Scheffler Opens Open Defense With 68, Sitting 2 Shots Off Early Lead

Q: Scottie Scheffler called the new greens 'severe'. Will his own words come back to haunt his title defense?

Not yet. Scheffler’s own description of Royal Birkdale’s renovated greens as “severe” looks more like an accurate reading of the course than a warning sign for his title defense. His opening 2-under 68 backed that up. He hit 13 of 14 fairways, made four birdies on the front nine and briefly held the solo lead before fading slightly on the back. That left him only two shots behind the early co-leaders and well placed after a week in which he had missed the cut in Scotland. For a player seeking stability and confidence, that is a solid start, not evidence that the course has exposed him. The course changes support his point. Several redesigned holes, especially the 7th, 14th and 15th, feature raised or heavily contoured greens, steep run-offs and deep bunkering. In the firm, fast, heat-baked conditions at Birkdale, those features are especially punishing. Scheffler was not complaining so much as identifying the central challenge of the week. The real question is whether those severe surfaces become more costly over four rounds. That remains possible. Scheffler has been slightly less sharp with his irons this season, and links putting has not always been his strength in Europe. On a course where misses can repel sharply away from targets, even small imprecision can add up. But after round one, his words have not haunted him. If anything, they showed he understood exactly what this Open would demand, and his 68 suggested he is equipped to handle it.

3 articles · Updated · golfchannel.com · Jul 16

Scottie Scheffler opened his Open Championship defense with a 2-under 68 at Royal Birkdale, leaving the world No. 1 two strokes behind early co-leaders Sungjae Im and Dan Brown.
Four front-nine birdies drove the round, including a 43-foot putt at the sixth that briefly gave Scheffler the solo lead at 4 under.
A birdie-less back nine cooled that start: Scheffler came home in 1-over 36 after mistakes at the seventh, 10th and 17th led to his only two bogeys.
The 68 still steadied Scheffler after his first missed cut in nearly four years at last week's Genesis Scottish Open, with the defending champion saying his ball-striking left him confident over 72 holes.