SOUTHAMPTON, NY – Scottie Scheffler is confused. Of course, he is the best in the world to play this impossible game. He has improved every year since turning pro. He wins more often than any golfer since Tiger Woods. But he is puzzled now, facing a conundrum.
What is happening in his first rounds?
Scheffler was stuck with that thought Sunday night, about 20 minutes after his first career Grand Slam attempt had ended.
“At the end of the day, I don’t know exactly what it is,” he said. “I’ve been pretty good in the early rounds the last few years, and for some reason, the sharpness just hasn’t been there early in tournaments. I haven’t had the leads I need to win tournaments. I’ve been playing catch-up all year.”
It would take a final round of 67 – instead of the 71 he recorded – to make the playoff with Wyndham Clark, US Open championbut what Scheffler seems to have zeroed in on is Thursday’s 72. It was eight shots worse than Clark’s opening 64 and created a split the world No. 1 couldn’t close over 54 holes in about 54 hours. If there were 18 more, it could have been closer. If, if, if.
Right now, as a viewer, the smartest course of action seems to be to give it up, stay the course, trust Scottie. He remains the most talented golfer we’ve seen in ages, and his hiccup on Thursday was most likely just a hiccup. It would feel incongruous and surprising if Scheffler never gets a US Open, if he never completes his career Grand Slam. He has finished in the top 10 five times in this event. We’ll be taking Slamspeak next June comfortably and with even greater excitement. It will be at Pebble Beach, a course he knows far better than Shinnecock.
Still, it’s worth noting our thoughts that should be safe. They are not nothing. Scheffler’s season, while great through big-picture analytics, has been defined by Thursday’s self-inflicted failures. It keeps happening. He hasn’t had many 36-hole bullets. He hasn’t had many 54-hole bullets. His 2026 has left him nodding off time and time again, so much so that just being in the bottom pair on Sunday felt “good to be back in the arena (and not) on the outside watching”.
And what to do with the Grand Slam? It was only Scheffler’s first chance, but it was one of his best at a US Open. Right now, that’s no big deal. This is a step in the right direction. But the longer that box goes unchecked, the harder it will start to feel to follow. If only I had you … it only gets worse over time.
Phil Mickelson had 34 holes at the US Open and came up empty 34 times. Since winning the 2017 Open Championship, Jordan Spieth has had 10 attempts at the PGA and has never come close. Tom Watson finished his career with 10 top 10s at the PGA, but zero firsts. Many single-name legends of the sport achieved the same imperfect number: Trevino, Sarazen, Snead, Arnie. Even Byron Nelson, whose event gave Scheffler his first PGA Tour start, was embarrassed.
The good thing about Scheffler? He probably isn’t worried about any of this. However, his memory is good enough to recall the slip of the green over Rory McIlroy’s shoulders when he finished his shot.
If Scheffler is aware of anything in particular, it’s how narrow the boundaries will be and how specific his task will be. The demand — to win the toughest tournament of the year, with a chance every year — feels almost unfair. Does Scheffler have 20 more tries? Is it more like 15? Less than that? At the US Open, opportunities are gone before you register them as opportunities. His first round felt mediocre on Thursday morning. Thursday night was a thorn in his side. On Sunday night, it was the only thing he could cite to explain why Wyndham Clark was holding the only silverware missing from Scheffler’s trophy case.
“Yes,” he said to end his press conference, “that’s as good as I’m going to be able to elaborate.”
It was the final response of his press conference on Sunday night, and enough for now. There will be time for him to resolve his Grand Slam quest; as he finished Sunday he was trying to decide on something a little simpler. It was Father’s Day and his young son Bennett was sitting on the floor next to him, cooing away from the cameras. It was also Scheffler’s 30th birthday. Life outside of golf was stretching out to catch up. Scheffler rose from the podium, slipped on a backpack emblazoned with the name of his second son, Remy, cradled Bennett in his arms and left Shinnecock.
“Okay mate, let’s go get some dinner,” he said, with the calm of someone who doesn’t think like the rest of us.
“Pizza? Pizza.”
