Scottie Scheffler has not been up to the mark at the Open, according to NBC analyst Brad Faxon. The analyst believed that the World No.1's group played a part in that.

For the opening two rounds, Scheffler was grouped with LIV golfers Bryson DeChambeau and Tyrrell Hatton. Faxon compared the pair to a penalty.

“Pairings make a big difference. So many things can influence how a player plays... Scottie had a tough pairing with Bryson DeChambeau and Tyrrell Hatton, two guys that are difficult to play with. It's almost like a two-stroke penalty,” said Faxon on NBC.

DeChambeau drew all the attention at the end of the second round. According to players, the LIV man even delayed the publication of Moving Day tee times.

However, DeChambeau and Hatton were consistent in the opening two rounds just like Scheffler—the World No.1 carded back-to-back rounds of 68. 

Scheffler is coming on the back of a missed cut at the Genesis Scottish Open. As a result, the blame cannot be put fully on the LIV golfers for Scheffler’s struggles, as Faxon did on NBC, as per NUCLR GOLF's X post.

It’s Scheffler’s title to defend this week, and he remained in contention at the halfway stage at 4-under. On Moving Day, the 30-year-old has been grouped alongside Francesco Molinari.

Interestingly, Scheffler has not been paying attention to DeChambeau.

Scottie Scheffler on not paying attention to Bryson DeChambeau

Bryson DeChambeau has been the talking point of the Open. Many tipped him to miss the weekend at Royal Birkdale. 

However, he remained comfortably inside the cutline despite the two-stroke penalty. It looks like the LIV man has changed his strategy, but the World No.1 has been focused on his own game.

“Overall, I’m not paying too much attention to it. Watching his ball flight is not going to help me figure out what the wind is going to do typically or anything like that,” said Scheffler about DeChambeau, as per HITC. “He has a different ball flight and different spin than me. So even clubbing off of the par-3s and stuff like that is pretty much nonexistent. So I wouldn’t say I’m paying too close attention.”

Coming into the major, DeChambeau’s strategy at links courses was criticized by six-time major winner Nick Faldo. However, the two-time major winner has shut down criticism. 

Despite all the attention being on the LIV man, Scheffler is entirely focused on his own game as he looks to defend his title.

What are your thoughts on Faxon’s statement? Share them in the comments.

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Written by

Avishek Sarkar

Edited by

Kalp Thaker