Brad Dalke highlights little-known junior flaw Scottie Scheffler once had

Brad Dalke first met Scheffler when they were both just six years old, and the two would go on to cross paths frequently throughout their junior golf days.

Speaking on The Smylie Show, Dalke touched on what he thought the future world number one might achieve back then.

He also pointed out a notable issue that stood out during those early years.

“Scottie obviously was a fantastic player growing up. Great junior golfer. Would I say that I expected this out of him? No, not at all. I knew that he’d be on the PGA Tour one day and be out there playing,” began by saying.

“Especially with ping-pong matches [he was competitive]. With ping-pong matches, he gets fired up. He’s throwing paddles. He’s diving for balls left and right.

“That’s one thing that I don’t think the fans know about him, general golf fans. During the tournaments he has such a good demeanour now that he almost seems boring in a way just because, for the most part, he acts very good out there and just keeps going on with his mission.

“But a lot of people don’t realise, he used to have a terrible attitude in junior golf. Awful. And he used to be really, really bad. It hindered him a lot. It would make him fall apart and play very badly. He might start a round pretty well and have one bad hole and all of a sudden, he falls apart. And that’s the biggest key, because he’s always had the talent, but I think him finding a way to handle his emotions a lot better and really just stay a lot more even keel throughout the round – which I think Ted does a great job on helping him with that too – but I think that’s really what made him go from a really good player to making a Tiger-esque run.”

Scottie Scheffler’s historic 2024 season had its tense moments

Scheffler has generally kept his composure throughout his PGA Tour career, with few instances where he has visibly lost it during play.

The most notable example came during the 2024 BMW Championship at Castle Pines, where the altitude seemed to get under his skin.

The incident that comes to mind saw him shouting at Ted Scott after an approach shot missed the green, a rare outburst for someone known for his composure.

One of Scheffler’s biggest assets is his ability to maintain focus and stay composed under pressure. Ricky Castillo spoke recently about how much he learned from playing alongside him earlier in the year, noting that staying positive was crucial.

Castillo took away from that experience just how important it is not to dwell on mistakes if you want to play well. But it has not always been easy for Scheffler to keep that mindset.