Scottie Scheffler insists he was unaware of Rory McIlroy's charge as he took command of The Open at Portrush
"I feel good," said Scheffler, who eagled the seventh, birdied the eighth and followed stellar par saves at the 11th and 14th with his third birdie two of the week at the 16th.
"I had another good day today. I made a couple of nice par saves. I had a really good par save on 11, really good par save on 14 and I did some good stuff.
"Like you said, I was pretty patient most of the day but felt like I was hitting it really nice. Just sometimes major championships it can be tough to make birdies, and today was one of those days where I just had to give myself some looks and was able to hole a few.
"I'm just trying to execute, not overthinking things. I feel like I've been doing the right thing so far, and I'm looking forward to the challenge of tomorrow."
Asked if he was aware of McIlroy's charge, he was in no mood to give the Holywood star any encouragement, even if he was aware of the Holywood star's move up the leaderboard to joint fourth.
"Ehhh, no," Scheffler said as he headed for home to recharge for a final round pairing with China's Haotong Li, who trails him by four shots on 10-under after a 69
Scheffler added a third major title to his two Masters victories by claiming the PGA Championship at Quail Hollow in May and admitted it would be satisfying to add a Claret Jug to his collection and leave himself needing only the US Open to join McIlroy in the career Grand Slam club.
"Yeah, it would be nice, but I'm not going to be thinking about that tonight," said the American, who leads the putting statistics and lies second for strokes gained on approach.
"I'm going to be going home, trying to get some rest and get some recovery and then get ready for tomorrow."
ADVERTISEMENT
Ominously for the chasing pack, Scheffler has converted his last nine 54-hole leads into wins.
Why he's such a good front runner is a mystery to him.
"Your guess is as good as mine," he said. "I like being out here competing. This is why we work so hard is to have opportunities like this, and I'm excited for the challenge of tomorrow.
"Winning major championships is not an easy task, and I've put myself in a good position.
"Going into tomorrow, I'm going to step up there on the first tee and I'm going to be trying to get the ball in the fairway, and when I get to the second shot I'm going to be trying to get that ball on the green.
"There's not really too much else going on."
As for the chasers, Haotong feels he has nothing to lose when he heads out with Scheffler in the final group at 2:30pm after almost quitting the game due to swing yips two years ago.
"I'm actually quite looking forward to it," he said. "Four shots behind, kind of like play for second, especially play with world No. 1.
"I just try to play my best out there and hopefully make something happen.
"For sure, nothing to lose. Especially from two years ago, swing yips, couldn't even pull the trigger until now. It's a massive step for me."
Fitzpatrick will play in the penultimate group with McIlroy and at five strokes adrift, he knows it won't be easy to catch a player of Scheffler's calibre.
"Let's be realistic, he's five ahead," he said. "It's not easy. But if you get off to a good start, then obviously put a bit of pressure on early doors and hope for the best, really."
McIlroy also knows it will be tough to catch Scheffler from six shots behind.
"Yeah, he's playing like Scottie," McIlroy said. "I don't think it's a surprise. Everyone's seen the way he's played or plays over the last two or three years.
"He's just so solid. He doesn't make mistakes. It looked like he could have made bogey on 14 there.
"He's turned himself into a really consistent putter as well. So there doesn't seem to be any weakness there. Whenever you're trying to chase down a guy like that, it's hard to do. But he's incredibly impressive."
The Down man planned to watch "Oppenheimer" to distract himself from his task.
"I started 'Oppenheimer' last night," he said. "Try to get through another hour of it tonight and maybe finish it tomorrow morning.
