Scottie Scheffler reacts to ‘silly' Tiger Woods comparisons after dominant victory at The Open
The American triumphed at Royal Portrush, retaining a four-stroke advantage overnight to post a final round of 68 to finish ahead of Harris English in second, with a late charge from Rory McIlroy and others failing to materialise.
And after Scheffler clinched the Claret Jug, his fourth major championship and second of the year, in the same number of days since his first triumph at the 2022 Masters as Woods did between the 1997 Masters and 2000 Open Championship (1,197), many people in the game have placed the 29-year-old in the same bracket as the legendary 15-time major winner.
'I still think they're a bit silly,' Scheffler remarked. 'Tiger won, what, 15 majors? This is my fourth. I just got one-fourth of the way there. I think Tiger stands alone in the game of golf. He was inspirational for me growing up. He was a very, very talented guy, and he was a special person to be able to be as good as he was at the game of golf.
'I don't focus on that kind of stuff. That's not what motivates me. I'm not motivated by winning championships. I don't look at the beginning of the year and just say, hey, I want to win X amount of tournaments, I want to win whatever it is.
' don't do that. I have dreams and aspirations that I think about, but at the end of the day, when I wake up to practise, I feel like what motivates me is just getting out and getting to live out my dream. I get to play professional golf, and I feel like I'm called to do it to the best of my ability.
'When I wake up in the morning, I try and put max effort in each day I get to go out and practise. When I'm working out, when I'm doing the cold tub, doing recovery, I feel like I'm just called to do it to the best of my ability. Outside of that, I don't place much emphasis on winning tournaments.
'I don't place much emphasis on things that I can accomplish. It's just mostly about putting in the proper work and coming out here and competing.
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'Right up there' - Portrush shines for Open week
Only the Open Championship could make a small, seaside town in Northern Ireland feel like the centre of the sporting an overwhelming majority of the huge crowds were willing home favourite Rory McIlroy to victory, that it was the world number one who denied the story its fairytale ending still felt wholly fitting. Other events of this size are played out in cities of similar stature, but the sight of superstar Scottie Scheffler hoisting the Claret Jug on the 18th green of a brilliant, yet remote, course tucked away on the north coast of the island of Ireland summed up what is unique about this have been plenty of similarly seemingly incongruous scenes over the past seven it be multi-millionaires getting their morning coffee in establishments where an Ulster fry would set you back less than £7, a former Open winner becoming a repeat customer at a small pie shop on the main street or the defending champion sinking a stout round the corner, the Open did not just come to town, it became a part of it for the duration of its Cameron Smith, who won his Claret Jug at St Andrews in 2022, could hardly have paid Portrush a bigger compliment than comparing it to the home of golf."It seems like there's a lot of Opens where the course is great but the town doesn't really get involved, whereas this one kind of seems like everyone in town is happy to have you here and gets around the whole tournament," he said."It's right up there. It's a very similar feeling to St Andrews for sure." In a week that began with the eventual winner questioning the meaning of it all, there was great purpose in the way the first arriving fans flooded through the gates and on to the course after word spread that McIlroy had snuck out for a practice round at the earliest available opportunity. Those first holes on Monday, and his stints watching chunks of Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer between rounds, must have felt like the briefest slices of quiet for the most recent member of golf's Grand Slam all other points around Royal Portrush, galleries thronged around the Holywood star, the roars that greeted each of his made putts reverberating across the links. While his walk off the 18th green was without the Claret Jug, the love for the returning hero, playing at home for the first time since his Masters victory, was a far more fitting conclusion to his week than the tearful missed cut back in it was not just McIlroy who sparked adoration. Americans Bryson DeChambeau and Jordan Spieth, as well as England's Tommy Fleetwood, were among other huge draws obliging as many requests for selfies and autographs as time allowed, while the thump of children's feet along grandstands as players neared with golf balls sounded like the promised thunder. So keen were others to take home a souvenir of their week by more conventional means, queues for the merchandise tent snaked round multiple sets of barriers with one visitor reportedly spending £13,000 in one were content with more transitory pleasures. On Padraig Harrington's insistence that Royal Portrush had the best ice creams on The Open rota, there seemed general agreement after what was surely a record number of 99s consumed up and down the links. A more uniquely Northern Irish staple - the fifteen traybake - proved more divisive in the media coconut-based treat was not all that failed to gain universal popularity. Jason Day was left confounded by local weather forecasts as the week proved true the old cliche about Northern Ireland featuring all four seasons in one day, while marathon rounds on Thursday left a few players grumbling about bottlenecks on the course. Those that took the time to look around as they waited, though, were rewarded with the spectacular views that make Portrush such a memorable course for the hacker and world's best player alike."It's one of the coolest views that I've seen in the game of golf, to be honest with you," said Scheffler of the course's signature hole Calamity Corner."We were kind of looking out. It was a day in which you had a bunch of rain and there was rainbows on the other side, and you're looking out over the golf course on the right, and you've got the huge bluffs by the ocean and it's just mounds and hills, and the town is in the distance." Even Shane Lowry, who had the best day of his golfing life here six years ago when winning the 148th Open Championship, cut a wholly frustrated figure at points during a weekend when he was handed a two-shot penalty on Friday and struggled with illness in his third after a brilliant closing 66 on Sunday, Royal Portrush had clearly redeemed itself in the Offaly man's eyes when all was said and by BBC Sport NI when would he like to see The Open be back here for its fourth staging, he replied: "How about next year?"While it will surely be longer than a six-year wait for another go this time around, after another hugely successful week, a return sooner rather than later seems a certainty.
