entering this week\u2019s U.S. Open at Shinnecock<\/a>.<\/p>\nIn golf, there has been a good share of eras with two or three players dominating the sport at different times. Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer were the most famous duo. More recently, it was Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.<\/p>\n
Now, the separation is clear-cut: It\u2019s Scottie and Rory \u2014 and then the rest.<\/p>\n
\u201cThose guys are at the top of the game at the moment, at the pinnacle, and it\u2019s up to the rest of us to look at and pull ourselves forward,\u201d Tommy Fleetwood told The Post recently. \u201cIt\u2019s an amazing time and opportunity to be at this point in the game \u2014 whether you\u2019re world No. 3 or No. 50 or No. 100.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Ben Griffin, who\u2019s emerged as one of the best players in the game the past two years, said Scheffler \u201cseems to have a massive gap and Rory\u2019s getting his gap even bigger\u2019\u2019 in relation to the rest of the field.<\/p>\n
\u201cScottie right now is doing exactly what Tiger did in his career,\u2019\u2019 Griffin told The Post. \u201cScottie has a longer career ahead of him. I\u2019m sure he\u2019s going to be right there with the same kind of numbers as Tiger.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Scottie, his competitive drive is what impresses me most, and what impresses me most about Rory is how physically talented he is. They\u2019re different. Scottie doesn\u2019t necessarily have the golf swing that everyone admires and wants to replicate. Rory kind of does. Rory is able to use that when he\u2019s playing really well to just overpower golf courses, be super aggressive, reach all the par 5s, and beat other guys when he\u2019s really on.<\/p>\n
\u201cScottie is more of a competitor. He has that competitive edge where it doesn\u2019t matter what type of game he brings to the course, he\u2019s gonna figure it out and make do with what he\u2019s got and just try to get it in the hole. His competitive edge kind of belies the outward personality we see in him, because he\u2019s just a flatline, chill guy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Fleetwood and other players speak of \u201csuperpowers\u201d possessed by Scheffler, still just 29, and McIlroy, 37.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor Rory, it\u2019s his longevity and his power,\u2019\u2019 Fleetwood said. \u201cFor Scottie, it\u2019s his relentlessness in the way he plays and his attitude. He can play just beautiful golf \u2014 the best golf you can imagine. But his relentlessness to continue to find different ways, all the time, to be right there at the very end of a tournament. He\u2019s always there.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Scottie Scheffler hits a tee shot on sixth hole during his U.S. Open practice round at Shinnecock Golf Course on June 16, 2026. Getty Images<\/p>\n
Another player who has great perspective on the \u201cBig Two\u2019\u2019 and who\u2019s been on a bender the past year and a half is Chris Gotterup.<\/p>\n
He stared down McIlroy to win the Scottish Open last July and, in February, he outplayed Scheffler while paired with him and won the WM Phoenix Open.<\/p>\n
\u201cI played with Scottie in Phoenix this year, and in the first round he\u2019d probably say he did not play good,\u2019\u2019 Gotterup told The Post. \u201cAnd then you look up on Sunday and he\u2019s tied for second. His ability to kind of dig it out of the ground each week is amazing. We all don\u2019t have our best weeks, but his worst weeks tend to be pretty good \u2014 better than most. His worst weeks tend to be other people\u2019s good weeks. I think that\u2019s something all of us kind of appreciate.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe doesn\u2019t miss cuts, and when he makes the cut he finishes top 10. He\u2019s just so consistent. And I appreciate his off-the-course stuff, too \u2014 he\u2019s very diligent in his routine. He knows what he knows, and he sticks to it, and it\u2019s gotten him to where he is. And he\u2019s a great guy to hang out with. You\u2019ve got to be a bit of a maniac and super competitive to be out here and to be the best in the world, but he\u2019s very good at turning it off and turning it on. It\u2019s very cool to be around him and to see it up close.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Like most, Gotterup marvels at McIlroy\u2019s physical talent. Having moved to South Florida and joined The Bear\u2019s Club, where McIlroy plays, he\u2019s gotten a close-up view of him.<\/p>\n
Rory McIlroy hits a tee shot on the first hole of his U.S. Open practice round at Shinnecock Golf Course on June 16, 2026. ill Streicher-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
