Scottie Scheffler seemed to have an out-of-body experience on day one of the WM Phoenix Open on Thursday.
Scheffler was so far removed from his normal self in the desert on Thursday. It was actually quite jarring watching the world number one struggle so badly on day one of the WM Phoenix Open.
The 29-year-old was painfully out of sorts at TPC Scottsdale and it was incredibly rare to see one of the game’s greatest ever players not know which side he was going to miss on.
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Scheffler made five bogeys and a double bogey on day one in Phoenix, and he now faces a really difficult task if he is to make the cut for the 66th consecutive time on the PGA Tour.
Interestingly, the world number one’s opening round in Phoenix actually got off to a fine start, when he made a birdie on his first hole after hitting his approach inside three feet.
However, what followed was truly remarkable. He missed six greens and only got up and down once when scrambling for pars.
Scheffler has been the best golfer in the world for four years now and he hasn’t missed a cut since the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship.
That’s why his opening round in Scottsdale was so shocking to witness. Scheffler himself was visibly stunned by his golf as well.
However, it’s not all bad news. There could be one huge benefit that emerges from his opening round of 73.
Scottie Scheffler’s opening round in Phoenix was just what he needed
Shooting over par is never a nice feeling for any professional golfer, let alone the best player in the world.
It’s actually fair to say that Scheffler’s opening round could have been in the mid-high 70s, had he not holed his fair share of putts.
He finished outside the top 60 in both strokes gained off the tee and approach to the green.
The 29-year-old was also ranked 117th in strokes gained around the greens.
It was a truly disastrous round from Scheffler on day one of the Phoenix Open – one that he would have been totally unaccustomed to.
Fans watching on their television screens would have seen Scheffler looking dumbfounded by some of the shots he was hitting.
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And that’s why he needed a round like that more than anything, as he looks to chase down the records set by the biggest names in the history of the game.
Thursday’s round of two-over-par 73 was exactly what the doctor ordered for Scheffler. In fact, it was more how poorly he played that will actually be so important to him going forward.
The man from Dallas, Texas, may well be the best golfer in the world by a very long way, but he has now proven to himself that he’s not infallible.
And he has plenty of work left to do if he is to become one of the greatest ever players in the history of the sport.
WM Phoenix Open wakeup call for Scottie Scheffler
It is fair to argue that Scheffler must have been thinking that golf is too easy for years now and especially over the past nine months.
His win at the American Express was his seventh victory since May 2025 and his 17th consecutive top-8 finish on the PGA Tour.
However, his opening round 73 at the WM Phoenix Open on Thursday would have been a real kick up the backside to him.
The sheer amount of basic errors he made was quite shocking to witness and he was clearly baffled himself by the golf that he was producing.
That round, and specifically the way in which he compiled his score, will ensure that Scheffler guards against any kind of complacency moving forward.
It will also force him to work even harder on his game. Scheffler is a perfectionist and he would not have been happy one little bit with his performance on day one of the WM Phoenix Open.
The 29-year-old actually needed a round like that. It came at the perfect time, in only his second event of the season.
If Scheffler is to achieve golfing immortality and challenge the records of Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus, he may well have to work even harder on his game, if that is at all possible.
When Rory McIlroy won the Masters in 2025, Scheffler admitted it motivated him to work harder and smarter.
He then went on to win seven of his next 14 PGA Tour events, including two major championships.
While the circumstances are different this time, Scheffler’s shocking opening round of 73 in Phoenix may well have a similar effect moving forward.
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