Olympics
Olympics 2024: Scottie Scheffler lurking even though he can't read the greens
Scottie Scheffler lines up a putt in the second round.
EMMANUEL DUNAND
SAINT-QUENTIN-EN-YVELINES, France — The No. 1 player in the world is lurking after a back nine 31 in his second-round 69 left him five shots off the lead with 36 holes to play at the Olympics. Pretty good for a guy who can’t read the greens.
Scheffler, who has yet to blitz a softened Le Golf National like leaders Xander Schauffele, Hideki Matsuyama and Tommy Fleetwood, remains within shouting distance of the leaders and a run at a gold medal after making four birdies on his back nine. The inspiration might have been his own consternation at making sense of the putting surfaces at the three-decade home of the French Open, a venue where an American golfer has never won.
Scheffler was reading greens like the ugly American on his way to a front-nine 38, so he called in veteran caddie Ted Scott to offer some fresh perspective. Scott caddied for Bubba Watson at the 2018 Ryder Cup at Le Golf National.
“On No. 9, I hit what I felt like was another good putt, and I totally misread it,” Scheffler said. “I looked at Teddy and was, like, I cannot read these greens right now, I don't know what it is. He started reading putts with me on the back nine, and I rolled a nice one in there on 10. Another really good one on 11 and you know, after that, hit a lot of good putts and still around the lip, but was pleased with how I rolled it. Made a nice par putt on 16 as well.”
It was typical Scheffler stay-the-course stuff. That Mr. Rogers unflappability kept his head in the game after making a mess of the seventh hole with a drive in the right heavy rough that he could barely advance 80 yards. The double bogey could have ended his Olympic run before the weekend, but that’s not the Scheffler we’ve come to see over the last 18 months. The guy seemingly could get arrested in the morning and still shoot 6-under. Oh, right.
“Panic is definitely not the right word,” he said in the most Scheffler-ian of tones. “But when you look up the at the leaderboard, I think at the time I was maybe nine shots back or something like that—around a golf course like this where the scores are going to continue to get lower, it could be tough to catch up. I needed to do something to get back in the tournament. I did a good job.
“I think that's the internal battle you have of staying patient. I know if I stay patient around this golf course and play well, I can shoot a low score. It's just a matter of if I start freaking out and start forcing things, you're going to get in trouble really fast.”
The mind races at what a freaking-out Scheffler might be. Maybe changing a diaper and remaking the crib at the same time? Running out of formula at 3 in the morning? Having to shave every day?
No matter. Scheffler finds himself in the top 10 at the Olympics and finally feels like he’s got his feet under him. And his eyes, or at least his caddie’s eyes, back on the prize. A gold medal is still in his sights.
“I'm proud of the back nine,” he said. “Got myself back into it. Like I said, I was pretty far back so it was nice to string some good holes together and hole some putts. Definitely ride that momentum the next couple days.
“I felt like I kind of righted the ship today which was important, and kept me in the tournament.”
The key was not merely the steadying hand of his own mind, but the wisdom of a caddie who’s seen it all before, particularly these French putting surfaces. Scheffler was happy to borrow Scott’s vision.
“The way I was feeling, I wasn't really going to disagree with what he was saying,” he said. “It's like, 'Yeah, man, you just tell me what to do here and I'll oblige.'”