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BBC News
16 minutes ago
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An Open to remember - 18 photos from Royal Portrush
Four days and 267 shots later, Scottie Scheffler completed the third part of his Grand Slam quest as he dominated The Open at Royal Scheffler's brilliance, the scenic views and, of course, Rory McIlroy mania, it was a week to honour of the famous links course, here are 18 of the best photos from a memorable week in Northern Ireland. Before the golfers' attentions turned to the course, signer and golf fanatic Niall Horan joined several players for a chip-in challenge down at Portrush by the reactions here I think he was pretty close. Scottie Scheffler made headlines before the Open had even started when he said professional golf was "not a fulfilling life" and questioned "the point" of pursuing victories when that euphoria lasts a couple of minutes.I'm sure he was questioning "what's the point?" when he was standing getting hammered by rain at the start of the week, when Northern Ireland was getting hit by four seasons in one well that ends well, however. Tunnel vision for Bryson American was one of the most popular players throughout the week and, after a horrendous opening round of seven over, he put on a clinic with rounds of 65, 68 and 64 to finish on nine under and tied for 10th an entertaining man to watch. Rory mania was in full flow at Royal Portrush as fans - both young and old - hunted McIlroy down for an autograph or a glimpse of the local hero. It was a 06:30 BST start on Thursday, but the crowds still came out in force to watch Padraig Harrington hit the opening tee shot at the two-time Open champion did not make the cut but his 'scientific' comments about Portrush having the best 99 ice creams on the Open rota were one of the most memorable moments of the week. Golfers, spectators and media all became weather experts throughout the week as the skies dominated Fleetwood was one of those to toil on a wet and wild opening day, but he would recover to seven under for the it would clear up for the final two days. Xander Schauffele had a strong week in Northern Ireland but didn't have enough to defend his Open title from Royal Troon 12 months ago. Here, he takes some Portrush turf with him as the wet and windy weather made things tricky in the opening two rounds. Is this the best view in golf? It must be a great feeling hitting a shot into the colosseum of the 18th hole at Royal Portrush. The sun certainly helps too. Here, Bob MacIntyre unloads a ball towards the green. The Scot was one of the most popular players on the course during the week. It quickly became a tradition that dozens of young fans would make that way to the players' exit from the 18th green to try and catch a you can see, it became quite competitive. After a two-stroke penalty on Friday that dropped him out of contention, Shane Lowry might have needed a guiding light to battle his way into the this the photo of the entire week? Quite possibly. Li Haotong - once dubbed the most handsome man in China - takes in what could be the most handsome view on the golf a clear day, you can see along the coast for several miles and take in the golden, sandy beach below. It went that way! On the picturesque sixth hole, with 'the most famous bench in golf' in the background, spectators look in the evening sun as Matthew Fitzpatrick hits his tee shot in the third round. Forget 'Where's Wally?'. The Open was a case of 'Where's Rory?' as the crowds followed him everywhere he went. His Saturday round, including his eagle put on the 12th, will live long in the memory of those watching. Now, this is Fitzpatrick's approach to lining up a put caught a lot of attention in that, or he's trying to get as close as possible to Scottie Scheffler. We wouldn't blame him. Do you ever feel like someone is watching? Thousands of fans followed Rory McIlroy through his final two rounds from first hole to last. It was an emotional farewell to Royal Portrush from McIlroy's home support as he received a standing ovation as he walked onto the 18th green. It wasn't to be for the Masters champion, but he banished the memories of 2019. In an adorable moment, and not without a couple of tumbles on the way, Scheffler's son, Bennett, made his way onto the green after his dad had been handed the Claret Jug.
