NORTH BERWICK, Scotland (AP) — For the first time in nearly four years, Scottie Scheffler won't be around for the weekend.
Scheffler missed two key putts in the final three holes Friday in the Scottish Open, the last one from 6 feet for par that gave him a 2-over 72 to miss the 36-hole cut by two shots.
“Got off to a poor start and after that, I didn’t really it close enough to give myself a bunch of looks,” Scheffler said. “That’s how you shoot over
par.”
Instead of trying to make up ground on the weekend at The Renaissance Club, Scheffler was making plans to head to Royal Birkdale earlier than he expected to prepare for the British Open.
Scheffler had made 78 consecutive cuts dating to the 2022 FedEx St. Jude Championship. It was the longest streak on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods set the record of 142 cuts in a row from February 1998 to May 2025.
The cut fell at 2-under 138 when the potential for stronger afternoon wind didn't materialize. Scheffler finished at even-par 140 after his early start, and already was looking ahead to his title defense at the British Open at Royal Birkdale, a links course he has not played.
“A little different than I was planning,” Scheffler said. “Figure out how I get down to Birkdale and go from there.”
Scheffler's cut streak included 25 tournaments that had no 36-hole cut. Woods played in 31 such tournaments during his streak. Byron Nelson held the previous record at 113 in a row during an era where players had to finish in the money — typically the top 20 except the majors and a few other events — for it to be considered making the cut.
“It’s a little different now with some of the signature events not having cuts,” Scheffler said. “But I don't think I finished outside of the top 20 or something like that many times this year. I’m definitely proud of the consistency, and wish I had a couple days over the weekend to make up some ground.”
Scheffler was three shots out of the lead when he started Friday morning. He missed a 3 1/2-foot par putt on No. 11, his second hole. On the par-5 12th, his chip out of high grass to a back pin caught a ridge and rolled into a bunker, leading to a second straight bogey.
He holed a 30-foot birdie putt after making the turn at the par-5 first — his only birdie on a par 5 this week — and had one birdie chance inside 20 feet over the next five holes.
His last big hope was the par-5 seventh, when Scheffler said he caught a gust that caused his second shot to come up just short and roll back off the front. He pitched nicely to 7 feet and missed the birdie chance.
Then, his tee shot on the eighth found a divot in the middle of the fairway and he hit a clunker low and to the right into a pot bunker. He splashed that out to 20 feet and holed it for par to keep alive his chances.
“I felt like I needed at least a birdie coming in on my last few holes. I felt like the cut was going to be 2 or 3 under,” Scheffler said. “I know I had to make the putt on 8 and I had to make birdie, I felt, on 9. Just hit a good iron shot just a little short.”
His 7-iron hit the slope in front of the green with a front pin, his chip was weak and came up 6 feet short and he missed the putt.
Scheffler also missed the cut in the Scottish Open in 2022 a week before the Open at St. Andrews. He then missed the cut at the FedEx St. Jude Championship — the last year it had a full field with a 36-hole cut — and had not missed one since.
“For whatever reason, I just haven’t played my best golf on this course," said Scheffler, who has only two top 10s in his five appearances at The Renaissance Club.
“It could be one of those things where you just get over jet lag, get used to new style of golf, new types of grasses, and maybe I just haven’t adjusted as quick, or maybe this golf course just doesn’t suit my eye much,” he said. “I’ll reflect on that at the end of the year and assess what my plans are going into next season.”
Xander Schauffele had his streak of 72 straight cuts end at Torrey Pines in January. The longest active streak now belongs to Matt Fitzpatrick at 29 in a row.
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
