Scottie Scheffler has got to be the favorite to retain his PGA Championship title this year.
He enters Aronimink off the back of three straight runner-up finishes, including one at The Masters, as he hunted down Rory McIlroy on Sunday. But Scheffler didn’t win any of these tournaments because of his slow starts.
Thursdays have plagued Scheffler’s season so far. He’s struggled to get out of third gear to start golf tournaments this season, and he’s then been forced to make a charge back into contention on the weekend.
But luckily for the world number one, he’s been given a great chance to get off to a red-hot start at the PGA Championship.
Scottie Scheffler’s starting tee gives him a great chance to start well
The PGA Championship features a 156-player field, meaning players will start on the first and 10th tees on the first two days. Scheffler will get his tournament underway on the first tee, and that gives him a great chance to start well.
It’s been noted by a number of players that the first nine holes at Aronimink are going to be far easier than the back nine. Michael Kim said that the front nine could play as much as an entire stroke easier for the field.
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McIlroy said it was a bomb and gouge front nine, where players can hit driver, wedge on almost every hole.
So Scheffler, starting on the first tee, will play the front nine first and have an immediate opportunity to get into a rhythm for the rest of the major. If he can score some birdies early, then he can find himself near the top of the leaderboard on Thursday, which has rarely happened this year.
It’s a dream draw for Scheffler, who must be itching to get onto the first tee.
Why Scottie Scheffler may be concerned about Aronimink
Despite putting up a number of good results, Scheffler hasn’t been at his usual brilliant best this year. His ball striking, in particular, hasn’t been up to his lofty standards.
Scheffler’s iron play, which has typically been his strength, has fallen off this year, and so has his play off the tee. The American has historically eliminated the right miss from his game, but this year, he’s had some wild misses to the right with his driver.
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Scheffler got away with this at The Masters. Augusta National allows creative players to play their way out of trouble from the trees and the pinestraw, as Scheffler did on multiple occasions after missing badly off the tee. That may not be possible this week.
The rough poses a real threat to players. It’s thick and long, and estimates say that players will likely only be able to hit the ball 150 yards out of the long grass.
So if Scheffler is plagued with the right miss as he has all year long, it may spell trouble for his chances of winning.
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