler’s chances at The Open Championship in 2024
Scheffler spoke about getting the tougher bounces after his third round, which does suggest that he is well aware that links golf can have that unfair streak. It is often about who can handle those moments and not let them frustrate them too much.
It is easy to forget that Scheffler was making a charge on Sunday at The Open Championship last year. He began the final day just two shots back of the lead at Royal Troon.
However, an ‘unbelievable’ double bogey on the ninth hole put paid to Scheffler’s hopes, with the American essentially four-putting after using the flat stick initially from off the green.
Scheffler seems to be a considerably better putter than he was 12 months ago. Meanwhile, many other aspects of his game remain almost as good as they were in 2024.
So if he is one of those who gets the rub of the green in Northern Ireland, it would be no surprise to see Scheffler lifting the Claret Jug for the first time ever.
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