Scottie Scheffler (-23) has overcome the first major challenge against himself, with a card of 66 strokes in the third round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson that places him in a prime position for the final round, where he will start as the undisputed leader with an eight-stroke advantage over his immediate and determined pursuers, Erik Van Rooyen (-15), Adam Schenk (-15), and Ricky Castillo (-15).
On the surface, it has certainly been a calm day for the World Number One, despite having signed his first two bogeys of the week. But surely it hasn’t been so easy for the Texan to remain oblivious to all the intrigue and expectations that have been piling up for him in this 2025 as the weeks and tournaments went by without his first victory of the year.
In reality, the winning drought did not go beyond ten tournaments, considering also that he had to deal with the ravioli affair, that hand accident at the beginning of the year that delayed his competitive presence and all his preparation. Let’s not dwell on it: it’s the price that must be paid by a guy who, at 28, is already the third player with the most weeks at the top of the world ranking, only behind Tiger Woods and Greg Norman. And there are more to come.
It’s true that apparently Scheffler didn’t do anything extraordinary this Saturday, but the fact is that he closed the round almost in the dark with a birdie on the 18th at TPC Craig Ranch, where he putted for eagle for the fourth time throughout the day, a more than evident sign of the full control of the situation that this extraordinary player manages to show.
Tomorrow he shouldn’t have any problem to make good on the advantage and win again, although golf, as we know, is a tricky game. It will be, once again, a challenge against himself, but it seems that the hardest work has already been done in this third round, maintaining and extending the lead he had imperially secured in the first two rounds. Everyone has their own way of seeing things, but it’s not even boring this week to closely follow the steps of a player who seems to have no rival. This Sunday, this fourth round of the Byron Nelson, may not drive us to delirium, but there are serene, tempered emotions that in the long run fulfill just as much or even more.
If we assume that Scheffler is going to win (although perhaps we shouldn’t: golf is a tricky game), all roads already lead us to the second major of the year, the PGA Championship which will be held in two weeks at Quail Hollow, the crossroads where the Texan will meet Rory McIlroy again, as they won’t do so before at the Truist Championship, next week’s Signature Event, where Scottie will not be present.
The duel, to begin with, promises to be legendary. A Number Two, the Northern Irishman, who has been acting as Number One, against the official Number One, the American, who indeed would have finished this week, in his homeland, tying the Number One cape around his neck.
Then other killers eager for trouble and ready to ruin this stellar script will appear at Quail Hollow, of course, but right now the spotlight is on these two guys. They leave no room for anyone else. Unless Phil Mickelson says otherwise, of course.