\u201cHe just does stuff with a golf ball that not a lot of people can do,\u2019\u2019 Gotterup said. \u201cHe\u2019s one of the guys that, when he\u2019s on, he seems unbeatable. Getting up close in person \u2014 in Scotland last year \u2014 the way he drives it and the way he hits his irons, it just looks like nothing is ever going to touch it. It\u2019s impressive. And it\u2019s impressive to do it for as long as he\u2019s done it.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Sean Foley, one of the most prominent swing coaches in the game who once coached Tiger Woods, paid high compliments to Scheffler because his run of dominance has been taking place against a deeper pool of talent than the greats before him.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen Tiger hit the tour in \u201997 outworking everybody, he was just so seismically different, better at every skill set,\u2019\u2019 Foley told The Post. \u201cHow many people could beat Jack in his prime? Maybe five, seven? Certainly, under 10. Tiger? Maybe 12 legitimately. Scottie now? Probably 40 or 50.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one, to me, is more gifted or more impressive to watch than Rory when he\u2019s on. But Scottie just showing up every day and never messing up, it\u2019s so clinical. It\u2019s like Nicklaus how Scottie plays. He\u2019s as long as almost anybody, a super-straight iron play. Elite. But he\u2019s so not flashy. Nobody would think he\u2019s that long off the tee unless you\u2019re in the game and watching it. And, to be the best iron player of his generation, but keep it in play so often at, like, 180 (mph) ball speed \u2026 that\u2019s extraordinary. \u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Rory, he physically just looks different. He looks like he\u2019s mashing. Rory at 5-foot-9 is just mind-boggling. As soon as you get taller, you have more time to create speed.<\/p>\n
A smiling Scottie Scheffler talks to reporters after his U.S. Open practice round on June 16, 2026. Getty Images<\/p>\n
\u201cRory is like a wide receiver running a 4.2 [in the 40] with great hands. You can play in the NFL if you run a 4.5 with great hands and perfect routes. But if you\u2019ve got 4.2 with great hands, you can always have a job. Rory is physically just on another level. He\u2019s one of the greatest drivers ever. It\u2019s because he generates elite speed in a body you wouldn\u2019t expect it from.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lucas Glover, the 2009 U.S. Open champion, is a veteran whose career has bridged the gap from Woods late in his career to Scheffler and McIlroy now.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a long time with Tiger, if he was in the field everybody was playing for second,\u2019\u2019 Glover told The Post. \u201cThat\u2019s how we felt. Especially me as a 24-, 25-, 26-year-old when he was doing his thing. Scottie, the run he\u2019s on, and Rory, the run he\u2019s on, they\u2019re playing some unbelievable golf. I don\u2019t know that we\u2019ll see a run like Tiger made ever again. But Scottie\u2019s right there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Glover, like most everyone else who speaks about Scheffler, gushed about him.<\/p>\n
Rory McIlroy (left) talks with Ryder Cup teammate Tommy Fleetwood during their U.S. Open practice round on June 16, 2026. Bill Streicher-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve said this for a couple of years now, that I am so impressed with his humility,\u2019\u2019 Glover said. \u201cAll he cares about is playing good golf and taking care of his family. He\u2019s an awesome dad. He\u2019s an awesome guy. But when it\u2019s time to play, he wants to beat everybody by 20 [shots]. And he does it in the most humble, chill way.\u201cThere\u2019s a drive there that I don\u2019t think you can compare. He\u2019s extremely driven to just get better, play better, be better. His humility and the way he handles himself is so attractive.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Glover called McIlroy \u201cphysically a beast,\u2019\u2019 and praised him because he\u2019s \u201cchanged with the times \u2014 hitting it farther, reshaping his body, doing all the things that need to be done now so he can play until he\u2019s old, like me.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis putting has obviously improved immensely. His short game around the greens is so underrated. Nobody ever talks about how good he is around the greens. They\u2019ll talk about his driving. I don\u2019t think he gets enough credit for what he does around the greens.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Glover offered a keen perspective explaining the difference between the Woods era of dominance and what we\u2019re experiencing with Scheffler and McIlroy.<\/p>\n
\u201cScottie and Rory know it, but they don\u2019t play into it,\u2019\u2019 Glover said of how good they are. \u201cTiger knew it. Jack knew it. Those guys knew it and they used it. Scottie and Rory are just good dudes. Really good dudes. There was an intensity around Tiger, and almost everybody was intimidated. He liked it that way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Scottie Scheffler hits a ball out of the bunker during his U.S. Open practice round on June 16, 2026. Bill Streicher-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
Gary Woodland, the 2019 U.S. Open winner, plays a lot of practice rounds with Scheffler and has become close friends with him. He said he gleans everything he can from him \u201cand I don\u2019t take it for granted.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
\u201cHis bad days are great days,\u2019\u2019 Woodland told The Post. \u201cThat\u2019s what Tiger was so good at, too. When Tiger played bad, he still played well. And that\u2019s hard to do. You look up and down this range and there are a lot of studs out here.<\/p>\n
