Scottie Scheffler made it look almost unfair. The world No.āÆ1 claimed his first Claret Jug, and his fourth major, by an emphatic four-shot margin, finishing 17āunder after a courteous 68 in RoundāÆ4. He was never seriously challenged and now joins the rare ranks of golfers whoāve won their first four majors each by at least three strokes.
Portrush promised wind, rain, roars and wreckage, but it also offered one of the most complete performances in Open history. While the rest of the field scrambled for position in 30mph gusts and sideways drizzle, Scheffler threw on a hoodie and played like the elements didnāt apply to him. He’s so damned clinical. It’s not exciting, but it’s as impressive as anything we’ve seen since….Ā
Dominant Comparisons
This yearās rout drew immediate parallels to the dominance of Tiger Woods. Shane Lowry, who shared the course and caught the carnage first-hand, didnāt hold back:
āIf Scottieās feet stayed stable, and it looked like Adam Scottās, weād be talking about him in the same way as Tiger Woodsā¦ his bad shots are really good, and that is when you know heās really good.ā
Bryson DeChambeau, never one to undersell, said:
āScottieās in a league of his own right now. Heās incredible. I donāt think we thought the golfing world would see someone as dominant as Tiger come through so soon.ā
Even Rory McIlroy, who finished a respectable T7, said:
āHeās doing everything right. Thereās a calmness about him, a trust in his swing, and honestly, weāre all just trying to keep up.ā
Justin Rose, watching from outside the top 10, quipped:
āItās like heās playing a different courseā¦ or heās got a caddie with a time machine.ā
Scheffler himself remained stoic, brushing off the comparisons:
āIāve got a long way to go before Iām mentioned with Tigerā¦ Iām just trying to hit one good shot at a time.ā
Classic humble assassin stuff.
Ā Bouncebackability
It wasnāt a flawless final round though. Scheffler doubled the 8th after a bunker miscue, but he responded immediately with birdies at 9 and 12 to drain the souls of the chasing pack. Nobody does that better than Scottie. Nobody closes a door like him. After that it was smooth sailing. He stood at ā17 practically before the back nine, and no one came close.
Runner-Ups with Stories
Harris English (ā13): carded a closing 66 to finish second. This was his second near miss to Scheffler in a major this year. No-one will remember what he did this in the Majors year. No-one but his accountant. Good to see him back though, a few years ago he seemed to be promiment on every leaderboard but then disappeared.Ā
Chris Gotterup (ā12): A week after winning the Scottish Open, the American took third after a hot weekend. Some two weeks for him. Will he make the Ryder Cup team?
McIlroyās Homecoming
With the crowd going wild, Rory posted a respectable 69 to finish tied 7th at ā10. Nothing spectacular, but a redemption lap of sorts considering 2019ās nightmare return. Fans loved it, he seemed to enjoy himself and heāll carry this momentum into the Ryder Cup.
Other Highlights
Li Haotong & Matt Fitzpatrick: Shared 4th at ā11. Li has previous at the Open, but not for a long time. Fitz is looking good ahead of the Ryder Cup.
DeChambeau: Turned things around from a 78 on Day 1 to a Sunday 64 and a T10 finish. He’s figuring it out. He’ll win an Open one day.Ā
Veterans: Lee Westwood flashed but faded on Sunday to finish T34 alongside fellow European legend and LIV defector Sergio Garcia. Some lovely nostalgia there seeing the old dog still biting.
Final Verdict
Scheffler didnāt just win The Open; he obliterated it. He now has two majors this year, four in total and needs just the U.S. Open at Shinnecock next year to complete the career grand slam. A performance for the ages. This is all McIlroy’s fault, if he hadn’t advised Scottie to switch to a mallet maybe they’d still have a chance of beating him? Since that switch Scheffler has won 40% of the tournaments he’s played in. That’s an absolutely crazy stat.
