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Scheffler Still Has a Chance at Oakmont

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Alex Miceli | Last updated Jun 13, 2025 4:53 PM ET

It was a day when the putter saved World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler.

Shooting a 1-over 71, the three-time major winner is still in the mix at 4-over-par at the 125^th U.S. Open, but the rest of his game will need to wake up if he wants to win his first U.S. Open and get to one major from the career Grand Slam.

“I feel like I battled really hard, it's challenging out there,” Scheffler said of his 26^th round in the U.S. Open. “I was not getting the ball in the correct spots and paying the price for it. Felt like me getting away with 1-over today wasn't all that bad. It could have been a lot worse.”

Hitting only 6 of 14 fairways and 7 of 18 greens made the day difficult, but the 26 putts, which ranked sixth in strokes gained putting at +2.26, ultimately saved the day.

“Any time you're not hitting it the way or playing up to my expectations, I think it's frustrating,” Scheffler said. “Mentally, this was as tough as I've battled for the whole day. There was a lot of stuff going on out there that was not going in my favor necessarily, and I felt like Teddy, and I did a great job of battling, especially coming down the stretch.”

Sitting at 4-over-par and with Friday’s second round marking Scottie Scheffler's sixth consecutive over-par round at the U.S. Open, including all four rounds last year at Pinehurst #2, Scheffler still feels he is in the tournament. He understands the difficulty of Oakmont and how scores can balloon quickly with a setup similar to a torture chamber.

High, rough, and fast greens make Oakmont one of the most difficult major set-ups in the United States, giving Scheffler a chance, if he puts the puzzle together.

“Today was I think with the way I was hitting it was easily a day I could have been going home and battled pretty hard to stay in there,” Scheffler said of his weekend chances. “We'll see what the lead is after today, but around this golf course, I don't think by any means I'm out of the tournament.”

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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