SOUTHAMPTON, New York — Scottie Scheffler’s first bid for the career Grand Slam got off to what he called a challenging start.
Scheffler grinded out a 2-over 72 in the U.S. Open first round, four shots behind morning wave leader Sam Stevens at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on Long Island.
He had four birdies, four bogeys and a double bogey amid 20-mile-per-hour winds, with even stronger gusts. He waited out a two-hour fog delay before teeing off.
“Today it felt like a day where a lot of good shots were going to get punished is what it felt like,” Scheffler said. “You had to be hitting a great shot if you wanted to avoid a punishment. I think good would put you in some tough spots.”
Scheffler hit 12 of 14 fairways, but just half of the greens with several approach shots rolling back off them.
“Overall, yeah, it was a really challenging day,” he said. “If you told me when I was staring at my par putt on nine (when I was 3 over) that I would post 2 over today, I would definitely have taken it at the time. Overall it was a good battle. Get some rest, and we’ll see how the course changes over the next day.”
Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked golfer for the last three years, won the Masters in 2022 and 2024, then the PGA Championship and the Open Championship in 2025, leaving the U.S. Open as the lone major he has yet to win.
On his 30th birthday on Sunday, he can become the seventh man to win all four majors after Rory McIlroy, Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen. Woods, Hogan and Sarazen achieved the feat in their first try.
Scheffler’s best U.S. Open finishes were a tie for second in 2022 and a solo third in 2023.
“The Grand Slam has never been a motivating factor for me,” he said before the tournament. “I always just wanted to be the best version of myself. That got me this far.”