"Apart from that, just keep my mind off of things. I always do better with distraction. So if I can just distract myself and get my mind on something else, that's always a good plan for me.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
4 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Fears for Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz partnership as US Open already hit by high-profile withdrawals
FEARS over Emma Raducanu and Carlos Alcaraz's partnership are on the rise after the US Open was hit by high-profile withdrawals. Raducanu and Alcaraz were among the teams announced for the new format of the mixed doubles event in New York in August. Advertisement 4 Carlos Alcaraz and Emma Raducanu have entered the US Open mixed doubles together Credit: Getty 4 The tennis stars posed for an Evian commercial amid rumours of a romance Credit: Getty The pair, who have both won the US Open singles, were then Raducanu even However, several other partnerships have already pulled out of the controversial event. Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa initially entered. Advertisement READ MORE ON TENNIS But they have since removed themselves from the entrant list. That comes amid reports the Then Jack Draper and Zheng Qinwen also revoked their entry as they both battle injuries. British No1 Draper admitted at Wimbledon that he "thinks it was me who messaged" his partner - all but revealing it was all done by his agency IMG. Advertisement Most read in Sport CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS Other pairings such as Aryna Sabalenka and Grigor Dimitrov, Iga Swiatek and Casper Ruud, Jannik Sinner and Emma Navarro and Olga Danilovic and Novak Djokovic remain on the entry list. But there are Emma Raducanu jokes 'I wouldn't know about heartbreak' after Olivia Rodrigo watches her Wimbledon win Tennis fans are desperate to see 'Radalcaraz' in action together. Advertisement However, there is a chance they may follow suit and withdraw - to give themselves the best chance of success in the singles. Also, the British-Spanish duo may not actually qualify. Only the top eight pairs by singles ranking are guaranteed to get in. However, US Open chiefs would surely give Advertisement 4 In total, 25 pairs are now on the entry list - with 16 spots available Credit: US Open Eleven new teams have put their names forward to play in the innovative competition, taking the total entries up to 25 - with 16 getting in. Among them are engaged couple Katie Boulter and Alex De Minaur plus Amanda Anisimova and Holger Rune, Siniakova has 11 Grand Slam titles - including all four in women's doubles and the Wimbledon 2025 mixed doubles crown. Advertisement The Czech doubles specialist blasted the rejigged tournament, which will be staged the week before the singles action gets underway with $1million up for grabs for the winners and a 'fast four' format with shorter sets. Siniakova, who is reliant on a wildcard, said: "When two world No. 1s in doubles don't get into the tournament, there's probably nothing more to say about it. 'I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if I won't get it, actually. I will just keep it like this.' 4 Paula Badosa and Stefanos Tsitsipas split up and withdrew their entry Credit: Getty Advertisement
Irish Examiner
6 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Irish sport mourns legendary athletics and hockey trailblazer Maeve Kyle
Today Irish sport mourns a legendary trailblazer - Maeve Kyle has died at the age of 96. Kyle was Ireland's first female track and field Olympian, representing Ireland in the 100m and 200m sprints in 1956 and 1960. She then went on to reach the semi-finals of the 400m and the 800m at the age of 36 in Tokyo 1964. She went on to win a bronze medal in the 400m at the 1966 European Indoor Championships in Dortmund, before setting many records in Masters athletics. Kyle was also a highly accomplished hockey player, winning over 50 caps for Ireland. She also competed in swimming, tennis and golf. Born in Kilkenny in 1928, Kyle was sent to Dublin's Alexandra College and went to live with her grandparents. In an interview for the Irish Examiner in 2016, she said: 'I wanted to become a doctor and went to Trinity. During the first year, I decided I didn't want to become a doctor anymore and changed to Natural Sciences – partly because I fancied a fellow in the class.' Irish Olympic athletics coach Maeve Kyle, who competed in the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Games with the youngest present competitor, 19 year-old Gordon Kennedy, from Tullamore, pictured at Dublin Airport prior to the Irish Olympic team's early morning departure to Sydney for the Olympic Games. Sydney Olympics 2000. Athletics. Picture credit; Brendan Moran/SPORTSFILE After Trinity, Maeve returned to Alexandra and began teaching, also becoming an international hockey player. 'Sport was something I did in my spare time," she told Eoin O'Callaghan in that interview, "and I never got away from that. "I liked to win – make no mistake. People will tell you I had the real driving force but I don't think I did. I don't think I was driven enough to win at all costs. Now, people want to win at any cost. It becomes their life and I couldn't have that.' It was her late husband Seán, who she married in 1954, who persuaded her to take up sprinting and he acted as her coach for many years. She said: 'He loved the technical aspects of all sports – athletics, particularly – and had a brilliant mind. You couldn't build the house if you didn't have the bricks – it was as simple as that with him. You always had a strong base. 'Because of the hockey, I was introduced to international sport quite early. Then, of course, you get a taste for that level. I was fast enough, fit enough. I had a good enough eye and I had the hunger. And I liked learning. Especially from people more experienced than me.' Of the attitude to women in sport she remarked: 'Women's place was secondary in everything. It sounds horrible to say but we were second-class citizens. It's only the last 30 years that women have been kind-of accepted to do a lot of things – but still not everything.' Athletics Ireland said: "Her presence on the international stage opened doors for countless others, and it was her courage, determination, and dignity on and off the track that truly set her apart." After she retired from competing, Kyle became a dedicated coach and mentor. She was a founding figure in the Ballymena & Antrim Athletics Club. and she served as coach to the Irish track and field team at the Sydney Olympics in 2000. In 2006 she was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Irish Sports Council for her outstanding contribution to Irish sport. In 2007, Athletics Ireland recognised Maeve and Sean with the Lifetime Achievement Award. An Athletics Ireland statement read: "Maeve Kyle was more than a legend; she was a torchbearer who lit the path for those who followed. Her legacy lives on in the athletes she inspired and the standards she set." Lochlann Walsh, President of the Olympic Federation of Ireland said, 'We have lost a legend of Irish Olympic Sport who rose to the top despite huge challenges in 1950s Ireland. She was an inspiration to us all. May she rest in peace.' CEO of the Olympic Federation of Ireland, Peter Sherrard, added, 'Our thoughts today are with Maeve's extended family, friends. Her achievements in life gave inspiration to so many Irish women who followed in her footsteps as Olympians.
