Scottie Scheffler's record streak ends with miss from 1 foot, 10 inches at Texas Children's Houston Open

HOUSTON – Scottie Scheffler’s record streak ended Friday with a miss from 1 foot, 10 inches. But he could still earn his third straight TOUR title this weekend.

Scheffler made double bogey on the par-4 18th in the second round of the Texas Children’s Houston Open, carding an even-par 70 at Memorial Park Golf Course. He had entered the day on a streak of 28 consecutive rounds under par on the PGA TOUR, marking a modern-era record.

Scheffler’s second shot at No. 18 on Friday flew into a bunker beyond the green, which he splashed out to 6 feet. His par putt caught the right lip and spun to 1 foot, 10 inches past the hole. His bogey putt also caught the lip before he tapped in for double bogey and an even-par second round at an increasingly firm Memorial Park.

The good news for Scheffler: He’s still positioned this weekend to chase his third TOUR title in as many starts, a feat that hasn’t been accomplished since 2017. Scheffler will enter Saturday’s third round at 5-under 135, four strokes back of Tony Finau, who matched a course-record 62 on Friday (a record previously shared by Finau and Scheffler).

After that closing double bogey, Scheffler signed autographs for his home-state fans and even demonstrated a bit of self-deprecation when meeting the media.

“No, I do that all the time,” Scheffler quipped when asked if the missed bogey was due to a mental lapse. “That happens a lot to me.

“No, yeah, frustrating lapse in judgment there,” he continued. “You never really know what's going to be up there around the cup on 18. Yeah, just hit something and knocked the second one offline. Felt like I hit a good putt on the first one, maybe went just barely through the break, so obviously it was a bit frustrating hitting a good putt and it not going in. Second one I guess just hit a little fast and didn't see a spike mark there.”

Akshay Bhatia held the TOUR’s previous record of consecutive under-par rounds (27), which Scheffler surpassed with an opening 5-under 65 this week at Memorial Park.

Tiger Woods holds the record of consecutive rounds at par or better (52), set across the 2000 and 2001 seasons. Scheffler’s current streak of rounds at par or better – up to 29 – remains intact.

Scheffler opened Friday with a bogey at the par-4 first hole before rallying in trademark fashion with birdies on Nos. 3, 4 and 8 – including a chip-in birdie from behind the par-4 fourth green. He bounced back from a bogey at No. 11 with a birdie at No. 12, and he rallied after a bogey at No. 14 with a birdie at No. 17. In between, he saved par at the par-5 16th after his second shot kicked off the bank into the water. He pitched to 9 feet and drained the putt.

That closing double bogey ended his day on a sour note, but his spirits were re-centered by the time he met with fans and the media. He said that he battled hard but that conditions were challenging (a sentiment validated by the scores, as several names on the first page of the leaderboard moved backward as Friday afternoon progressed).

“If you took an average wind speed, it probably wouldn't have been that crazy, but when it's gusting from 10 to 30 (mph) all day, it makes everything you're doing out there pretty challenging,” he said afterward.

“I think that's why sometimes you see stuff like that happen on 18, that's mental fatigue, that's really all that is, just a lapse in judgment. … I did my best to get some rest last week. I feel rested right now. I'm obviously a touch frustrated with how I finished, but overall I'm still in the middle of the tournament.”

With only a few players ahead of him on the leaderboard, he certainly is.