FARMINGDALE, N.Y. — All the trophies, all the accolades, all the dominance means so little, it seems, when it comes to the Ryder Cup. Ask Tiger Woods, who famously has been on just one winning U.S. team. Ask Phil Mickelson, who remarkably played in 12 consecutive Ryder Cups but lost more points than anyone in the event’s storied history.
Perhaps that is the best way to frame Scottie Scheffler’s performance at Bethpage Black, a perplexing week of lost points and stray shots that looked so far removed from the force of will that he’s bestowed upon the professional game in recent years.
There is certainly nuance to Scheffler’s disappointing 1-4 record this week amid an overall poor performance by the U.S. team made more frustrating by a spirited U.S. rally on Sunday that resulted in a way-closer-than-expected 15–13 defeat.
It didn’t help that partner Russell Henley struggled in Friday morning foursomes or that Europe’s Jon Rahm simply made a lot of putts in Friday afternoon’s four-ball match or that Scheffler and partner Bryson DeChambeau were 8 under through 16 holes in fourballs and still got beat by the amazing combo of Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood. Sometimes, you have to tip your cap to the opponent.
But when Scheffler missed the 18th green from 116 yards with a wedge with a crucial match in the balance on Saturday morning, his face was one of mourning, the match all but done, a second straight losing Ryder Cup record secured.
How much do you think that possible point mattered Sunday? Or any of the others he could not earn?
Scheffler has been all about team this week and in the weeks and months leading up to the Ryder Cup, buying into captain Keegan Bradley’s plan, getting behind the idea for a bonding and game-sharpening trip to the Procore Championship—which he won—and basically being willing and able to do what he was asked.
But the truth is Scheffler is the No. 1 player in the world by a mile, the winner of two major championships this year and four total. He should be expected to lead the Americans in such a situation. It’s certainly not all on him, but you can’t win without your best players performing and the nature of the Ryder Cup is such that had Scheffler even been average—say, win two of the four team matches—the Sunday singles might have produced a U.S. victory instead of another agonizing defeat.
Instead, he became the first Ryder Cup player since 1967 to lose all four of his team matches. Since his rookie appearance in the competition in 2021—when he went 2–0–1 before he had ever won a PGA Tour event—his record in the last two Ryder Cups is 1–6–2. He’s 0–4 in foursomes. Two years ago, with Brooks Koepka, he lost 9 and 7, a record margin. (He also was 0–3–1 at the 2022 Presidents Cup.)
The powerhouse pair of Bryson DeChambeau and Scottie Scheffler lost in Saturday four-balls. / Peter Casey-Imagn Images
It is absolutely unfair to put this all on Scheffler, but it’s also shocking that his results were so poor before his Sunday singles win.
“It was probably one of the lowest moments of my career,” Scheffler admitted Sunday night.
Prior to the event, Scheffler was asked if expectations on him should be higher. The inference was related to his incredible golf over two years, his dominance. Does that translate to the Ryder Cup?
“Should the expectations of me be different than any other player? I mean, I don’t really think about that kind of stuff. If that’s something you want to write about, then more power to you,” Scheffler said. “What I focus on when I show up is my preparation, and I have prepared for this tournament, I’m ready to go out and compete.
“I truly don’t think about expectations or anything like that. That’s wasted space in my brain.”
And yet, there were undoubtedly outside expectations. Huge expectations. Why wouldn’t there be? Scheffler won six times this year, including two majors. He’s finished in the top eight in his last 15 events. He’s been hailed by Bradley as a leader, pushing the others to embrace the trip to Napa for the Procore Championship.
On Saturday night, staring at that daunting 11½ to 4½ deficit while trying to project confidence, Bradley was asked a question about the shock of Scheffler’s record. And he told a story about Russell Henley, who partnered with Scheffler for two of the matches.
“He said Scottie had the weight of the world on his shoulders, he’s the No. 1 player in the world. And he cared more about how Russell was doing than himself,” Bradley said. “Scottie has been the best teammate in our team room this week, without question, period. He has been open to any pairing. He has been open to play any session. Five, four two. Didn’t matter.
“He was one of the first people that said that we’re going to go to Napa to play and be prepared. This means everything to him.”
Perhaps that is one area where Scheffler differs from Woods, who amazingly never had a winning record after the very first day of his Ryder Cup career in 1997, finishing 13–21–1. Woods seemed indifferent about the Ryder Cup until later in his career. He once replied to a question about his record by asking the inquisitor what Jack Nicklaus’s Ryder Cup record was. (For the record, 17–8–3.) The point is it’s not something that comes readily to mind.
But clearly Scheffler cares. He cried in Rome after that humiliating loss with Koepka. And there were tears in his eyes on Sunday when being interviewed post-round following his victory over McIlroy.
Scottie Scheffler has shown emotion throughout his Ryder Cups. / Peter Casey-Imagn Images
“I think it’s hard to put into words how much it hurts to lose all four matches,” Scheffler said. “To have the trust of my captains and teammates to go out there and play all four matches and lose all four, it’s really hard to put into words how much that stings and hurts.
“I’ll go back and reflect on that. But one of the coolest things was these guys picking me up last night. The guys on this team, this is a really special group of guys. We have a special captain, and I was proud to be standing there fighting with these guys today.
“I think it showed a lot about our team. I think it showed a lot about the job all these guys did to put us in a position to succeed.”
For Woods, it always appeared he had trouble finding the right partner. He sometimes intimidated them as much as his opponents. That appears less of an issue with Scheffler, who is friends with Henley and certainly had no issue playing with DeChambeau. There’s no doubt that taking down the world No. 1 is considered a source of pride for the opponent, almost a double winner, with an attitude that there is nothing to lose.
“Look, you need your big players to step up,” European captain Luke Donald said, noting that McIlroy went 3–1–1, Rahm was 3–2 and Tommy Fleetwood 4–1. “You absolutely need your big guns to fire and that’s what we are proud of. The U.S. big guys, their guns, they didn’t get as many points as ours.”
It’s really that simple. Scheffler went 1-4. DeChambeau went 1–3–1.
Think about this big if: The duo wins their four-ball match, and just one other among the other four combined losses … and the U.S. wins the Ryder Cup 15–13.
Sure, there’s all kinds of conjecture when you lose, including the various pairings that Bradley put out. But none of it matters if those two players do … just … that … much … better.
That is what comes with expectations.
