Scottie Scheffler shoots 73 on Saturday at PGA, snapping streak of 42 consecutive rounds under par

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The streak is over.

Scottie Scheffler shot 2-over 73 in the third round of the PGA Championship, snapping a run of 42 consecutive rounds under par on the PGA TOUR. Tiger Woods holds the record of 52 consecutive under-par rounds, set in 2001.

It was a tale of two rounds for Scheffler at Valhalla Golf Club. After a remarkable second-round 66 on Friday, a testament to his resilience and focus despite his early-morning arrest, Scheffler struggled to maintain the same energy and play on Saturday. The world No. 1 was 4-over through four holes and could not recover.

“I was battling as hard as I could but it seemed every time I birdied, I bogeyed the next hole, which is quite frustrating,” Scheffler said. “I was able to make enough birdies to get a decent round but just way, way too many mistakes today.”

Scheffler made a double-bogey on the par-4 second hole, unable to get the ball on the green after finding thick greenside rough with his approach shot. He three-putted on the third for a bogey and hit his tee shot out of bounds on the drivable par-4 fourth hole. After taking a drop near the green, Scheffler chunked his pitch shot and went on to make a bogey. The reigning Masters champion failed to sustain any momentum the rest of the day. Scheffler made five birdies but immediately bogeyed the next hole on three occasions.

It was an understandable performance, given the chaotic nature of Scheffler’s week. He acknowledged he woke up on Saturday feeling fatigued and didn’t go through his regular pre-round routine.

“I was definitely– did not feel like myself today,” he said. “Yesterday happened and I did my best to recover from it and come out here and compete today. I did a great job yesterday of coming out and competing, riding the adrenaline and this morning was definitely not my usual routine for a round, if that makes sense.”

Irrelevant to the streak, the round was costly in what was a big spot for Scheffler, seeking his fifth TOUR victory this season and the second leg of the major Grand Slam. After entering the day at 9-under, three shots back of the lead, Scheffler walked off the 18th green 7-under, eight shots behind leaders Xander Schauffele and Collin Morikawa.

It’s likely too big a deficit to overcome, but Scheffler will get a vital part of his team back on Sunday. Ted Scott, Scheffler’s full-time caddie, missed Saturday’s round to attend his daughter’s high school graduation but is expected to return for the final round. Scheffler’s friend Brad Payne filled in during the third round.

Scheffler’s under-par streak dated back to the final round of the 2023 TOUR Championship. His 41 consecutive rounds under par to begin the 2024 TOUR season is the longest streak to begin a season on TOUR since 1983.

“I came out here hoping to have a good round and wasn’t able to get it done which is pretty frustrating but I’ll come back and try again tomorrow,” Scheffler said.