1 week ago
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Paolo UggettiJul 20, 2025, 06:01 PM ET
PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland -- Hours earlier Scottie Scheffler sent his archetypal Sunday tee changeable into the air, tapped successful for a kick-in birdie and began his 18-hole coronation, the subordinate who past won The Open erstwhile it came to Portrush fired an robust 183 yards toward the 4th greenish and watched arsenic his shot trickled in.
The assemblage erupted; Shane Lowry threw his hands successful the air. When helium turned toward his caddie, cameras caught his remark.
"This game," helium said, "will thrust you mad."
To astir each subordinate successful the tract this week, that adage astir play rings existent successful a antithetic way. For Lowry, who wears his bosom connected his sleeve, the volatility of the athletics helium has dedicated his beingness to is palpable successful his look pursuing each shot. For idiosyncratic similar Rory McIlroy, arsenic helium showed connected Masters Sunday astatine Augusta this year, the emotion is an inextricable portion of his game.
Then there's Scheffler.
Whenever helium is connected the play course, his emotions look guarded, arsenic if helium has placed them wrong an encrypted harmless lone helium knows however to unlock. Xander Schauffele described it arsenic "blackout" mode -- the mode Scheffler's travel authorities is 1 wherever helium is successful his ain world, unbothered by thing other but hitting the adjacent changeable and hitting it amended than anyone other could.
Scheffler has, astatine times, fixed america glimpses of what seems to unlock his frustrations: a putt that breaks successful a antithetic absorption than helium thought; a wedge that doesn't spell arsenic acold arsenic helium expected; a slope that doesn't marque the shot respond the mode helium thought it should. Rarely bash those things propulsion him disconnected his game.
"You won't spot that overmuch emotion arsenic helium continues to onslaught it similar this," Jordan Spieth said. "The lone clip you're going to spot it is erstwhile he's connected the greens if helium misses putts due to the fact that he's not missing galore shots."
On Sunday, Scheffler's last march connected Royal Portrush was a masterclass, the latest show of his dominance connected his mode to his 4th large title and the 3rd limb of the vocation Grand Slam. It was further impervious that Scheffler's attack to the crippled helium continues to conquer is dissimilar anyone else's.
"I don't deliberation we thought the golfing satellite would spot idiosyncratic arsenic ascendant arsenic Tiger travel done truthful soon," Schauffele said. "And here's Scottie taking that throne of dominance. He's a pugnacious antheral to beat, and erstwhile you spot his sanction up connected the leaderboard, it sucks for us."
Throughout the day, Scheffler's march to triumph looked stress-free to the bare eye. He prodded his mode on for the archetypal 4 holes, making 3 birdies and hardly reacting arsenic the assemblage that was rooting for McIlroy couldn't assistance but consciousness defeated. On the 5th green, Scheffler calmly drained different birdie putt to spell up by 7 shots. All helium got was a airy smattering of claps. Then, erstwhile helium near his attack changeable connected the par-3 sixth spread abbreviated of the green, the galleries cheered his misfortune.
Scheffler chipped up to the surface, stared down the 16-footer for par and made it. A vicious, Tiger-like fist pump ensued. It was the biggest show of emotion Scheffler had shown each week.
"Bloody hell," 1 instrumentality said nether his breath.
"This is over," different added.
It had been implicit for a while, possibly arsenic aboriginal arsenic Friday erstwhile Scheffler changeable 64. For some, that world was conscionable present settling in.
"The crowd, I think, wanted idiosyncratic other to triumph this week," Scheffler said. "And I benignant of got to play spoiler a small bit, which was amusive arsenic well."
Unlike the Masters, wherever helium is present a favourite of the patrons and the greenish jackets, present Scheffler is much similar an chartless unit from outer space. Fans person watched his greatness from afar, heard overmuch astir his inevitability. But connected Sunday, arsenic astir rooted for a occurrence from McIlroy, they got to witnesser the benignant of hopelessness Scheffler's crippled tin produce.
By the clip helium reached the 18th greenish and his borderline of triumph was four, the Northern Ireland assemblage -- thousands beardown -- had nary prime but to springiness him a lasting ovation.
"He's been connected a antithetic level each week," McIlroy said. "He's been connected a antithetic level for the past 2 years. He is the barroom that we're each trying to get to."
The past Scheffler is creating with his shuffling play plaything and the comparisons to Tiger helium shies distant from are 1 thing, but what helium has done to springiness the athletics a Goliath that each 1 of his peers is trying to instrumentality down is possibly adjacent much impressive.
