Scottie Scheffler put in a nigh on perfect performance on day three of The Open Championship.
Scheffler has been in sensational form throughout the entire week at The Open, and he heads into Sunday with a four-shot lead over Haotong Li.
Rory McIlroy described Scheffler as ‘inevitable’ after his third round at The Open, and that really is a great description of the world number one.
The 29-year-old just doesn’t make any mistakes, and the fact that he kept a clean card on Saturday ensured that his rivals were not given any hope that he would falter.
Earlier in the week, the man from Dallas, Texas, caused quite the stir with his comments on winning tournaments.
Scheffler suggested ahead of The Open that he doesn’t get overly motivated about the thought of winning.
He said it’s more important to him to be a good father and husband than it is to be a good golfer.
And with that in mind it was interesting to hear his response when asked what winning The Open would mean to him.
Scottie Scheffler says what it would mean for him to win The Open Championship
Scheffler clearly has other priorities in life, but that doesn’t mean that he doesn’t work as hard as every other top player on his game, if not harder.
The 29-year-old has a very clear vision of how he wants his life to be. Being a golfer isn’t who he is, it’s what he does for a living, and his success on the golf course certainly doesn’t define him as a man off it.
Photo by Alex Slitz/Getty Images
After his third round 67 at Royal Portrush, Scheffler was asked what winning The Open on Sunday would mean to him.
He said: “It would be a lot of fun but at the end of the day it’s not what I am going to think about as I step on the first tee or as I go to sleep tonight. I am going to thinking about trying to execute and when I go to sleep tonight hopefully I won’t have too much to think about, just fall asleep and get some recovery for tomorrow.“
He was then asked what his most valuable learning from his round was.
Scheffler replied: “I think a lot of it is just staying patient with myself. I know what I need to do tomorrow and it’s just a matter of going out and doing it. Tomorrow will be a challenging day but a fun day, and I’m looking forward to it.“
And finally, the world number one was asked about his stunning approach into the par five seventh hole on Saturday.
He said: “It was nice. I felt like I was doing some good things to start the round but not getting the results. I kept trying to do that and it was nice to judge that shot in there right and hole a nice putt.“
Scheffler is in a really dominant position at The Open, with just 18 holes left to play.
Any score under par will most likely see him get the job done.
On Saturday, Rich Beem was asked about Scheffler’s comments regarding not finding fulfilment in winning.
Beem said: “I think in his own way Scheffler is deflecting a little bit what this all means to him. I get the sense that a little bit where he can’t be so numb to winning, especially the major championships.
“We have seen how he reacts and he’s talked about waking up before he won his first Masters crying saying I’m not too sure if I’m worthy of this.
“He wants this in the worst possible way but I get the sense of deflection, he’s just trying to say it doesn’t mean that much to me but inside you have got to feel it means a lot more than he’s leading on to.“
Beem makes a great point here. Scheffler’s comments at The Open this week could easily have been a diversion tactic.
And if that was in fact his plan all along, it certainly seems to be working!