\u201cScottie does it week in and week out. What impresses me the most is he does it on every type of golf course. \u2026 How hard is it to follow up good rounds? He\u2019s following up wins with wins.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut he doesn\u2019t do it in the dominating, flashy way Tiger did. I\u2019m not comparing the two. It\u2019s completely different. Tiger made it look awesome. Scottie probably gets taken for granted sometimes because he\u2019s not flashy, he\u2019s just right there in front of you, doing it the way you\u2019re supposed to do it. You could almost say he bores you to death with how well he plays.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Woodland, like many players, has an appreciation for McIlroy\u2019s staying power.<\/p>\n
\u201cI appreciate the longevity of how Rory\u2019s done it,\u2019\u2019 Woodland said. \u201cHe came out so quickly at a young age and dominated in a fashion where we all thought he was going to win 100 majors. And then he had his little dry spell. And to live with that every day. You saw the relief when he won last year at Augusta. He just went down to the ground in pure relief. You felt that. And then to follow it up this year with winning the Masters again \u2026 \u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Jordan Spieth is a Texan like Scheffler, having played with him since they were young, and he knows him as well as anyone outside of Scheffler\u2019s family.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s two things with Scottie,\u2019\u2019 Spieth told The Post. \u201cOne, it\u2019s a level of consistency. Doing what he does over and over again, how similar he does it, how well he does it as a ball-striker. You can\u2019t teach how he does it. You obviously couldn\u2019t really teach Rory\u2019s either. But Rory\u2019s swing is a little closer to being technically sound.<\/p>\n
\u201cScottie knows what he does well and doesn\u2019t try to change it based on what anybody says. He has full control of his swing and his game. It\u2019s that thing some of these legends talk about: \u2018When you swing your swing, you own your swing.\u2019 When you get to that, you can push it to that level. That\u2019s what he\u2019s done. Both of them have done that, but they\u2019re so different.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe other thing with Scottie is that mentally, he seems unflappable. Whether we\u2019re playing at home or on the road or he\u2019s in the Sunday of a major, he\u2019s the same. The only difference in his measured heart rate is that he\u2019s just a little chirpier. He doesn\u2019t show that side [in public]. Nothing seems to change, which means mentally he\u2019s got to be so sound. He doesn\u2019t walk faster, his mannerisms aren\u2019t different.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Rory McIlroy acknowledges the fans during his U.S. Open practice round on June 16, 2026. Getty Images<\/p>\n
Spieth noted the contrast in McIlroy\u2019 personality on the golf course, saying, \u201cYou can tell if Rory is playing well because he\u2019s got the stride, right?<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Scottie, you wouldn\u2019t know if he was shooting a million. And how often is he ever shooting a million?\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n
Keegan Bradley, as the 2025 Ryder Cup captain, has gotten to know Scheffler well.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s different about Scottie is he\u2019s a really normal guy,\u2019\u2019 Bradley told The Post. \u201cMost of the time when I\u2019ve met dominant athletes, they have a very dominant personality. Scottie certainly has that inside the ropes, but when he leaves the ropes, he\u2019s a normal guy, genuinely a great person. He\u2019s somebody I\u2019d love my boys to grow up to be like.<\/p>\n
\u201cAt the Ryder Cup, he obviously didn\u2019t have his best week, but he cared more about how the other guys were doing than anything else. When the weight of the world was on his shoulders, he was only asking, \u2018What can I do to help the other guys?\u2019\u2019\u2019 <\/p>\n
Rory?<\/p>\n
\u201cThe shots he hits are the best things I\u2019ve ever seen,\u2019\u2019 Bradley said. \u201cIt seems like something out of an AI simulator. When he\u2019s walking down the fairway with that rhythm and balance, he\u2019s just really tough to beat.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, it\u2019s been really cool being in Rory\u2019s generation \u2014 having a player in my generation winning the Grand Slam. With Tiger, though, it was different \u2014 bigger and grander. He had an aura. He transcended golf into something different entirely.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying with Tiger in the final group when he had that red and black on \u2026 that was different. These guys are the closest to that of anybody else, but it\u2019s not quite the same.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The two players do it so differently, and yet they have gotten to \u2014 and stayed at \u2014…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":709399,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[427,6082,5758,301650,99,23234],"class_list":["post-709398","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-golf","tag-golf","tag-rory-mcilroy","tag-scottie-scheffler","tag-shinnecock-hills","tag-sports","tag-us-open-golf"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/709398","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=709398"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/709398\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/709399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=709398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=709398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=709398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}