Scottie Scheffler, as he has done so many times before this season, has scratched and clawed his way back into contention.
He shot a 72 for his opening round, meaning he was on the outside looking in after 18 holes, but as expected, the world number one bounced back.
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In increasingly difficult conditions on Friday, with Shinnecock drying out, Scheffler shot a 68 to bring himself to even par. That puts him in the pack looking to chase down Wyndham Clark on the weekend, who is currently at seven under with a four-stroke lead.
It hasn’t been vintage Scheffler by any means, but he’s shown tremendous heart to keep himself in the tournament. And during his second round, Scheffler did something that even shocked his own caddie, Ted Scott.
Photo by Tracy Wilcox/PGA TOUR via Getty Images
What Scottie Scheffler did at the US Open that shocked Ted Scott
You’d think that Scheffler’s caddie, Scott, would be beyond surprise when it comes to the world number one by now. He’s been on his bag for all of his major championship wins and near-unprecedented success last season.
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But apparently, even Scott was left stunned by a shot Scheffler pulled off during his second round. Smylie Kauffman, who walked with Scheffler’s group throughout Friday, recounted the shot that surprised his caddie.
Speaking on the Smylie Show, he said, “He had 189 to the top of the slope, 293 to the hole, you got a cliff beyond the hole. I’m sitting there behind him doing the math, like ‘okay, if he’s going to fly it onto this green, he basically needs to hit a 178 shot’. So I’m like, ‘okay, he’s going to rip and eight.’
“I felt like that was the club he was going to hit. So he hits eight iron, but I watch the trajectory, and I’m like, that’s not Scottie’s trajectory for an eight iron. It was half the height of what he typically does. He once bounced it onto the green.
“So I go up to Ted Scott and ask, ‘Ted, did he mean that?’ and he goes ‘yeah. I actually thought the proper shot was to hit something high and land it on the green like he always does. But he said Ted, I’m going to hit it low, once bounce it onto the green and have a 20 footer’.
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“‘So I was like, ‘okay’, and went and put the bag over here, and he did exactly what he said, one bounced it onto the green, and Ted was like, ‘That was really cool’.”
This shows that Scheffler has learned how to hit the artistic shots required to win on links golf courses. As the going gets tough over the weekend, that will put him in a strong position to win the US Open, and complete the career grand slam.
Scottie Scheffler’s decision that shocked Ted Scott is a concerning sign for his iron play
Having said that, the fact that Scheffler had to reach so far into his bag to pull off this shot shows where the game is at right now. His strength over the years, his iron play, has turned into his weakness at Shinnecock Hills, and he clearly doesn’t feel like he can trust his stock shot.
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Scott clearly expected Scheffler to hit the shot he’s hit a million times before in order to stick it close on this hole, but for whatever reason, Scheffler decided to go for a completely different approach. Could that be because he doesn’t have faith in his irons at the moment?
He lost a stroke to the field on his approach shots over his first 18 holes, so how much of this flighted down, one-hopper from 180 yards has to do with the fact that he doesn’t think he can pull off his usual shots?
Maybe this was the best shot to hit in that moment, and it clearly worked. But this could also be a sign that all is not right with Scheffler’s swing, and he’s having to adapt on the fly.
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