Scottie Scheffler Shoots 4-Over 74 Friday, in Danger of Missing U.S. Open Cut

The World No. 1 shot a 74 on Friday and failed to make a birdie in a round for the first time all year.

Scottie Scheffler shot a birdie-less 4-over 74 Friday at the U.S. Open. / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

PINEHURST, N.C. — The scene unfolding at the 5th hole Friday at the U.S. Open was breathtaking, given the incredibly high level of Scottie Scheffler’s golf in 2024.

The world No. 1’s Titleist Pro V1 sat in one of the infamous native areas next to the par-5 green in two, his 3-wood approach shot having been repelled off the side of one of Pinehurst No. 2’s signature domed greens.

He attempted to wedge it out. The ball failed to reach the green and came right back into the native area.

The Scottie-Xander-Rory group is having a rough go from the native area on 5. 😵‍💫 pic.twitter.com/eU7WUEUpkW

— U.S. Open (@usopengolf) June 14, 2024

He attempted again, sending his ball all the way across the green and off the other side.

A fifth shot finally reached the green, and two shots later he was in the hole. In 7.

The double bogey was the lowlight of a round with no highlights, a 4-over 74 without any birdies. Scheffler had not finished that far over par in any round this year, and had made at least one birdie in every round. He made two bogeys, the double bogey and only one 3, at the par-3 9th which was his last hole of the day after starting on No. 10.

Combined with an opening 1-over-par 71, Scheffler stood at 5 over for the U.S. Open and on the cut line. 

“Around this place you have to hit such good shots. I think it’s fun to play but it was definitely a grind,” Scheffler said, then expanded on the mess at the 5th hole, his 14th of the day.

“I think that's part of the mystery of the kind of sandy areas. You get down there and it's kind of luck of the draw whether or not you have a shot. Preferably I would have loved to have hit like a little runner out of there, but I had a bush in my way to where I couldn't play the runner that I would have hoped to.

“Really all you're trying to do from there is get it up on to the green somewhere, and I felt like I took the best route I could think of at first, and just because it's so unpredictable … so yeah, pretty challenging spot for your ball to end up in.”

The round was his third straight over par, dating to last Sunday when he shot 2-over 74 in the final round of the Memorial Tournament, which he won by one shot. The last time he shot three straight rounds over par was the 2020 BMW Championship.

The last time he missed a cut was the 2022 FedEx St. Jude, and while after his round Friday he sounded resigned to missing the cut, 5 over was the projected cut as of Friday afternoon, so odds are good that he’ll sneak into the weekend at Pinehurst.

And if he does, he’ll likely sleep well Friday night. Scheffler admitted some fatigue this week, stemming from the fact he played the week before the major in the PGA Tour’s signature event at Jack Nicklaus’s place.

“There’s definitely an aspect of that, that’s something i’ll look at in my prep,” the two-time Masters champion said. “I remember going to the Masters my rookie year (2021), played good at the match play, lost to Billy (Horschel) in the finals, then played San Antonio,  which I don’t think I should have done. Going forward that’s something I’m going to take a harder look at, the prep for the majors.

“Augusta is one that I’ve had good prep for, I figured out I don't like playing the week before that one, maybe I’ll adopt that strategy going into this one. There definitely was a bit of a fatigue aspect, but I was ready to play. I talk about a lot preparing to play, maybe this week stepping up on Thursday I wasn’t as prepared as I could.”