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Irish Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- Irish Times
Scottie Scheffler takes another giant stride into golfing pantheon after stunning Open success
Inevitable as it all proved to be, Scottie Scheffler – the world number one – stoically took further steps to embracing greatness in his own unemotional manner; with no airs or graces, just a series of sublimely struck shots and putts as the American added the Claret Jug to an ever-growing collection of Major championships. The step-by-step journey by Scheffler to this 153rd Open victory over the Dunluce links, played out in sunshine with the only the barest of breezes to the extent that flags at times stuck to the sticks, was smooth with only one speed bump – a double-bogey six on the eighth – that never truly had any element of danger. Scheffler's route to becoming the champion golfer of the year was devoid of tension, as deliverance came his way with a final-round 68 for a total of 17-under-par 267, four strokes clear of Harris English – who also finished runner-up to him in the US PGA at Quail Hollow – with Chris Gotterup completing a 1-2-3 for the United States. 'It's incredible,' said English of Scheffler's ability to slam doors shut in the faces of others. 'I wasn't playing professional golf when Tiger was at his peak, early 2000s, mid 2000s. But it's pretty incredible just how good of a front-runner he is. He's improved his putting. There's no stat that he's bad in. It's like, how do you beat this guy?' READ MORE England's Matt Fitzpatrick finished as leading European with two birdies in his closing three holes for a 69 for 273, where he joined Wyndham Clark and Haotong Li. Rory McIlroy acknowledges the crowd on the 18th green at the end of his final round at Royal Portrush. Photograph: Ben Brady/Inpho For Rory McIlroy , the pursuit of Scheffler never gained the necessary momentum to seriously trouble him and the Masters champion's 69 for 274 left him in a three-way share of seventh place. McIlroy hailed Scheffler's worthiness in becoming the latest custodian of the Claret Jug. 'None of us could hang with Scottie this week. He's been dominant this week. Honestly, he's been dominant for the last couple years. He is the bar that we're all trying to get to. In a historical context, you could argue that there's only maybe two or three players in the history of the game that have been on a run, the one that Scottie's been on here for the last 24 to 36 months. It's incredibly impressive.' The win gave Scheffler a fourth Major title, a roll-of-honour surely certain to have additions, and took him three-quarters of the way towards achieving the career Grand Slam. Only the US Open trophy is missing from a display cabinet at home in Dallas, Texas, which has two Masters and a Wanamaker from his US PGA Championship win in May. Scheffler was unshakeable in completing his mission. Barely displaying emotion until the very end, when wife Meredith and young son Bennett met him at the back of the 18th green, Scheffler's mental strength compared to the basalt columns of the Giant's Causeway a little way along the north Antrim coast. And his putting, once a potential weakness, was for the most part flawless, which is how it has become since hooking up with putting guru Phil Kenyon. Scottie Scheffler celebrates with the Claret Jug at Royal Portrush. Photograph: Mike Egerton/PA Wire Starting with a four strokes lead over China's Li, Scheffler's approach to the first-hole flag finished 12 inches away from the cup. A tap-in birdie to start proved ominous and further birdies on the fourth and fifth brought an inevitability about the outcome as the lead briefly stretched to eight shots, and then to seven. That was before a double-bogey six on the eight hole – where Scheffler got too greedy in attempting to escape a fairway bunker, clipped the top and saw it return to the sand – provided the blip. It didn't last for long, as normal service resumed on the ninth – where he hit a lob wedge to four feet – for Scheffler's fourth birdie of the front nine to turn in 32. The champion's only birdie of the homeward journey came on the par-5 12th where one par followed another in ensuring the door would not be opened to any potential challengers. Scheffler, as ever, was in control and, as he had done in his previous three Major wins, he closed out the carrying of a 54-hole lead into the final round to seal the deal. There was some great play from others. Bryson DeChambeau's recovery from that first-round 78 was completed with a bogey-free closing 64 for 275 in tied-10th. 'I like it when it's fair conditions, I can play well. I still have to crack the code when it's raining and windy. But I feel like we're getting close to some opportunities and solutions for that,' he said. US Open champion JJ Spaun – competing in his first Open – came home in 30 for a 68 for 278 in tied-23rd. This is Scheffler's time, and we are witnesses to greatness. Who knows, in truth, where it will end? For him, it's about living in the moment and not looking ahead. 'I have worked since I was two or three years old to have a chance to play professional golf for a living, and now I've been able to win tournaments I've just dreamed of playing in. It's an amazing feeling, and I'm so grateful to be able to live out my dreams. 'My faith and my family is what's most important to me. I try to live as normal of a life as possible because I feel like a normal guy. I have the same friends I had growing up. I don't think that I'm anything special just because some weeks I'm better at shooting a lower score than other guys are,' said Scheffler, a piece of understatement as glorious as his golf over the four days.
