Scottie Scheffler has changed his preparation strategy for next month’s Open Championship at Royal Portrush after playing practice rounds at Donald Trump’s Turnberry did not pay off last year
Scottie Scheffler has changed his plans for The Open Championship(Image: Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Scottie Scheffler has shaken up his preparation for next month’s Open Championship, confirming his entry for the Scottish Open.
The Scottish Open will be played at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick from July 10-13, one week before The Open. The event is co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and DP World Tour, giving players based in the U.S. an ideal week of links golf preparation before competing for the Claret Jug.
This year’s Open Championship is being held at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, where Shane Lowry won his one and only major to date in 2019, and a stacked field will join the Irishman at The Renaissance Club to prepare for the final major of the year.
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This year, Scheffler will be among the contenders in Scotland. The world No. 1 made the curious decision to skip the event in 2024. Instead, he chose to put in a more relaxed week of preparation, joining up with close friend Sam Burns to play at other links courses in Scotland, including President Donald Trump’s Turnberry.
The strategy did not work out for Scheffler, who finished eight shots adrift of Champion Golfer of the Year Xander Schauffele at Royal Troon 11 months ago.
Links golf is perhaps the three-time major champion’s final frontier, and it seems he intends to be more diligent in his preparation this year as he chases his first victory on UK soil.
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“I’m looking forward to getting back to the Genesis Scottish Open next month,” the 28-year-old said in a statement.
“It’s an event and a course I enjoy playing, given we only get to play links golf a couple of times a year. Playing in such a strong field and in front of the Scottish fans is always fun for us.”
Scheffler has played in the Scottish Open twice before. He missed the cut in 2022 before recording a T3 finish in 2023. The reigning PGA champion will hope to at least replicate his 2023 performance this year as he looks to take one step closer to the career grand slam.
By his very high standards, Scheffler has an underwhelming record at The Open. He has made the cut in all four appearances in the event, but with a best of tied-seventh in 2024, he will be eager to prove that his game translates to the unique challenges of links golf.
Seven of the world’s top-10 players have committed to playing the Scottish Open, and more could follow.
Scheffler joins Schauffele, Rory McIlroy, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas, Ludvig Aberg and Sepp Straka in the field.
Scheffler and his rivals have business to take care of in the meantime, of course. The Texan, who has won in three of his past four starts, is a red-hot favorite to win next week’s U.S. Open at Oakmont, where the conditions promise to be nothing short of brutal.
