Why Scottie Scheffler is a marketing dream
The U.S. star walked off with the claret jug in Royal Portrush before he and his family stole the hearts of millions on the Causeway Coast.
Some carry the burden of stardom so heavily that it diminishes the performances that thrust them into the spotlight in the first place.
And then there’s Scottie Scheffler, a man who is so ambivalent to fame that he appears to have sliced it into the long grass completely.
His fourth round at the Open in Royal Portrush on Sunday afternoon was little more than a procession, a prelude to the inevitable crowning of a champion who is redefining his sport.
The most interesting element of the final day of action came in the media room, as a succession of the great and good of golf were asked about the New Jersey-born 29-year-old.
Over to you, Jordan Spieth.
“I’m thinking about so many other sports and Nikola Jokic is the only guy I can think of that’s a superstar that’s equally unassuming in any sport in the modern era, and I’m happy if anybody else can find another example, but it’s very rare,” said his compatriot.
“Most people lean into it and take advantage of it.
"He doesn't care to be a superstar. He's not transcending the game like Tiger did.
"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."
At the start of the week, Scheffler gave one of the great pre-tournament press conferences.
As Claire Rogers wrote on Golf.com, “I went into the presser thinking about golf, and came out thinking about life.”
I’ll be honest, that doesn’t happen too often.
“We work so hard for such little moments,” he said. “I’m kind of sicko; I love putting in the work. I love getting to practice. I love getting to live out my dreams.
“But at the end of the day, sometimes I just don’t understand the point … It’s just one of those deals.
“I love the challenge. I love being able to play this game for a living.
“It’s one of the greatest joys of my life, but does it fill the deepest wants and desires of my heart? Absolutely not.
“This is not a fulfilling life. It’s fulfilling from the sense of accomplishment, but it’s not fulfilling from a sense of the deepest places of your heart,” he said.
“There’s a lot of people that make it to what they thought was going to fulfil them in life, and you get there, you get to No. 1 in the world, and they’re like what’s the point?
“What is the point? Why do I want to win this tournament so bad? That’s something that I wrestle with on a daily basis.”
That press conference offered another priceless window into why the American winning machine is so special.
Not that he sets out to be. In fact, he sets out to be just the opposite.
Marketable? If you spoke to Scheffler, he would give you a shrug and say ‘I hope not’.
But on the 18th green, following his four shot victory, evidence of just what makes Scheffler so authentic and attractive to sponsors was everywhere you looked.
The roar of emotion when he finally let out what he had bottled up for the previous four days, the celebration with his wife Meredith and their young son, Bennett (who in truth, stole the show following the presentation of the famous claret jug) and the hug with his caddy, Ted Scott, after completing the third leg of his career Grand Slam.
Now, Scheffler is hardly short of endorsements. Golf Monthly last year estimated that the American made $28m from partners such as Taylor Made and Nike in 2024.
But he truly is a rarity. A man who couldn’t be less intent on marketing himself and a golfer who has openly admitted that he sometimes questions why he does what he does.
The reason he makes the Scheffler persona look so effortless is because it is. Quite literally. Here is a sports stars focusing 100% on golf and his family.
Everything else? Who cares?
Definitely not Scottie.