Scottie Scheffler offers jaw-dropping answer at Open Championship news conference

Open favourite Scottie Scheffler left news conference attendees at Royal Portrush stunned on the eve of the final men's major of the year as he offered one of the most thought-provoking answers in recent memory. 

Scheffler arrives in Northern Ireland as the favourite to lift the Claret Jug on Sunday evening and edge closer to completing the career grand slam. 

But the American told reporters on Tuesday he could not care less what others make of his chances and he's not playing this game to try and inspire the next generation of golfers. 

And the runaway World No.1 also said he struggles with motivation on a daily basis because the euphoric feeling he gets from victories in golf's biggest tournaments only last for about two minutes. 

Scheffler matched the PGA Tour 72-hole scoring record in May when he clipped the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in his home state of Texas. 

His sister carried his bag when he made his debut in the same tournament as an amateur in 2014 and she watched outside the ropes this time alongside Scheffler's wife Meredith, son Bennett and his parents.  

Scheffler had tears in his eyes. 

Yet it wasn't long until the Schefflers were thinking about what to grab for dinner.

"I think it's kind of funny, I think I said something after the Byron this year about like it feels like you work your whole life to celebrate winning a tournament for like a few minutes," Scheffler said. 

"It only lasts a few minutes, that kind of euphoric feeling.

"To win the Byron Nelson Championship at home, I literally worked my entire life to become good at golf to have an opportunity to win that tournament. 

"You win it, you celebrate, get to hug my family, my sister's there, it's such an amazing moment. Then it's like, okay, what are we going to eat for dinner? Life goes on."

He added: "Is it great to be able to win tournaments and to accomplish the things I have in the game of golf? Yeah, it brings tears to my eyes just to think about because I've literally worked my entire life to be good at this sport. 

"To have that kind of sense of accomplishment, I think, is a pretty cool feeling. 

"To get to live out your dreams is very special, but at the end of the day, I'm not out here to inspire the next generation of golfers. I'm not out here to inspire someone to be the best player in the world because what's the point? 

"This is not a fulfilling life. It's fulfilling from the sense of accomplishment, but it's not fulfilling from a sense of the deepest places of your heart.

"There's a lot of people that make it to what they thought was going to fulfill them in life, and you get there, you get to No. 1 in the world, and they're like what's the point? 

"I really do believe that because what is the point? Why do I want to win this tournament so bad?

"That's something that I wrestle with on a daily basis. It's like showing up at The Masters every year; it's like why do I want to win this golf tournament so badly? Why do I want to win The Open Championship so badly? 

"I don't know because, if I win, it's going to be awesome for two minutes. Then we're going to get to the next week, hey, you won two majors this year; how important is it for you to win the FedExCup playoffs? And we're back here again.

"So we really do; we work so hard for such little moments. I'm kind of sicko; I love putting in the work. I love getting to practice. I love getting to live out my dreams. But at the end of the day, sometimes I just don't understand the point."

Watch Scheffler's response here:

Scheffler joked that he wasn't sure if he was making sense or not. 

"It's just one of those deals," he added. "I love the challenge. I love being able to play this game for a living. It's one of the greatest joys of my life, but does it fill the deepest wants and desires of my heart? Absolutely not."

So what does he find fulfilling? 

Living out his dreams and competing at the top of golf is great, he said, but being a father and a husband matters more. 

"Every day when I wake up early to go put in the work, my wife thanks me for going out and working so hard. When I get home, I try and thank her every day for taking care of our son," he said. 

"That's why I talk about family being my priority because it really is. I'm blessed to be able to come out here and play golf, but if my golf ever started affecting my home life or it ever affected the relationship I have with my wife or my son, that's going to be the last day that I play out here for a living.

"This is not the be all, end all. This is not the most important thing in my life. That's why I wrestle with, why is this so important to me?

"Because I'd much rather be a great father than I would be a great golfer. At the end of the day, that's what's more important to me."