When Woods dominated, the gulf helium created betwixt him and everyone other was widened further by his diversion quality compared with the rest. Today, everyone connected circuit prioritizes fitness. Nearly everyone hits it acold and high, and everybody uses the aforesaid modern instrumentality to their advantage. This homogeny isolates 2 things: consistency and intelligence approach. Over the past 3 years, nary 1 has been much consistent, and nary 1 has approached the pursuit of greatness rather similar Scheffler. On Sunday, helium erstwhile again explained his philosophy.
"This is astonishing to triumph the Open Championship, but astatine the extremity of the day, having occurrence successful life, whether it beryllium successful golf, work, immoderate it is, that's not what fulfills the deepest desires of your heart," Scheffler said. "Am I grateful for it? Do I bask it? Oh, my gosh, yes, this is simply a chill feeling. ... It's conscionable pugnacious to picture erstwhile you haven't lived it. It's thing I really talked to Shane astir this week was conscionable due to the fact that you triumph a play tourney oregon execute something, it doesn't marque you happy."
When the last putt dropped connected 18, Scheffler hugged his caddie, Ted Scott, and allowed himself a smile. Then Scheffler turned to his household rushing to conscionable him by the green, and helium yet broke character. He took disconnected his achromatic Nike hat, raised some arms successful the aerial and, arsenic his look contorted successful ecstasy, fto retired a yell.
1:14
Scheffler's putt to triumph the Open Championship
Watch Scottie Scheffler's winning putt to assertion his archetypal Open Championship title.
Scheffler has told america clip and clip again that this -- the trophies, the praise, the comparisons to Tiger, the historical achievements -- bash thing to fulfill him. Being a father, a husband, does. Take him astatine his connection oregon don't -- hints of what makes him the mode helium is were contiguous each passim that 18th greenish Sunday.
As his household awaited his instrumentality for the trophy ceremony, Scheffler's son, Bennett, played astir successful the writer with a integrative club. His mom, Diane, and wife, Meredith, took successful the infinitesimal portion his dad, Scott, pulled retired his telephone and recorded the country -- the fans surrounding the green, the iconic yellowish Open scoreboard that work "Scheffler -17."
Scott chatted up the marshals nearby, sharing puerility stories of Scottie, raving astir however helium bounced backmost from the treble bogey connected No. 8, acknowledging the institution his lad present keeps successful play past portion preaching the aforesaid benignant of connection his lad has espoused astatine each turn.
"He doesn't ever deliberation astir that, helium ne'er has. He's conscionable like, 'At the moment, I'm bully astatine what I do,'" Scott said. "I ever told him the joyousness was successful the journey. You ne'er cognize what you'll find on the way."
As Spieth enactment it, "He doesn't attraction to beryllium a superstar. He's not transcending the crippled similar Tiger did. He conscionable wants to get distant from the crippled and abstracted the two. I deliberation it's much truthful the quality successful property from immoderate different superstar that you've seen successful the modern epoch and possibly successful immoderate sport. I don't deliberation anybody is similar him."
In immoderate ways, that's a convenient approach. But with Scheffler it doesn't instrumentality agelong to recognize that it's real. Unlike Woods and galore different players earlier him, Scheffler does not crave the spotlight; helium tries his champion to repel it. Yet his crippled can't assistance itself -- it continues to spot him there.
"There's 2 Chipotles that I devour astatine [at] home," Scheffler said. "There's 1 close wherever I grew up, benignant of adjacent SMU's campus. If I was to spell to that Chipotle and effort to devour nowadays, it would beryllium precise hard for me. There's different 1 successful a antithetic portion of municipality that I'm not going to archer you wherever it is, but if I spell there, cipher recognizes maine ever."
As the prima went down connected the summertime nighttime successful Portrush, Scheffler returned to the 18th greenish arsenic the astir celebrated antheral successful the arena for the trophy ceremony. Soon the words were coming retired of R&A CEO Mark Darbon's mouth.
"The champion golfer of the year, Scottie Scheffler."
His household members looked astatine each different and smiled.
"I don't deliberation I'm thing peculiar conscionable due to the fact that immoderate weeks I'm amended astatine shooting a little people than different guys are," Scheffler said. "In immoderate circles, similar close present I'm the champion subordinate successful the world. This week I was the champion subordinate successful the world. I'm sitting present with the trophy. We're going to commencement each implicit successful Memphis, backmost to adjacent par, amusement goes on."
Scheffler is right. The amusement volition spell on, but the grounds continues to heap up: The crippled everyone other can't ever look to crook to their volition is the 1 helium is breaking.
