The Masters: Scottie Scheffler, the world number one, will enter the third round of The Masters with a five-stroke lead, and Sky Sports’ Butch Harmon believes the in-form leader can manage the strain.
Scheffler has won three times on the PGA Tour since February, but being atop the scoreboard by such a large margin after two rounds of a major is “new territory.”
On Friday, the 25-year-old had seven birdies in total, including four in five holes on the back nine, putting him three under par with Shane Lowry, Charl Schwartzel, Hideki Matsuyama, and Sungjae Im.
Harmon said: “He is playing with a tremendous amount of confidence – he probably comes in more confident than anybody in this great tournament.
“He is the best player in the world at the moment and has won three times in the last two months.
“He is not the best driver in the world, he is not the best iron player, not the best pitcher, not the best putter but he is really good in all of those categories. That is why he is No 1 in the world.
“His caddie, Ted Scott, has previously won two Masters titles with Bubba Watson, so they are well-versed in the game, but there is still a lot of golf to be played.”
“For him, this is unprecedented ground, a five-shot lead after two rounds of a major event.” Is he up to the challenge? I believe he is capable.
Harmon: Scheffler seemed to be incomplete command
“We know there are all kinds of wrecks waiting for you at Augusta National if your mind wanders a little.” It could happen if he gets ahead of himself or if his attention isn’t 100%.
“If no one puts any pressure on him, he’ll get a free ride, a wonderful Saturday afternoon walk in the park at beautiful Augusta National, but I believe there will be men who will come up behind him.” That is exactly what we require.
“He is in total control of every area of his game – driving, iron play, wedge play, and putting – and will be very difficult to beat.”
“He really emanates confidence and appears to be at ease, but he still has business to attend to.”
“He has all the tools – the physical skills, the mental skills. Can he handle his nervous system? That is going to be the key.”
For golf tournament, golf live score, golf championship, golf club, live golf scores, golf match today and other golf news follow livematchupdatesnews.com.
