Scottie Scheffler showed his battling qualities late in the second round at Riviera to scrape through to the weekend and keep his cut streak alive.
The World No.1 was in danger of going home early after making a slow start to the second Signature Event of the season, but a second-round 68 proved just enough to avoid a rare ‘MC’.
The 29-year-old has now made 68 cuts in a row, a record that dates back to the FedEx St. Jude Championship in August 2022 – and he allowed himself a gentle fist pump in celebration.
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Sitting 12 shots off the lead, it would take a monumental charge over the weekend for Scheffler to win his 21st PGA Tour title, but the slippery seven-footer he holed on 18 will at least give him “another two cracks at the course”.
Weather delays saw Scheffler return to the course on Friday tied for last with Keegan Bradley at +5 through 10 holes, but he managed to repair some of the damage with back-to-back birdies at 13 and 14.
And a tidy back nine in round two means his longest active cut streak remains in tact – although he still has a way to go until he catches Tiger Woods, who made 142 consecutive events between 1998 and 2005.
“I started the day not where I wanted to, but yeah, battled and it looks like I get another couple rounds to see what I can do,” he said afterwards.
“This place and I have like a weird relationship. I feel like I can play so well out here and I just haven’t yet.
“You know, this morning was another morning where I just felt like I was close and like just tried to stay patient, tried to do what I could do.”
It’s the third tournament in a row where Scheffler has made a sluggish start.
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Had it not been for an opening round of 73 at the WM Phoenix Open and a 74 at the AT&T pebble Beach Pro-Am, he could well of won three tournaments in a row.
At The American Express, his first tournament of the year, Scheffler opened his account with a blistering round of 63, and went to post a winning score of -27.
Scottie Scheffler was in a relaxed mood despite coming close to missing the cut at the Genesis Invitational
(Image credit: Getty Images)
In the two events since, despite making slow starts in both, Scheffler has still managed to finish inside the top five.
So the current trend of posting over par first rounds is not causing the four-time Major winner to lose too much sleep.
“I think in both the last two, teeing off late is never the easiest and I’ve gotten off to slow starts,” he explained.
“Like teeing off yesterday when we did was pretty challenging around this golf course.”
Scheffler will now be hoping he can climb the leaderboard, and that his name alone might give those currently setting the pace something to think about.
Marco Penge and Jacob Bridgeman lead the way on -12 at the halfway stage, with World No.2 Rory McIlroy just one shot back.
Meanwhile, Xander Schauffele sits third on -9. The American missed the cut at the Farmer’s Insurance Open three weeks ago, which ended his remarkable streak of 72 straight cuts made.