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Scottie Scheffler battled with Rory McIlroy to make the US Open weekend cut while Sam Burns leapt to take the lead. The five-time PGA Tour winner carded an impressive five-under 65 to seize the lead on three under. Burns was one of only three out of 156 players to sit under par at the halfway stage at Oakmont. Scheffler was more than impressed by the feat.
The reigning PGA Championship winner, who settled seven shots off the lead after scrapping to a 71 on Day 2 of the major, dubbed Burns a “hyper-competitive person.” The ace golfer said the latter, who made six birdies and just one bogey in a morning round on Friday, has a ‘good chance’ to finally win a major.
The three-time major winner reminded that this isn’t the first time his close friend has ended up in a good position at big events.
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Replying to a query on Sam Burns’ major chances at the US Open, Scottie Scheffler said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:
“I mean, it's a complicated question. I think Sam (Burns) is one of those guys, he's like me in a sense that he's a hyper-competitive person. I think you always dream of having a chance to win these tournaments, and he's put himself in position a few times at majors, and he's in position again.
I'm sure going into the weekend he's right where I would want to be on the leaderboard, so you know, to have a good chance, it should be a fun experience for him.”
For the unversed, Burns is yet to make a top-five finish at majors. The five-time PGA Tour winner’s best-ever major finish came at US Open last year, when he finished T9.
Scottie Scheffler reacts to Sam Burns' elite putting
Sam Burns is statistically one of the world’s best putters in the world. The ace golfer showcased his elite skill with the flatstick – Odyssey Ai-One 7S – at the US Open at Oakmont on Friday. The 28-year-old poured in over 102 feet of putts, including that clutch par save on the par-4 ninth to take his two-day total of 3-under 137.
When asked about the secret behind his elite putting skill, Burns credited it to ‘lot of practice.’ Interestingly, Scottie Scheffler had more details to share about the former’s special skill. The 2024 PGA Tour Player of the Year said Burns plays with “really good natural instincts” and “putts very reactionary.”
Scottie Scheffler said while analyzing Sam Burns’ putting, as quoted by ASAP Sports:
“He (Burns) plays golf, I think, very freely, and he's got really good natural instincts when it comes to his putting, and a lot of it is just very reactionary. He's got good fundamentals, good instinct, and he putts very reactionary. That's really all there is to it, it's as simple as that.”
It is pertinent to note that Sam Burns’ skillset is limited to putting. The ace PGA Tour pro, who has one top-10 finish in major history, gained 9.78 strokes gained total in his round of 65 on Friday. This was also the best single round total in any major since Brooks Koepka's 63 round at the 2019 PGA Championship, where he gained 10.06.
