'The bar we are all trying to get to'

Scottie Scheffler’s superb triumph at The 153rd Open further cemented his status as the leading player of his generation.

Indeed, if anything, the debate may be shifting to where he sits in the all-time ranks.

For those lining up in the field alongside him, it is a daunting prospect.

But the players in the field for The 153rd Open at Royal Portrush had nothing but glowing words for the man continually raising the bar.

Rory McIlroy is one of few who have reeled Scheffler in when he has been leading, surpassing him on the last day of the 2022 Tour Championship.

But the home favourite here was unable to repeat the feat on a final day on which Scheffler, one double-bogey aside, was imperious.

“He's an incredible player,” said McIlroy, who finished in a share of seventh on 10-under-par.

“He's been dominant this week. Honestly, he's been dominant for the last couple years. He is the bar that we're all trying to get to.

“In a historical context, you could argue that there's only maybe two or three players in the history of the game that have been on a run, the one that Scottie's been on here for the last 24 to 36 months. Incredibly impressive.

“He's a very worthy winner. Also, he's a great person, and I think he's a wonderful ambassador for our game as well. I'm really happy for him and Meredith and his family.”

Jordan Spieth is almost three years Scheffler’s senior and has been long aware as to his talents, with the newly-crowned Champion Golfer winning the US Junior Amateur in 2013.

And the 2017 Champion chose to focus on Scheffler’s personality, rather than his golf swing, when asked what makes him so good.

“He doesn't care to be a superstar,” he said. “He's not transcending the game like Tiger did.

“He's not bringing it to a non-golf audience necessarily. He doesn't want to go do the stuff that a lot of us go do, corporately, anything like that.

“He just wants to get away from the game and separate the two. He's always with his family. They're always doing stuff.

“I think it's more so the difference in personality from any other superstar that you've seen in the modern era and maybe in any sport. I don't think anybody is like him.”

Comparisons with Tiger Woods were perhaps inevitable. The pair have, somewhat spookily, taken exactly the same amount of time to win their first four majors (1,197 days) and Scheffler has a comparable aura of invincibility when leading by 54 holes.

Xander Schauffele, whose name Scheffler now follows engraved on the Claret Jug, said: “I don't think we thought the golfing world would see someone as dominant as Tiger come through so soon, and here's Scottie sort of taking that throne of dominance.

“You can't even say he's on a run. He's just been killing it for over two years now. He's a tough man to beat, and when you see his name up on the leaderboard, it sucks for us.”

Shane Lowry had the best view in the house over the first two days, playing as part of Scheffler’s three ball, and also mentioned Woods’ name.

“I played with him the first two days, and honestly I thought he was going to birdie every hole,” he said. “It was incredible to watch.

“I wouldn't say he's unbeatable because he's been beaten a few times, but when he's like that, when he starts getting on that roll, he's a hard person to beat.

“If Scottie's feet stayed stable and his swing looked like Adam Scott's, we'd be talking about him in the same words as Tiger Woods.

“His bad shots are really good. That's when you know he's really good."

Closing the gap will be tricky, as both Robert MacIntyre and Matt Fitzpatrick alluded to.

MacIntyre, who finished level with McIlroy and Schauffele on 10-under-par, has been crunching the numbers and said: “When we checked the stats, Scheffler was further ahead of No. 2 in the world than I was at wherever I was, 15, 16 in the world, to No. 2. Yeah, he's an exceptional player, great guy. He works so hard.”

Fitzpatrick, the leading Brit in the field at 11-under-par, added: “I think Scottie Scheffler is a different class, obviously.

“He's literally a full shot probably better than the next best player in the world, let alone myself, who's not the second best player in the world.”

Tommy Fleetwood hailed Scheffler as a player who ‘keep us all chasing’ while Bryson DeChambeau gave a backhanded, if light-hearted, compliment.

“I played with him a lot in college, and he was not that good, so he's figured out a lot of stuff since then,” he said with a smile.

“Scottie's in a league of his own right now. It's really impressive to see and something we can all learn from for sure.”

And if there is another thing Scheffler’s rise can equip his rivals with, it is hope. At least that is the view of Jon Rahm, who is among those hoping a similar golden run is within his grasp.

“He's doing what everybody wants to do," the Spaniard said. "What I keep reminding myself is he was able to turn things around drastically.

“From not being able to close out early on some of the chances he had to getting it done often. If he's been able to do it, all of us are able to do it.

“I'm optimistic that I can get to that level as well. Obviously it's not easy, but I'm optimistic it can be done.”