Shades of Jordan Spieth?
Nine years after Spieth’s memorable 13th hole at Royal Birkdale, Scottie Scheffler went through his own wild dropping episode on the same Southport links during Sunday’s final round of the 154th Open Championship.
Scheffler did better than Spieth’s bogey, birdieing the par-5 17th after getting relief from a hospitality area to keep alive his hopes of successfully defending his Claret Jug.
Unfortunately for Scheffler, he bogeyed the final hole to shoot 67 during the final round and 7-under for the week. Ultimately, the world No. 1 finished three shots back of tournament winner Ryan Fox.
It wasn’t for lack of excitement, as Scheffler birdied three of his first five holes – all three putts coming from inside 5 feet – to firmly enter the mix. He then stepped on the 17th tee box three shots off the lead, following a 12-foot birdie make at the par-4 16th, which righted the ship from his bogey at No. 13, where he drew a nasty lie right of the fairway – not near where Spieth was in 2017, though – and only advanced his second shot about a yard.
That’s when Scheffler hit a low, slicing a 3-wood into a massive dune left of the fairway and somehow didn’t kick right.
“Why? Why?!” Scheffler could be heard screaming. “How does that even happen?! That ball’s slicing – one bounce! One bounce!”
Scheffler surprisingly drew a clean lie, though he couldn’t see the green, which was still nearly 300 yards up ahead. Knowing he still needed at least one birdie, Scheffler kept 3-wood in hand and took a might lash. His front foot slid out from his stance and his ball came out well left the target line.
“I’ve never seen a ball so offline,” said Sky Sports on-course reporter Inci Mehmet. “That’s about 100 yards left.”
“It was a shot that I typically would not have played from over there, just because I can’t see anything, don’t know how it’s going to come out,” Scheffler said. “Maybe I should do it more often.”
Television cameras did not pick up where Scheffler’s ball landed. He hit a provisional left of the green and then marched toward the hospitality tents to look for the first ball, which was never found.
While it was initially believed that Scheffler would play his provisional, several minutes later, Scheffler was seen going through the drop process.
Chief referee Mark Litton would soon explain that Scheffler’s ball did not need to be found inside the temporary immovable obstruction for him to receive free relief. Because Scheffler’s ball was “virtually certain” to be in the hospitality area, he got a free drop at point of entry, then another drop for line of sight (his ball was later found in the area).
Scheffler’s ball was back in play at 97 yards from the hole. He grabbed wedge, hit his third shot to 11 feet and made the putt for an improbable birdie to get to 8 under, suddenly just one shot off the lead that was then held by Cameron Young and Si Woo Kim. After back-to-back bogeys at Nos. 11 and 12, Kim finished T-6.
It wasn’t meant to be, however, for Scheffler, who missed the fairway at the par-4 finishing hole to the right, then came up short and right of the green. Needing to chip in to tie Young in the house, Scheffler sent his third shot 10 feet past the hole, then missed the comebacker for the closing bogey.
“I was proud of how I fought today,” Scheffler said. “Obviously wish I got a little more out of it, but I did my best.”
