Scottie Scheffler’s brutal admission will make amateur golfers feel much better about their game

Scottie Scheffler's second round at the Memorial Tournament was a reminder that even the world's best players can sometimes feel completely lost on the golf course.

The world number one battled his way to a level-par 72 on Friday at Muirfield Village, but the scorecard hardly reflected the struggle he endured. 

In fact, Scheffler, 29, admitted afterwards he felt closer to posting a score that many amateur golfers would happily take.

“I felt like I was going to shoot about 90 today,” said Scheffler, after remaining one-over par for the tournament and 10 shots off the pace entering the weekend at Jack Nicklaus' coveted PGA Tour event. 

“I don’t know if you were out there on the course, but I was going to be hard to find if you were out watching my group. I felt like I got my first birdie putt of the day on the 13th hole. I couldn’t imagine I hit more than six or seven greens today. So around this golf course, with heavy rough and deep bunkers, you got to be hitting the ball in the right spots and for a long time today that was definitely not the case for me.”

For most club golfers, hearing the game's dominant player talk about flirting with a 90 will provide plenty of comfort before their next tee time.

Scheffler arrived at the Memorial looking to become just the second player after Tiger Woods to win the event three years in a row. 

Woods achieved that feat in 2001.

Instead, the four-time major champion found himself scrambling simply to stay in touch after a wildly uncharacteristic display of ball-striking through 36 holes.

The statistics underline just how unusual the performance was. Scheffler hit only 15 greens in regulation across his first two rounds — a number he often reaches in a single day.

His frustrations peaked with a shank from a bunker, a shot he later revealed was the first of its kind since the Tour Championship two years ago. 

Yet despite repeatedly finding thick rough, awkward lies and difficult recovery positions, he somehow managed to keep his tournament alive.

“That’s maybe some of the worst I’ve hit it in a couple years out there and I still managed to shoot even par around a golf course that requires to you strike the ball really well,” Scheffler told reporters Friday. 

“Yeah, I’m definitely very proud of stuff like that. This tournament was one that definitely could have got away from me.”

After grinding out pars for much of the day, Scheffler's second round threatened to unravel completely when three consecutive bogeys around the turn left him hovering dangerously close to the Memorial's cut line.

But the resilience that has become a hallmark of his game surfaced once again.

A wedge to three feet at the 13th sparked a run of late birdies. 

He followed with a 20-footer at the 15th and another lengthy conversion from around 40 feet at the 16th before closing with two hard-earned pars.

By the end of the day, Scheffler had signed for a 72 that felt significantly better than it looked on paper.

He ended the day 10 shots adrift of leader J.T. Poston, who fired a superb 65 to move to nine-under par. 

While Scheffler hardly resembled the dominant force that has spent much of the season overwhelming PGA Tour fields, his closing stretch offered some encouragement ahead of the U.S. Open in two weeks' time. 

Asked what sparked the turnaround over the final six holes, Scheffler could only offer a smile and a shrug.

“I’m about to go find out,” Scheffler said, before walking directly to the range.