Scheffler putter – Scottie Scheffler’s putter went quiet at Aronimink, costing him a stronger grip on the PGA Championship. After missing six putts from inside 10 feet, the defending winner managed a 71 with a crucial nine-foot bogey save on 18, slipping into a tie for 23rd and
NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. — Scottie Scheffler walked off Aronimink with his putter still in the bag, and while the defending PGA Championship winner might joke about it, the numbers carried no humor: his putting let him down at a time when he needed to seize the moment.
Scheffler’s short-game struggles stretched his odds of winning back-to-back PGA titles, but he remains positioned to make a run.. Through three rounds. there hasn’t been a single dominant performer. and the leaderboard has been bunched. with 14 players sharing at least a share of the lead at some point.
On the greens, Scheffler missed six putts inside 10 feet, including four chances for birdie.. On the final hole, though, he steadied himself by rolling in a nine-foot bogey putt on 18 for a 71.. The result fit the pattern of a week that began with promise: an opening three-under 67 was followed by consecutive rounds of one over. and the drop was steep enough to knock him 14 spots to a tie for 23rd.
Five shots separate him from the lead entering Sunday, leaving the door open but not wide. Scheffler believes the path is clear if he can start converting again.
“If I continue to do what I’m doing and hole a few more putts, then I think I’ll be in a good spot when tomorrow ends,” Scheffler said.
The stakes are clear for a player used to controlling major Sundays. A four-time major winner, Scheffler has not yet arrived at his best form this year. Even without being at full sharpness, he would still need everything to line up to pull off back-to-back PGA crowns.
The contrast with his 2025 season is stark. Scheffler tore through the 2025 campaign, winning six times in a four and a half-month span, but his start to the current season hasn’t matched that pace.
Last month’s Masters remains the closest reminder of what he can do when the week turns.. He tried to make an unprecedented comeback after being 12 strokes down after 36 holes.. He then assembled a championship round. posting a four-under 68 at Augusta National. yet he still finished one stroke behind winner Rory McIlroy.. That finish, though, left confidence behind for Scheffler as he moved through a crowded field of contenders.
He entered the PGA Championship with an eye on another Wanamaker Trophy. believing he could play his way through the noise and back to the top.. Around him. the big names are not scarce: the field includes unheralded Alex Smalley. chasing his first career PGA Tour win. alongside a blistering hot McIlroy.
Scheffler and McIlroy have combined for dominance in recent majors. with McIlroy winning the 2025 and 2026 Masters and Scheffler taking the PGA Championship and British Open last year.. Both are ranked 1-2 in the world. and Scheffler knows that kind of pairing tends to keep the pressure on everyone else.
“It’s quite literally anybody’s tournament,” Scheffler said. “There’s a lot of guys that have a chance. Going into tomorrow, just somebody is going to have a great round, and I’m going to make sure to do my best to give myself my best shot at being the one who has a great round.”
While the golf has been the main conversation, the week’s atmosphere has carried its own edge.. Scheffler has continued to be heckled by Philly sports fans. who chanted the traditional “E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles!” chant at the noted diehard Dallas Cowboys fan.. Still. Scheffler credited the crowd for building a spirited atmosphere in the first major in the Philadelphia area since the U.S.. Open at Merion in 2013.
One day earlier, he offered a warning about the course itself. Scheffler said Aronimink claimed “the hardest set of pin locations that I’ve seen since I’ve been on tour, and that includes U.S. Opens.” On Saturday, he didn’t complain about the pin placements as the round unfolded.
He had moments that showed he could still play his way back. A birdie at 11 got him back to even on his round, but after that burst, he kept running into the same central issue: putting, especially under pressure.
“It’s a challenging golf course and there’s a lot of slope on the greens,” Scheffler said. “The winds were quite heavy when we were out there this afternoon, and it’s just tough.”
The picture at Aronimink is drawn from two things happening at once: Scheffler missed six putts from inside 10 feet (including four for birdie) yet recovered with a nine-foot bogey putt on 18. and that mix of missed chances plus a steady save helped keep him in contention even after consecutive one-over rounds dropped him into a tie for 23rd.
Now Sunday is set to ask the same question again: can the defending champion turn his putting around quickly enough to erase five shots and join a leaderboard that has repeatedly refused to crown a single favorite?
Scottie Scheffler PGA Championship Aronimink putting Wanamaker Trophy Rory McIlroy Alex Smalley Philadelphia