Scottie Scheffler returns to Oakmont as household name, U.S. Open favorite

The first time Scottie Scheffler played a U.S. Open at Oakmont wasn’t big news.

He was a 19-year-old college sophomore eager to finish his first round so he could go watch the 2016 NBA Finals. Nine years later, Scheffler returns to Western Pennsylvania as a reason fans watch golf.

“I think Golden State was playing Cleveland last time in the Finals, and I really wanted to watch that because you had LeBron playing Steph,” said Scheffler, who practiced Tuesday at Oakmont.

After more than 100 weeks as the world’s No. 1 golfer, Scheffler is quickly joining LeBron James and Steph Curry as household names. Only Tiger Woods had a longer streak as the top golfer on the planet.

The 28-year-old from Dallas is the favorite to win the 125th U.S. Open that starts Thursday — and could end Sunday with Scheffler lifting the USGA’s trophy, if oddsmakers are right. He’s unquestionably the hottest golfer on tour, having won three of his past four starts, including the PGA Championship last month.

Scheffler won Masters titles in 2024 and ’22, making him a three-time major champion. He has yet to win a U.S. Open in seven tries — five since turning pro — but he came close twice.

He tied for second in the 2022 U.S. Open at The Country Club in Brookline, Mass., and finished third in 2023 at Los Angeles Country Club. This time, Scheffler is a clear favorite, even if he downplays the significance.

“I don’t pay attention to the ‘favorite’ stuff or anything like that,” Scheffler said. “Starting Thursday morning, we’re at even-par and it’s up to me to go out there and play against the golf course and see what I can do.”

His first U.S. Open — here at Oakmont in 2016 — started great but ended disappointingly. He shot a 1-under 69 in the first round and was technically the leader in the clubhouse because rain suspended the rounds of all but nine golfers.

That night, the Cleveland Cavaliers defeated Golden State in Game 6 of the NBA Finals for a 3-3 series tie. The next day, Scheffler’s hot start fizzled to a 7-over finish, and he missed the cut by one stroke.

“I remember coming here and thinking it was really fun, really cool to be able to play in the U.S. Open,” Scheffler said. “I played a practice round with Dustin (Johnson) and Brooks (Koepka), felt like I learned a lot from those guys at the time. … I had a pretty good first round, didn’t play as good in the second. That was a tough pill to swallow, missing the cut by one.”

Now, Scheffler hasn’t missed a cut since the 2022 season, a streak of 56 consecutive starts.

Since May 4 alone, Scheffler has won the Byron Nelson, the PGA Championship and the Memorial. None was particularly close, either. He won by eight, five and four strokes.

Former world No. 1 Justin Thomas, now fifth, shared Monday how he still aspires to be ranked first again. But he admitted that taking the No. 1 ranking away from Scheffler feels daunting.

“Win however many tournaments the rest of the year, and maybe Scottie doesn’t play or something?” Thomas said. “The thing about it is guys are playing unbelievable. Like Xander (Schauffele) did last year. Like Rory (McIlroy) is this year. But it’s just that Scottie is also doing that. You can’t really catch that if he keeps doing what he’s doing.”

Thomas was asked to analyze what Scheffler is doing well that makes him so successful.

“What is he doing?” said Thomas, repeating the question. “Well, everything. It’s effortless. Every single aspect of his game is unbelievable. I think his mental game is better than anybody out here. To be able to play with those expectations and to stay present as often as he has to me is maybe more impressive than even the golf he’s playing.”

Next, Scheffler will try to tame Oakmont.

The course was soft after soaking in days of rain, but Scheffler predicted it would “shape up for a really good week” after a couple of days of sun. He jokingly described the course’s rough as “healthy” after playing a practice round Tuesday.

“There’s not really many areas where you step on the tee box and you’re like, ‘Hey, I can miss it (to the) right here. Hey, I can shade towards the left side of the fairway because right is really bad.’

“Actually, if you hit it in the right rough, you’re probably not going to get it to the green. If you hit it in the left rough, you’re probably not going to get it to the green. So might as well try and split the difference there and hit it in the middle.”

As far as betting lines go, Scheffler was listed as a 3-1 favorite, ahead of McIlroy (7-1) and Bryson DeChambeau (8-1), the defending U.S. Open champion. Scheffler said golf gamblers led him to get rid of his Venmo account.

“I was either getting paid by people or people requesting me a bunch of money when I didn’t win,” Scheffler said. “It wasn’t a good feeling.”

He added that “getting paid” wasn’t a windfall.

“Maybe a couple bucks here or there,” he said. “That didn’t happen nearly as much as the requests did.”

Scheffler certainly hasn’t lost much of late.

Looking back, Scheffler said his disappointing exit at Oakmont nine years ago was a catalyst for future successes. A year later, he earned low amateur honors at the 2017 U.S. Open with a 1-under finish.

His return to Oakmont again overlaps with the NBA Finals. Game 3 between Oklahoma City and Indiana is Wednesday night. Game 4 is Friday.

“This year’s Finals is probably not going to affect my schedule as much,” Scheffler said with a laugh. “Ever since the Mavs traded Luka (Doncic), I’ve been a little bummed watching the NBA. Hurts a little bit still.”