Irish Independent
7 hours ago
- Irish Independent
‘It's all a head game' – Venus Williams makes singles history and now faces No 5 seed half her age
There also was this: She really, really wanted to win. And Williams did just that, becoming the second-oldest woman to win a tour-level singles match in professional tennis, delivering some of her familiar big serves and groundstrokes at age 45 while beating Peyton Stearns — 22 years her junior — by a 6-3, 6-4 score at the DC Open. 'Each week that I was training, I was, like, 'Oh, my God, I don't know if I'm good enough yet.' And then there would be weeks where I would leap forward. And there would be two weeks where I was, like, 'Oh, God, it's not happening.' Even the week leading up, (I thought), 'Oh, my gosh, I need to improve so much more.' So it's all a head game,' Williams said after her first singles match in more than a year and first singles victory in nearly two. The only older woman to win a tour-level singles match was Martina Navratilova, whose last triumph came at 47 in 2004. The former No 1-ranked Williams had not played singles in an official match since March 2024 in Miami, missing time while having surgery to remove uterine fibroids. She hadn't won in singles since August 2023 in Cincinnati. Until this week, she was listed by the WTA Tour as 'inactive.' 'I'm just constantly praying for good health, so that way I could have an opportunity to play with good health,' Williams said. 'A lot of this for me is being able to come back and try to play at a level (and) to play healthy.' Backed by a crowd that clearly was there to see, and support, her at the hard-court tournament in the nation's capital, Williams showed glimpses of the talent she possesses and the skills she displayed while earning all of her Grand Slam titles: seven in singles, 14 in women's doubles — all alongside younger sister Serena — and two in mixed doubles. 'I wanted to play a good match,' Williams told the fans, then added a phrase that drew appreciative roars: 'and win the match.' In Tuesday's second game, Williams smacked a return winner to get things started, then delivered a couple of other big responses to break Stearns, a 23-year-old who won singles and team NCAA titles at the University of Texas and is currently ranked 35th. In the next game, Williams sprinted forward to reach a drop shot and replied with a forehand winner. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more The first chorus of cheers arrived when Williams walked out into the main stadium at the DC Open, a 7,000-seat arena that's more than twice as large as where she was for her doubles victory a day earlier. Another came when she strode from the sideline to the centre of the court for the coin toss. The noise reached a crescendo when Williams began hitting aces — at 110 mph and faster — the way she used to. Keep in mind: Williams won four Grand Slam trophies before Stearns was born. 'She played some ball tonight,' Stearns said. 'She was moving really well, which I wasn't expecting too much, honestly. Her serves were just on fire.' There also were moments where Williams — whose fiancé was in the stands — looked as if it had been just as long as it actually has since she competed, including in the opening game, when she got broken at love this way: forehand wide, forehand into the net, forehand long, backhand long. At the end, it took Williams a bit of extra effort to close things out. She kept holding match points and kept failing to convert them. But eventually, on her sixth chance, Williams powered in a 112 mph serve that Stearns returned into the net. That was it: Williams smiled wide as can be, raised a fist and jogged to the net to shake hands, then performed her customary post-win pirouette-and-wave. 'It's not easy. It won't be easy. It's not easy for anyone out here,' said Williams, who next faces No 5 seed Magdalena Frech, who's 27. 'So I know I'll have to fight for every match. But I'm up for that.'
