On the list of course that agree best with Scottie Scheffler, Augusta National would rank near the top.
In five appearances, Scheffler has never finished worse than T19 — not to mention his two wins.
Yes, he’s the world’s No. 1 player, but what is it about Augusta that suits Scheffler so well? On this week’s episode of Subpar, Scheffler explained the specifics to hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz.
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“I think you just have to really manage your way around the golf course,” Scheffler said. “And there’s certain areas where it gets so challenging on the weekend, like the years I’ve won, it’s been pretty firm and fast, and so controlling it and getting on to those little shelves, you know, controlling the ball going into the greens. And I feel like I’m typically pretty patient on the course. And I think that suited me well around there.”
In addition to competing against the other players in the field, Scheffler said he enjoys tournament play even more when he feels as though he’s also playing against the course.
“I think I like the kind of harder test,” he said. “I think those I enjoy those more just because you feel like you’re almost getting in a battle with the golf course.”
At Augusta National, Scheffler said that hitting key shots when you’re in contention during the final round is what really makes the difference.
“I look at this year, and this was a year where it was really tight going to the back nine and I just hit some key shots kind of where I needed to and played the hard holes well,” he said. “And I mean, on Sundays, you really just gotta hit the shots. That’s really what it comes down to.
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“Some years I’ve hit the shots and pulled them off and then other years I haven’t, but I feel like it’s a place where if you manage your way around the golf course well, it just seems like there’s a lot of ways you can play it. You can hit it really good and putt average and be up there on the leader board on the hard years. And then, you can hit it all over the place, and if you’re getting up and down, you play the par 5s well, you’re gonna be right in tournament.
“And so I feel like there’s a lot of different ways to attack the golf course,” he continued. “But at the end of the day, when it comes down to it on Sunday, you just gotta hit the shots. You know, they put the pins in places where if you hit a good shot, you’re gonna score well. But if you miss the shelf, you’re gonna be looking at bogey.”
Scheffler cited the 14th and 16th holes as specific examples.
“You think of holes like 14, where they put that pin. And if you miss it left, it’s a really hard two-putt,” he said. “And you look at a hole like 16, if you kind of bail out right, it’s a really tough two-putt down the hill there, and there’s just certain areas where you just have to pull off the shots and, you know, for two years now, I’ve pulled off the shots when I needed to.”
For more from Scheffler, including his thoughts on the recent testiness at the Presidents Cup, and what it’s like betting on the course with Tony Romo, check out the full episode below.
