Despite already having a victory, a runner-up in a major and two other top-5s, it has not been the dream start to the year for the World No. 1, Scottie Scheffler. Thursdays have been getting the better of him, and having to start tournaments needing to come from behind from the very first day is always tough. But this Friday, at the Harbour Town Golf Links on Hilton Head Island, he seems to have found his touch. The Ridgewood golfer has instantly regained his accuracy off the tee and in hitting greens, so it seems only a matter of time before he is fully in contention.
On weekends, Scottie is in his element. The best example was less than a week ago, when starting well back he came close to forcing a playoff with Rory McIlroy in the finish of the The Masters at Augusta. This week, at the RBC Heritage, he will also have to bring his best game because there are very good rivals on the course, the kind who keep the pressure on and can push you to the limit, and he again arrives at Saturday at a disadvantage, but if he starts leaving it just a little closer and improves with the putter, he will be a contender again.
In the second round of this powerful Signature Event, Scheffler carded a 67, one fewer than yesterday, with four birdies, one fewer as well, but without committing a single bogey. Avoiding bogeys has always been one of his great weapons on the course, which comes easy to him when, as today, he misses not a single fairway from the tee, 14 of 14, and exceeds 83% greens in regulation (15 of 18). He also did not fail when he had to recover, and if he improves his 1.73 average putts even slightly, he will be up there.
That said, pending the afternoon matches, the man who has been his playing partner in the first two rounds, the Englishman Matt Fitzpatrick (-14), presents himself from the start as the man to beat. After the brilliant 65 with which he started the tournament yesterday, today he added a stratospheric 63, with eight birdies and no bogeys, which make him the clear leader, with a comfortable lead before the weekend when everything is decided. Matt won the Valspar a few weeks ago and was second at THE PLAYERS, but he lacked a bit more to fight for the Green Jacket.
He is, in any case, always a tough nut to crack, as are Patrick Cantlay (-9), currently second on the clubhouse leaderboard so far, or Rickie Fowler (-8), Si Woo Kim (-8) and Collin Morikawa (-7). Formidable opponents for a Scheffler who is pushing to win again as soon as possible. The top of the leaderboard will also include names like Harris English, Ludvig Aberg, Viktor Hovland or Robert MacIntyre, who will turn the finish of this RBC Heritage into a sensational battle with a $3.6 million cheque at stake and the chance to quickly exorcise the disappointment of Augusta National
