The Open: Scottie Scheffler lurking, be careful for World No. 1

Elevate your hand in case you have heard this earlier than: Scottie Scheffler practically led the sector in strokes gained approaching the inexperienced however ranked in direction of the underside in placing throughout spherical one in every of The Open Championship.

The World No. 1 couldn’t purchase a bucket, scraping edges and lipping out a couple of may rely. He hit 13-of-18 greens, giving himself loads of alternatives, however made solely 57 toes of putts, good for 109th among the many 158-man subject.

“It’s undoubtedly irritating whenever you’re watching it three toes out, and also you suppose it’s going to go in, and it simply doesn’t,” Scheffler stated after his 1-under 70.

“On the finish of the day, I satisfaction myself on preparation and exhibiting up able to go, and if I hit a extremely good putt from 15 or 20 toes— the greens aren’t good. It’s not an ideal floor. You get wind and every kind of stuff—and I’m lipping out, it’s nearly such as you’re simply enjoying a numbers sport. If I proceed hitting actually good putts, they may finally fall in.”

Scheffler’s optimistic outlook helps clarify why he’s presently one of the best participant on this planet. He stays affected person and performs conservatively, a method Tiger Woods employed persistently in his prime. If a participant fails to take action, hassle and massive numbers current themselves reasonably shortly. Simply ask Rory McIlroy or Bryson DeChambeau after their rounds on Thursday.

Photograph by Pedro Salado/Getty Pictures

However, Scheffler did make 4 birdies on Thursday, two of which got here on the sixteenth and 18th holes late in his spherical. However he made three bogies as a result of blistering 25-mile-per-hour winds from the south. Throw in some precipitation, too, and the problem turns into much more troublesome.

“I don’t know if complicated is the precise phrase; it is simply difficult, particularly whenever you get the rain concerned,” Scheffler stated of the situations.

“If you get a moist ball into the wind, it’s superb how brief it goes.”

Although he made a few errors on Thursday and sits 5 off the lead, Scheffler stays the live-odds on favourite per DraftKings, and rightfully so.

He leads the tour in dozens of classes, however most significantly, in greens in regulation, bogey avoidance, birdies per spherical, and bounce-back share, important attributes that particularly apply to Royal Troon.

Scheffler makes a ton of birdies and infrequently makes errors. However when he does stumble, he rebounds with a birdie practically 35% of the time.

Extra hassle will current itself because the week wears on, because the situations is not going to loosen up. That can remove many different gamers with flaws of their video games or those that didn’t hit it as solidly as others. A robust, blistering wind usually gobbles up poorly struck pictures. But Scheffler doesn’t have to fret about that. He routinely compresses the ball within the middle of the membership face and finds the middle of the inexperienced extra so than some other participant on the planet. The one fear he ought to have going into the ultimate 54 holes is that if he can get extra putts to fall into the opening. However as he stated, it’s a numbers sport, and they’re going to undoubtedly drop in sooner or later. The legislation of averages says so.

Photograph by Pedro Salado/Getty Pictures

On prime of that, Scheffler has historical past on his facet.

In accordance with golf statistician Justin Ray, every of the final 24 Open Champions has been inside 5 pictures of the lead after spherical one. That eliminates all however 141 gamers within the subject. Scheffler presently sits in a tie for eleventh and 5 again of Daniel Brown, the 272nd-ranked participant within the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR), who fired a 6-under 65 within the first spherical of his main profession.

In all probability, Brown will come again to the sector a bit, however even when he doesn’t, the percentages are that Scheffler will catch him. He’s hitting the ball too properly from tee to inexperienced, to not. Different main champions are on the leaderboard, too, notably Shane Lowry, Justin Rose, Justin Thomas, and Xander Schauffele. They may most actually affect how the 152nd Open shakes out, however be careful for Scheffler, who feels assured in himself and his putter—a harmful mixture—regardless of the flat stick irritating him for many of the day.

“I don’t actually really feel like I made many putts, however I felt like I hit a variety of high quality putts, which for me is basically good,” Scheffler stated.

“I felt like all day I used to be hitting actually good putts that had been both lipping out or going proper by the sting. Hopefully, simply proceed to hit good putts for the following couple of days, and I’ll see the place it takes me.”

That would lead Scheffler to hoist the Claret Jug at this charge. On the similar time, The Open is probably the most unpredictable of all of them, even for the World No. 1. Who is aware of how this week at Royal Troon will shake out, however one of the best participant is lurking dangerously on the leaderboard, which ought to scare everybody else.

Jack Milko is a golf workers author for SB Nation’s Taking part in By means of. Remember to take a look at @_PlayingThrough for extra golf protection. You possibly can observe him on Twitter @jack_milko as properly.