Field gets rare chance as Scottie Scheffler stumbles at U.S. Open

PINEHURST, N.C. – The challenge of Pinehust No. 2 is predicated on its unpredictability. From the sandy areas off the fairways that offer a wide variety of lies, to the slopes that surreptitiously shrink the size of the putting surfaces, a round here is full of surprises.

Putts have rolled off greens and clumps of wiregrass have sent shots astray, but nothing has been more surprising than Scottie Scheffler’s score through the first two rounds of the U.S. Open. Golf’s indomitable force, its unrivaled No. 1, was living on the cut line for much of Friday after shooting 71-74. He ended up advancing to the weekend without a shot to spare, 10 shots behind leader Ludvig Åberg.

Scheffler’s struggles offer a rare opportunity for the rest of the field this weekend. He has scooped up almost all of the PGA TOUR’s biggest prizes in 2024, winning the Masters, THE PLAYERS and three of the Signature Events. His peers speak of him as an outlier, citing him as an inspiration instead of a meer competitor. The two who have the most to gain from his missteps this week happen to be the two stars he played alongside over the last two days.

The USGA paired Scheffler, Xander Schauffele and Rory McIlroy for the first two rounds to create a super-group of the world’s top three players. While Scheffler spent Friday afternoon wondering about his weekend fate, Schauffele and McIlroy prepared for another opportunity to win a major.

No one can supplant Scheffler this week – it will take months, if not more, to overtake him – but Schauffele and McIlroy at least have a chance to make 2024 about more than just Scheffler and his incredible dominance. Schauffele has a chance to win a second straight major, while McIlroy has an opportunity to end the game’s most high-profile major drought.

Earlier this week, McIlroy admitted that Scheffler is on a run the likes of which we’ve seldom seen, and one which McIlroy has never experienced personally. “Every time he shows up, he is the guy to beat, and deservedly so," McIlroy said.

Added Schauffele, “Every week we play, he seems to build a bigger lead, and somehow make the mountain even taller for all of us to climb.” This week appears to be a rare exception.

Scheffler came to Pinehurst having won five of his past eight starts, with two runners-up in that span. He’s finished outside the top 10 just once in 2024.

At this U.S. Open, though, Scheffler will start the weekend as almost an afterthought.

Scheffler struggled with his driver Thursday and couldn’t make enough putts Friday to capitalize on his ballstriking. It was a performance on the greens that was reminiscent of last year, when his putting was the source of constant inquiries. He was undone by a double-bogey on the par-5 fifth, his 14th hole of the second round. He didn’t make a single birdie Friday, losing more than three strokes on the greens while missing four putts inside 10 feet.

While Scheffler was struggling, McIlroy and Schauffele remained in contention.

McIlroy followed his first-round 65, which gave him a share of the lead with Patrick Cantlay, with a solid 72 (3-under total) on a course that was growing firmer by the moment. Only Bryson DeChambeau and Thomas Detry posted lower 36-hole scores from the morning wave; they both shot 4-under 136. McIlroy enteres the weekend two behind Åberg.

“I did a pretty good job at keeping some of the mistakes off the scorecard,” said McIlroy, who missed just one fairway and hit 12 greens Friday. It was the sort of ballstriking performance that is paramount at Pinehurst, and could have been even better if not for a cold putter. He lost more than two strokes on the greens, and missed all five of his putts from 10-15 feet.

Still, his play was another example of his metamorphosis in recent years, from a player who hit the highest highs but sometimes struggled to find consistency. While the young McIlroy produced four major victories in a three-year span, he is firm in his belief that he is a better player now. The wins in majors just haven’t followed, even as the opportunities have increased.

He finished in the top 10 in seven of the eight majors played in 2022 and 2023. He has five straight top-10s in the U.S. Open, proving he has the discipline to play the “boring golf” required by this event.

“Explosiveness isn't going to win a U.S. Open,” he said earlier this week. “It's more methodically building your score over the course of four days and being OK with that.”

McIlroy, 35, is in the midst of his third consecutive multiple-win season on the PGA TOUR, and a victory this weekend would be his third win in his last six PGA TOUR starts. His popular win alongside Shane Lowry last month in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans seemed to rejuvenate him, reminding him of the joy that first drew him to this pursuit. He won a fourth Wells Fargo Championship in his next start. McIlroy also began the year with a win in the DP World Tour’s Dubai Desert Classic.

“I feel like all aspects of my game are in pretty good shape at the minute,” he said.

Schauffele shot 70-69 in the first two rounds and is four off the lead. He overcame bogeys on his opening two holes Friday by making five birdies in his next 11 holes. He doubled the par-5 fifth, however, to fall back to 1-under par.

After so many close calls, Schauffele won his first major at last month’s PGA Championship. A win at Pinehurst would transform the narrative around him, from a consistent player who struggled under Sunday pressure to a certified closer.

“I just checked one box, which is really cool, obviously a box very much at the top of my list,” Schauffele said of his PGA win. “But still a lot more to do, obviously.”

Winning at Pinehurst would give him back-to-back major wins and put his career in a whole new light, even bringing him into the conversation for the Hall of Fame. He would be just the fourth player in the past quarter-century to win back-to-back majors, joining Jordan Spieth, Tiger Woods and McIlroy.

Before winning the PGA, Schauffele was known for enviable consistency but also a conversion rate that was lower than his talent level suggested. His PGA Championship win was his first victory since July of 2022, a stretch that featured 21 top-10s without a trophy. His 10 top-10s this season are only two fewer than Scheffler’s. No one else has more than six. This is also Schauffele’s 49th consecutive cut made, the longest streak on TOUR.

The ultra-consistent Scheffler (+2.9) and Schauffele (+2.2) are the only players gaining at least two strokes per round on the field this season. McIlroy is third in that stat, but still a half-stroke behind Schauffele. It’s not the numbers that matter, though. It’s the victories. And after Scottie Scheffler unexpectedly drifted out of contention on Friday, one thing is clear.

For the next two days, at least, someone else has a chance.