With a chance at the career Grand Slam, Scottie Scheffler didn’t have his best on Sunday at the U.S. Open.
Roaming around the hallowed grounds at Shinnecock Hills with an army of fans behind him, Scheffler had an opportunity to become just the seventh player in the history of men’s professional golf to capture all four major championships. He would have also joined Tiger Woods, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen in completing it during their first attempt.
But the world No. 1 never kicked it into full gear on Long Island after entering Sunday down by six shots in the final pairing. Despite Wyndham Clark doing exactly what Scheffler needed to have a chance in the final round, he made just two birdies and shot a 1-over 71 to finish in a tie for fourth.
Clark shot a 3-over 73, exactly the type of score many envisioned when hoping for an epic comeback from Scheffler for his first U.S. Open trophy. He made bogey on three of his first seven holes but that was only enough for Scheffler to make up two shots at the time. The charge instead was coming from one of his best friends, Sam Burns, who got within one shot of Clark multiple times throughout the round.
This was the perfect U.S. Open for Scheffler to win
I watched every hole Scheffler played this week which was easy to do on the main broadcast or on the featured group coverage he was part of in the first three rounds.
It’s often been the story of 2026 for him but it’s almost unimaginable to think about how ordinary he looked through much of the week while still being right there to win. Scheffler’s B-game is clearly still enough to win some weeks and none of his toughest counterparts was a factor. There are some other players who have the ability to match or beat Scheffler at their best. But Jon Rahm missed the cut. Bryson DeChambeau missed the cut. Rory McIlroy fell apart late on Saturday. Matt Fitzpatrick faded hard on the weekend. Cameron Young was never a factor all week.
You could make the argument that Clark’s game belongs in that picture at his best but he certainly wasn’t at that level on Saturday or Sunday. Clark hit just 20 greens on the weekend and he seemed genuinely rattled at times on Sunday as the crowd jeered him and attempted to push a sluggish Scheffler along.
And Shinnecock Hills was set up for it
The greens were finally firm and, while still fairly slow, were getting faster. On a leaderboard that mostly featured players who were excelling at putting and scrambling, Scheffler was the one in the mix best equipped to attack pins and give himself consistent birdie looks. Scheffler showcased that starting on the eighth hole, hitting approaches to 22 feet, 15 feet, 16 feet, 14 feet, 18 feet, 19 feet, 30 feet and 14 feet on his next eight holes—a difficult stretch on the course—while much of the field was hanging on for dear life.
But he played those holes even par. Clark continued getting up and down from all over the place and coming up with the key shot every time he needed one on his way to a second U.S. Open with a winning score of 4-under.
I can’t help but think back to all of Scheffler’s putts that burned edges or lacked the confident pace to find the bottom of the cup. And I can’t help but let pessimism sneak in and think about the future.
How many great chances will Scheffler get?
Let me be clear: I’m a big fan of Scheffler and have been since 2019 when he was tearing up the Korn Ferry Tour.
Looking for a new, young player to start following, Scheffler became my favorite. With some bias speaking, I still think Scheffler will win double-digit majors (he has four at the moment) and easily capture the career Grand Slam. But I also know how hard golf is.
We just watched McIlroy finally get the career Grand Slam, 11 dramatic and heartbreaking tries later. And he was 25 years old when he had his first look. Scheffler is 30. He could easily have another 10-plus years of highly competitive play or he could begin to struggle with his game as so many other players have after reaching the pinnacle. Take Jordan Spieth, for example. He had his first look at a career Grand Slam at 25 as well, back in 2018 at the PGA Championship.
Eight years later, he’s still in search.
At that point, Spieth, while not as dominant or consistent as Scheffler, had been in the top 10 in the world for around five straight years and seemed like a lock for a career Grand Slam and more majors. In reality, he’s been nowhere close to winning the PGA since finishing T12 and T3 in his first two chances. He is now ranked 49th in the world and rarely finds himself in contention.
Simply put, success in pro golf can be fleeting. While I think we’re still in for many more years of a dominant Scheffler, it also wouldn’t shock anyone if some of these minor struggles or annoyances continue and we’re still talking a year from now about how he hasn’t won since the 2026 American Express.
If that’s the case, we’ll likely think back to this U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills where he was the thoroughbred on a leaderboard with a crowd that will never be as strongly in his corner—and an eventual champion that may have fully cracked if a bit more pressure was applied.
Do you think Scheffler will complete the career Grand Slam? Let me know in the comments.
Top Photo Caption: Scheffler struggled on Sunday at the U.S. Open. (GETTY IMAGES/Christian Petersen)
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