Scottie Scheffler signed a good round of 66 strokes this Friday at Spyglass, to go six under par in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am leaderboard, nine strokes behind the leaders. But his feeling at the end of the day was rather bittersweet. The Number One in the world believes that his game was above the result reflected on the scorecard and, although he managed to get into a slightly better position for the weekend, climbing 28 places on the table, he did not hide a certain frustration.
“I felt like I played better than my score indicates today, which is quite frustrating, but I was able to make some things happen on the last nine holes. So at least today was a respectable card compared to yesterday’s, which was not very respectable,” said the player from Ridgewood, recalling the 72 with which he started the week in the designated event taking place in California.
The turning point of his round came between holes 3 and 7 (the second half of his round), where he strung together a decisive streak that culminated with a spectacular eagle by holing a chip from off the green. Especially relevant was the third hole, one of the most demanding of the course due to its drop towards the sea and the crosswind. “On the 3rd hole I got it right, which is very difficult to do with such a downhill shot and the breeze coming from the ocean. It was nice to see that putt go in,” he said.
Then came another birdie on the 4th, a solid pass through the demanding par three of the 5th hole, and another success on the 6th before the key shot of the day: “Good birdie on the 6th, and then yes, a good chip that went in on the 7th, which is always nice, especially on a day when I felt like I was giving away strokes again, so it was good to ‘steal’ one there.” But despite the 66, Scheffler faces the weekend still far from the fight. The distance is wide, but not definitive in a setting like Pebble Beach, where the wind and conditions can alter any script.
“I would say ‘cutting’ is the right word there. We’ll see how the day ends,” he commented with irony being just one stroke closer to the lead than yesterday. The Texan is aware of the magnitude of the challenge: “It’s going to take two pretty special rounds, actually three special rounds, but you’re never out.” But before focusing on the comeback, his plan is clear:
“We’ll see what happens with the weather. I’ll go practice a bit and then rest and get ready for tomorrow.”
Scottie knows that there is still a tournament ahead and that things can get tough over the weekend. So beyond the leaderboard, he enjoys his time at Pebble Beach before focusing on the last 36 holes of the tournament: “Yes, it’s going to be a lot of fun.” With the Number One, you can never take anything for granted… especially if, as he says, he ends up ‘having fun’ on the course.
