(Pinehurst) The Pinehurst No. 2 course got the better of Scottie Scheffler, the world’s best player, on Friday.
Scheffler did not make a birdie in the same round for the first time in a little over two years and he posted a card of 74 (under-4) at the United States Open.
“Today I couldn’t make my putts,” he analyzed. This course can be unpredictable at times and it may have gotten the best of me over the last two days. I will sit down, think about where we are going and come up with solutions. »
Much more was expected of Scheffler for several reasons. He was coming off his fifth victory of the year at the Memorial, making him the first player since Tom Watson in 1980 to win five PGA Tour titles before the U.S. Open.
He had finished outside the top 10 on just one occasion this year, and that was a tie for 17th at the American Express tournament.
The majority of the damage occurred on a single hole, the par-5 fifth flag, one of the easiest holes on the course. Scheffler missed several shots in a row and made a double bogey.
It wasn’t just this hole. Scheffler missed a few birdie opportunities on three previous holes.
For the moment, Scheffler has a cumulative score of plus-5 and the tournament ax has been set at this score.