Scheffler Eyes Career Grand Slam at Wind-Swept U.S. Open

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler tees off Sunday six shots behind leader Wyndham Clark at the 126th U.S. Open. Both will start the final group together; a win would give Scheffler the career Grand Slam on his 30th birthday and Father’s Day, making him the seventh golfer ever to complete the set.

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The career Grand Slam—winning the Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and The Open—has been achieved by six players in modern era. Scheffler already holds the Masters, PGA and The Open, leaving the U.S. Open as the final title needed.

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Scheffler opened with a two-under-par 68 on Friday, highlighted by a 40-foot birdie on the 15th. Saturday he posted three straight birdies on the back-nine—the first such run of his U.S. Open career—finishing at 1-under and tied for second, still six strokes off Clark’s 7-under lead.

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Scheffler called wind “the biggest challenge” and said he will watch early TV coverage to gauge conditions before his round. He stressed patience, noting that staying “patient and stealing some shots where we could” has kept him in contention, and pledged to “do a really nice round tomorrow” to chase Clark.

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The article notes that “the odds are stacked against Scheffler and the rest of the field,” citing the rarity of overturning a six-shot deficit. The Elias Sports Bureau records 21 golfers entering a major with a six-shot or larger lead; all but one—Greg Norman in the 1996 Masters—won.

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• “We want to be in these positions,” — Scottie Scheffler, World No. 1 golfer

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• “Late in the day, the greens, there's a lot of activity, and with so much pitch and wind, there's a bit of mystery as to how the ball is going to break," Scheffler said.” — Scottie Scheffler

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• “You can hit a lot of good shots and end up in some spots where you're going to be frustrated with the result, but I think that's part of the U.S. Open test,” — Scottie Scheffler

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• “The biggest challenge so far was just the wind. Wind was up yesterday. Wind was up again today. Playing in the wind is extremely difficult and judging speed on putts when the wind is blowing that hard can be challenging,” — Scottie Scheffler

RFI (Radio France Internationale)

Forecasts call for continued gusty conditions, so both players must manage rapidly shifting greens and fairways. A strong round could deliver the Grand Slam to Scheffler; a falter would highlight the difficulty of erasing a six-stroke gap at the U.S. Open.

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