Irish Times
22-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Times
Leona Maguire back in form as she heads into Women's PGA final round in tied sixth
Leona Maguire is on course for her best Major finish since 2022 as she moved into a tie for sixth at the Women's PGA Championship on a day of tough scoring conditions. The Cavan golfer is eight shots behind Australian Minjee Lee, who fired a three-under-par 69 on Saturday, her second round under par, to take a commanding four-stroke lead going into the final round. Maguire has a tough start to her third round with a double bogey at the second and a bogey at the fifth. But she battled back and got momentum going from the seventh hole, finishing her final 12 holes in three under. 'I feel like I've been actually playing really well for four, five weeks now. I've been sort of telling my team and everybody I'm playing better than I'm scoring, and I feel like this week it's kind of come together a bit nicer,' Maguire said. READ MORE 'I like hard golf courses. I always have. I like the challenge. This one is a challenge for sure, and it's nice to be able to execute the shots that I want to. 'I grew up in Ireland, grew up in the wind. You just have to like you said embrace the challenge knowing you're going to have to aim 20 yards right for the ball to come back or hold it up if you want to. You just have to be that little bit more creative.' Minjee Lee is pursuing her third Major title, having previously won the 2022 US Women's Open and the 2021 Amundi Evian Championship. World number two Jeeno Thitikul enjoyed a three-stroke lead coming into the weekend but fell back to second with a four-over 76. World number one Nelly Korda is on two over alongside Maguire, while Lexi Thompson is one shot better on one over. On the PGA Tour, Tommy Fleetwood opened up a three-shot lead at the Travelers Championship to raise hopes of a maiden PGA Tour victory. The Englishman fired a flawless 63, including five birdies and an eagle at the par-five 13th, to reach 16 under par, three clear of American pair Russell Henley and Keegan Bradley going into Sunday's final round at TPC River Highlands in Connecticut. Rory McIlroy covered the outward nine in 31 to move to nine under par and put his name high on the leaderboard. But the Masters champion took six at the par-four 12th and a birdie at the 15th was quickly cancelled out by a dropped shot at the next. McIlroy starts the final day tied for eighth among a group which includes Scheffler.
Al Arabiya
21-06-2025
- Sport
- Al Arabiya
Lexi Thompson Has a Top and a Shank to Start Windy Third Round at Women's PGA With Triple Bogey
Lexi Thompson nearly got blown over to start the third round of the KPMG Women's PGA Championship, with a top and a shank on the way to a triple bogey on the opening hole in windy conditions Saturday. After hitting her tee shot into the fairway on the 517-yard, par-5 first hole – a 207-yard drive into wind gusting to around 30 mph – Thompson topped her second shot, which went only 117 yards. She indicated to her caddie that the wind knocked her out of balance. Things didn't get any better from there. Thompson shanked her third shot to the right into a thick native area and had to take a penalty shot that went over the green. She eventually two-putted from 20 feet, then followed with a bogey on the second hole. The semi-retired Thompson, playing for only the seventh time in 16 tournaments this season, won her only major in the 2014 Kraft Nabisco Championship. After a 2-under 70 on Friday, she went into the third round of the Women's PGA in fourth place and was four strokes behind Jeeno Thitikul, the No. 2-ranked player in the world, and was in the second-to-last group Saturday. Thompson's 13 top-five finishes in majors since 2013 are the most by any player and among her 20 top-10 finishes in those events.
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Tyrrell Hatton says Oakmont course ‘unfair' after US Open loss
Tyrrell Hatton called the brutal Oakmont course 'unfair' after his US Open hopes went up in smoke at the 17th hole. The Englishman was in a five-way tie for the lead at the penultimate hole, which, as a short par four, represented a good chance to make birdie. Advertisement But he put his tee shot into the thick rough to the right, and then hit his second shot 25 feet into some more rough on a steep incline, eventually making a bogey five. Hatton had an impossible shot at the 17th (Seth Wenig/AP) He then bogeyed the 18th after losing his composure in trademark style to finish tied for fourth on three over, three shots behind winner JJ Spaun. The difficulty of the punishing Pennsylvanian course has been a talking point all week, with Hatton saying thick rough around steep bunkers has been unnecessary. And he took his frustration out on a reporter, who asked why he thought his tee shot at 17 was unlucky. 'Why do you think it was bad luck? What kind of question is that?' he snapped back. Advertisement 'Like, that's ridiculous. If you're going to miss that green, you have to miss it right in the bunker. I did my bit. I feel like I was extremely unlucky to finish where it did. 'I feel I've missed it in the right spot and got punished, which ultimately I don't think ends up being fair. 'The finish at the end hurts a lot. What happened on 17 is going to hurt a lot for a long time. 'It was the first time I've been in contention in a major, and that was exciting, and unfortunately, I feel like through a bit of bad luck, I had momentum taken away from me and ultimately ended up not being my day. 'It's hard when you feel like the tournament then just escapes from you right at the end. 'Certainly for me, being the first time in contention at a major, to have that happen right at the end as opposed to like early in the week when you don't end up knowing if that's going to cost anything down the line, I'd say at the end of the tournament, that it makes it hurt a lot more.'
Washington Post
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Washington Post
Jack Nicklaus on defending Memorial champ Scottie Scheffler: 'He plays a lot like I did'
DUBLIN, Ohio — Scottie Scheffler already received a handshake and a trophy from Jack Nicklaus for winning the Memorial last year. Now comes some of the highest praise of all from the tournament host. 'He plays a lot like I did,' Nicklaus said. Nicklaus, whose 18 professional major championships remain the gold standard in golf, said he never went to a tournament thinking it was his to win. Golf required preparation. It was a process of hitting fairways and greens, always improving.
