Scottie Scheffler continues to pull rabbits out of his hat, creating magic not seen on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods in his prime.
Scheffler shot an 8-under 63 at RBC Heritage on Saturday and shot up the leaderboard to take the lead. He had 39 consecutive rounds of even par or better, the second longest streak on tour since 1983. He played 52 such rounds in 2000 and 2001, a record beaten only by Woods, when he achieved the famous “Tiger Slam” with victory. Four consecutive major wins.
Speaking of majors, Scheffler arrived at Hilton Head “mentally exhausted” after last week’s historic win at Augusta National, and it was no surprise. So Scheffler kept a low profile, practicing on the range after arriving Tuesday and playing on the back nine of Wednesday’s pro-am game. And he plans to watch the front nine Thursday morning and go from there, he said.
He didn’t get off to a great start Thursday, hitting a double on the par-4 third hole. But he made up for that mistake with two birdies up front.
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Scheffler had two birdies on the 16th and 17th to close out the first round with a 2-under 69. And on Friday, the two-time Masters champion joined the standings with a 5-under 66, but nothing could match Scheffler’s performance. I did it on Saturday.
“I feel like I hit the ball really well today. Hit a lot of greens,” Scheffler said after his impressive third round.
“I played the par 5s well. The par 3s were very challenging, but I played them very well. Overall, it was a good effort. I’m proud of my score today. ”
Remarkably, Scheffler hasn’t dropped a shot since the third hole early Thursday morning. But the world’s top-ranked player knows that may not last until Sunday’s final round.
“[Sunday] It’s going to be challenging,” Scheffler added.
“The golf course is going to play a lot differently tomorrow because there’s going to be a different wind. It’s going to be an adjustment tonight and getting into the right head space. Tomorrow we’re going to go out and be patient and try our best to execute.” .”
Like his golf game, Scheffler’s mindset continues to amaze everyone in the golf world. His ability to be patient, stay focused, and never lose sight of the task at hand are just more reasons for Scheffler to be compared to Woods.
His comments about his approach heading into Sunday make that point even worse.
“Let’s see where everything happens. The guys behind me still have some holes to play, but we’ll see. In any case, we’re in a decent position for tomorrow. “I think it’s going to be great,” Scheffler said.
“I just want to go out there and get a good start. On this golf course, if you hit it well and put the ball in the right area, you can hit a low score, so that’s what I’m going to do tomorrow.”
He looked like a master tactician on Saturday as he masterfully conquered Harbor Town Golf Links. put his golf ball In a perfect location. No wonder he made 8 birdies and 10 pars and looked easy along the way.
But Scheffler has made this frustrating sport look so effortless in recent months, giving him a chance to do something few others get: winning the Masters and RBC Heritage in back-to-back weeks. Bernhard Langer did so in 1985.
Now, Scheffler has a golden opportunity to move from earning the green jacket to the plaid jacket, further asserting his status as the most dominant player in the game. He also has the mental strength to do so, and will enter the final match with a big goal on his shoulders.
But other players will fear his presence, just as players without the name Tiger Woods did throughout the early 2000s.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through.Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Cover more golf. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko In the same way.
