Sawt Falasteen - No.1 Scheffler plays down great expectations at Ryder Cup

The four-time major champion will lead a powerhouse United States squad against holders Europe when the 45th Ryder Cup tees off Friday at Bethpage Black.

Scheffler, a two-time Masters winner, captured the British Open and PGA Championship and added his 18th career PGA Tour title two weeks ago in the final US tuneup event for the Cup.

While his career Ryder Cup record is only 2-2-3, the Paris Olympic champion is expected to be a key player for the Americans this week.

"I truly don't think about expectations or anything like that. That's wasted space in my brain," Scheffler said Tuesday. "I don't bother with that kind of stuff because it's unimportant to me.

"What I focus on when I show up to tournaments is my preparation, and I have prepared for this tournament. I'm ready to go out and compete and when I step up there on Friday I can tell myself on the tee on that I did every last little thing I could in order to play well."

While expectations of others rank low, Scheffler's expectations for himself are sky high, US teammate Russell Henley said.

"He has high expectations for himself and it doesn't matter if he's playing a nine-hole game for fun at home or if he's playing in a major. I feel like he holds himself to the same standard," Henley said.

"He wants to play great. He wants to win. I don't think it matters what the situation is. I think that's just how he's wired."

Scheffler's work with coach Phil Kenyon, which began only weeks before the US 2023 Ryder Cup loss in Rome, has produced epic success.

"I'm just in a really comfortable position with where my game is at," Scheffler said. "Phil has been tremendous for me, keeping things simple, keeping my mind clear, and I just have so much confidence in what we're working on."

Scheffler, 29, shrugged off any idea of a special aura like Tiger Woods once enjoyed, especially when it comes to partners for four-ball or foursomes matches.

"I'd like to think that I'm not difficult to pair with people," said Scheffler. "I'd like to think of myself as someone that's a nice guy and easy to get along with. I've had different partners over the years and have had some success."

- The unsolvable puzzle -

Beyond sport, golf has become an obsession to Scheffler surpassed only by his family.

"I have a deep sense of satisfaction and pride in what I've been able to accomplish in this game. This game means a lot to me," he said.

"For the amount of work it takes for me to come out here and play golf, this is a lot more than just a game to me. This is something that's very important to me. This is essentially my life's work right now.

"If I'm not with my family, I'm thinking about golf, I'm thinking about how to get better."

That passion for golf has pushed him to find new distractions.

"I wish I could turn my brain off to something else," Scheffler said. "I have to find new things to become obsessed with because if not I'm just going to be thinking about golf literally all the time."

For all his victories, Scheffler's quest for golf perfection is like trying to grasp an unreachable star.

"It's like a puzzle that can never be solved," he said. "Even after tournaments that I win, I think satisfaction is something that doesn't really creep into my mind.

"I'm a perfectionist at heart, and I think that's what's so great about the game of golf. There's literally always something you can improve on, and that's what I focus on."

R.Shaban--SF-PST