PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland (AP) \u2014 The enormous yellow scoreboard above the 18th green at Royal Portrush perfectly illustrated the state of golf these days. Scottie Scheffler\u2019s name was at the top. No one was close.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s how it was in the British Open on Sunday, when Scheffler never gave anyone a chance from the time his 9-iron settled a foot away for birdie on the first hole<\/a> until he tapped in for a 3-under 68 and a four-shot victory over Harris English.<\/p>\n That\u2019s how it is in the sport, a level of dominance not seen since Tiger Woods<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHe is the bar that we\u2019re all trying to get to,\u201d Masters champion Rory McIlroy said. \u201cIn a historical context, you could argue that there\u2019s only maybe two or three players in the history of the game that have been on a run the one that Scottie\u2019s been on here for the last 24 to 36 months. Incredibly impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n Scheffler not only won his second major this year \u2014 and fourth in the last three years \u2014 he captured the third leg of the career Grand Slam, now missing only the U.S. Open.<\/p>\n He became the first player in more than a century to win his first fourth major title by at least three shots, and if not for his lone blunder from a bunker on the eighth hole when he had a seven-shot lead, he would have played bogey-free on the weekend.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing able to walk up 18 with the tournament in hand is a really tough thing to describe. It\u2019s a really cool feeling. I have a lot of gratitude towards being able to accomplish something like this,\u201d Scheffler said, the silver claret jug on the table next to him.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s taken a lot of work \u2014 not only a lot of work, but it takes a lot of patience,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a high level of focus over 72 holes of a tournament. This was, I felt like, one of my best performances mentally.\u201d<\/p>\n The emotions he showed were telling.<\/p>\n Until he had his name etched on golf\u2019s oldest trophy, Scheffler had a week marked by his extraordinary insight on how he views winning. He said celebrations last only a few minutes. He has wondered, \u201cWhat\u2019s the point?\u201d<\/p>\n He loves the work required to be the best. He thrives on competition. But in terms of fulfillment, he often questions why he wants to win so badly when the thrill of winning is fleeting<\/a>.<\/p>\n On the golf course, his biggest fist pump was for a par on the sixth hole. As he crouched to line up his birdie putt on the 18th, he rested his head on his hand with a slight smile of deep satisfaction. When he tapped in the final putt, he plucked the ball from the cup and put it in his pocket as if he had just won a regular PGA Tour event.<\/p>\n But when he finally found his family \u2014 wife Meredith, 15-month-old son Bennett, and his parents \u2014 Scheffler went crazy. He thrust both arms in the air, pumped both arms, screamed and threw his cap in the air. That\u2019s what it\u2019s all about for the 29-year-old from Texas.<\/p>\n \u201cShe\u2019s always the first person I want to celebrate with,\u201d he said. \u201cShe knows me better than anybody. That\u2019s my best friend. It takes a lot of work to be able to become good at this game, and I wouldn\u2019t be able to do it without her support.\u201d<\/p>\n McIlroy had referred to the outcome as \u201cinevitable\u201d when Scheffler built a four-shot lead going into the final round, and it was every bit of that.<\/p>\n The tap-in birdie on the first hole. A brilliant approach between two knobs to 7 feet for birdie on the fourth. A 15-foot birdie on No. 5. Most telling was his biggest celebration, a powerful fist pump when he made a 15-foot par putt on No. 6.<\/p>\n It was reminiscent of when Woods saved his biggest fist pump for a par on the 16th hole of his historic 15-shot victory at Pebble Beach in the 2000 U.S. Open, when it was clear Woods was competing mainly against himself.<\/p>\n That\u2019s what it felt like until Scheffler\u2019s one wobble a double bogey on No. 8 when it took two shots to get out of a fairway bunker.<\/p>\n That ended his streak of 32 consecutive holes without a bogey. The lead was down to four shots when Scottish Open winner Chris Gotterup birdied the ninth. And then Scheffler birdied the next hole. He played the back nine with eight pars and a birdie<\/a> because that\u2019s all he needed. No one could catch him.<\/p>\n \u201cI played with him the first two days, and honestly I thought he was going to birdie every hole. It was incredible to watch,\u201d Shane Lowry said. \u201cIf Scottie\u2019s feet stayed stable and his swing looked like Adam Scott\u2019s, we\u2019d be talking about him in the same words as Tiger Woods. … His bad shots are really good. That\u2019s when you know he\u2019s really good.\u201d<\/p>\n Scheffler, who finished at 17-under 267, won for the fourth time this year. He now has won 20 times worldwide in the last 30 months. This was the 11th straight time he turned a 54-hole lead into a victory.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think we thought the golfing world would see someone as dominant as Tiger come through so soon, and here\u2019s Scottie sort of taking that throne of dominance,\u201d said Xander Schauffele, the defending champion who tied for seventh.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can\u2019t even say he\u2019s on a run. He\u2019s just been killing it for over two years now,\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019s a tough man to beat, and when you see his name up on the leaderboard, it sucks for us.\u201d<\/p>\n English capped off a memorable two weeks in the United Kingdom. His caddie of eight years couldn\u2019t get a new travel visa<\/a> because of a 10-year prison term he served two decades ago. English had a replacement last week at the Scottish Open and another this week.<\/p>\n It didn\u2019t stop him. English closed with a 66 and was runner-up in a major for the second time this year \u2014 both times to Scheffler \u2014 as he strengthened his case for the Ryder Cup team.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only guy to beat me at the PGA and this week. I\u2019m playing some good golf,\u201d English said. \u201cI wasn\u2019t playing professional golf when Tiger was at his peak. But it\u2019s pretty incredible, just how good of a front-runner he is.\u201d<\/p>\n Li Haotong of China (70), Matt Fitzpatrick (69) and Wyndham Clark (65) tied for fourth. That gets Li into the Masters next year.<\/p>\n As for McIlroy, there were few complaints. He needed an electric start like he had Saturday and was eight shots behind an hour into the final round. No matter. The Masters champion soaked up adulation across Royal Portrush, closing with a 69 to tie for seventh<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI wish I had have been closer to Scottie going into today and been able to make a real push,\u201d McIlroy said. \u201cBut he\u2019s been on a different level all week and he\u2019s been on a different level for the last two years to the rest of us. He is the bar that we\u2019re all trying to get to at this point.<\/p>\n \u201cBut for me to be in front of everyone here at home and to get that reception up the last, absolutely incredible. I\u2019ll remember that for a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n The only stumble from Scheffler came from his 15-month-old son, who tried to walk up a slope to the 18th green toward his dad and the claret jug, only to face-plant.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t think he\u2019s ever been up a hill that big before,\u201d Scheffler said with a laugh.<\/p>\n That also goes for players chasing Scheffler.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n