Scottie Scheffler is playing down the pressure that comes with being the world’s top ranked player at the 150th Open Championship.
American Scheffler has topped the world standings since March, shortly before he won the Masters to claim his maiden major title.
Having finished tied second behind Matt Fitzpatrick at last month’s US Open at Brookline, Scheffler’s standing has continued to grow.
The 26-year-old says his recent rise has not changed his own expectation levels ahead of his first outing at St Andrews.
He said: “I don’t feel like there’s any more pressure on me. I’m showing up like everybody else trying to come here and play well at a golf tournament.
“Being the home of golf and the Open Championship definitely amplifies things a bit, but that’s across the board.
“I don’t think it matters if I’m number one in the world or number 50 in the world, I want to win this tournament as bad or more than anybody out here.
“I’m trying to take that pressure off of myself and then just going out and trying to do my best. When I talked a little bit before, it’s like I’ve prepared this week. I’ve gone out on the golf course. I’ve hit all the shots.
“At home I’ve prepared and practised and done what I can to play well.
“When I show up on the first tee, I’m going to be comfortable knowing I did everything I could to play well, and I’m going to go out there and just try and do my best.”
World number one keen to block off outside noise
Scheffler’s success has put him more closely under the microscope, however the New Jersey golfer insists he has made a conscious effort to shut off the outside noise.
He added: “I think that’s something I’ve learned over time. I think it’s more of a curiosity at first. I wonder what people think of me.
“Then as time goes on, you realise it doesn’t really matter as much as you think it does. Perception is what it is.
I’ve tried to keep my circle small with the people I trust. People in the media may have a perception of me, and I’m hoping that it’s good. I don’t want to be perceived poorly.
“But at the end of the day if I am and my closest friends and my parents and my wife still love me and care for me and believe that I’m at least a decent guy, then I’m doing things right. Those are the opinions that I value the most.
“I’ve been fortunate to have people in my life that will call me out when I’m not doing the right thing. I’ve been able to lean on those guys for a long time now and trust them.
“When I’m doing the right thing, they’ll let me know, and when I’m doing the wrong thing, they’ll let me know. Those are the opinions I value the most.
“If people believe I’m a great golfer at the end of my career, yeah, that will be nice. But at the end of the day, that’s not what I want to rest my head on.”
Avoiding bunkers the key to Old Course success
Scheffler has been drawn against Englishman Tyrell Hatton and Chilean Joaquin Niemann for Thursday’s first round, teeing off at 1.26pm.
Practice rounds earlier this week have exposed him to some of the challenges the firm Old Course conditions will present him with come the start of the tournament.
Scheffler added: “First and foremost is avoiding the bunkers. The legend of Tiger Woods avoiding all of them for 72 holes, it’s pretty cool. I still haven’t figured out quite how he did that.
“That’s most of the strategy for me on the golf course, playing angles.
“When things get really firm, avoid bunkers and use angles where you can, whether that means playing down another fairway or hitting it into the rough.
“When it gets so firm, you have to have a good angle. A lot of times people talk about that on the coverage or whatever it is about having a good angle, but it truly applies when it’s this firm.”
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