Scottie Scheffler may not have had the dominating performance at the US Open golf fans expected him to have but that hasn’t changed the opinions his fellow peers have said about him
Scottie Scheffler has had a stranglehold on the world No. 1 ranking recently(Image: Getty Images)
Besting Scottie Scheffler on the golf course has become an almost impossible achievement in recent years thanks to the American’s supremacy.
The world No. 1 has won 10 of his 22 solo PGA Tour wins since 2024 which has seen him hold onto his top spot ranking for 107 consecutive weeks. In a sport with such an abundance of talent, it’s quite the compliment that Scheffler has been subject to numerous compliments of his ability and mentality from the very peers he defeats.
His calmness under pressure has been discussed as one of his main attributes by Collin Morikawa but it certainly hasn’t been on show during the U.S. Open where he seemed to lose his temper on more than one occasion.
After smashing a bucket of balls with his club following his disappointing second round, he didn’t fare much better during Saturday practice where he hit the ground with his club when hitting chips.
Regardless of his momentary lapses of serenity, Scheffler has been crowned as the greatest golf has to offer by the likes of Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas, while Max Homa shone a light on his compatriot’s values beyond the sport.
Collin Morikawa
Collin Morikawa knows more than some when it comes to deducing the quality of Scheffler given he competes against him on the PGA Tour and was team-mates with during recent editions of the Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup.
It was in 2024 when the two-time major winner detailed what makes his peer special, as he drew special attention to the 28-year-old’s ability to stay cool under pressure.
Collin Morikawa showered praise onto the world No. 1(Image: Harry How/Getty Images)
“Even when he makes a mistake, it doesn’t freak him out,” said Morikawa in a 2024 appearance on Grant Horvat Golf. “He comes up [for] the next shot, and it’s just perfect.”
“And his distance control is really good. . .his distance control is unbelievable. And his dispersion, I don’t get it. It looks like he’s missing the ball when he’s swinging, but it’s perfect every time. It’s like, ‘Why can’t I do that?'”
Justin Thomas
Scheffler’s mental strength may not be the aspect of his game that creates discussion but it’s been an incredibly important part of his success, according to two-time PGA Championship winner, Justin Thomas.
The golfer also brought attention to the obvious quality Scheffler possesses with a club in his hand as he explained the sheer dominance he’s shown in recent years. “I think it’s hard to play with him and be like, ‘Oh, I want to play more like Scottie,” the 32-year-old said earlier in 2025.
“It’s like, ‘No duh, who wouldn’t want to hit a lot of the fairways and a lot of the greens and be the best ball-striker statistically on Planet Earth for the last couple years?’
Justin Thomas said it’s Scheffler’s mental strength that separates him from the rest (Image: Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
“Of course that sounds good. It’s something you can work to get toward, but I don’t want to say it’s unrealistic; it’s just, it’s the reality, right?
“But the times I’ve spent playing with him or even watched, his demeanor and his mental toughness and the way he plots his way around golf courses, and how he just wears people down, … I think his mental side is what separates him more than people realize.”
Rory McIlroy
Having been the main rival of the American for the past two years, Rory McIlroy hasn’t shied away from publicly praising the world No. 1 for his explosion at the top of the sport.
It was a tally of seven PGA Tour titles, the Olympic gold medal, the Hero World Challenge and capturing the FedExCup that saw Scheffler claim his third consecutive PGA Tour Player of the Year Award.
Rory McIlroy admitted he’s a huge admirer of his on-course rival(Image: Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
On top of that, he continued to earn the ultimate respect of his competitors with the Northern Irishman admitting that he tries to learn from him when watching him in action.
“I’m a big admirer of Scottie for a lot of different reasons, but every time I play with him and I watch how he plays and how disciplined he is, it’s a really cool thing to watch,” McIlroy said earlier this year. “Honestly, just trying to take a little bit of a leaf out of his book.”
Max Homa
While many of Scheffler’s peers showered praise onto his skills as a golfer, PGA Tour star Max Homa decided to bring attention to the 28-year-old’s values which surround being a dedicated family fan.
“Part of it is I think he’s just an incredibly grounded person,” the 34-year-old said. “He’s not going to intentionally put himself in the limelight because his values are great. He’s an amazing husband, future father. [Scheffler’s wife Meredith gave birth last year.] He’s just a great guy.”
Max Homa had some advice for golf fans when it comes to listening to the three-time major champion(Image: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
A regular criticism of Scheffler has been perhaps a lack of charisma and those agreeing with that take are missing the point, says Homa. “I saw somebody on the internet say he’s boring,” he continued.
“I would imagine that’s what you would dream of, to become the best player in the world and someone who is going to set records and win a bunch of majors.
“You want to play as boring of golf as you can, you want it to be as even-keeled as you can. You’d think that’s what you would build in a lab. I think the more people listen to him talk, the more they’ll become a massive fan of him.”
Jason Day
Much has been made of Scheffler’s obscene quality on the green and the dominance he’s been able to dole out in the last couple of years. But it was a moment playing alongside Jason Day at the WGC-Match Play in 2023 that saw the two-time Masters champion come in for praise an athlete will always be proud to hear.
It was in the quarter-final of the tournament where Day had looked to have hit his ball into a penalty area. After walking towards the fairway, he was followed by Scheffler as the Australian wasn’t sure whether his ball had crossed the red-marked penalty area.
Jason Day had Scottie Scheffler to thank (Image: Getty Images)
Given his uncertainty, Day was set to swing but was stopped by Scheffler and his caddie, Ted Scott who went up to the 37-year-old to tell him his ball in fact crossed.
Courtesy of analyst Curt Byrum on the NBC broadcast, he explained to viewers: “So Scheffler basically told him, on our angle, we could see it cross the line up there so that was really good sportsmanship on Scottie Scheffler’s part.”
On-course analyst Notah Begay applauded the American: “I just love that sportsmanship, Curt” as he detailed the conversation he had with Scheffler on the situation: “I talked to Scottie about that, and he’s like, yeah, Jason had his head down, never saw the ball cross the hazard. And he’s like, I just went up and said, you don’t need to tee it again, just go ahead and hit another one.”
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