Scottie Scheffler was the pre-tournament favorite entering the 2025 Open Championship, but Rory McIlroy was the big story as he looked to put the heartbreak from 2019 in the past and capture the Claret Jug in his home country of Northern Ireland.

That moment arrived Thursday while Scottie Scheffler played his second shot on the 17th hole at the 2025 British Open at Royal Portrush. Scheffler, sitting to the right of the fairway and 111 yards out, hit a beautiful iron shot that landed three feet from the pin.

The somewhat contradictory answer was that golf does fulfill Scheffler, along with his family, but that if the game ever affected his role as a husband and father he'd quit on the spot. Family matters the most to him, so he ends up asking himself the same question at tournament after tournament:

Is Scottie Scheffler still the clear No. 1 entering The Open? Is Rory McIlroy ready to win in Northern Ireland?

Backspin: His year was slowed by a rib injury that kept him out for two months. Padraig Harrington (2007-08), Tiger Woods (2005-06) and Tom Watson (1982-83) are the only back-to-back Open champions the last 50 years.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler was a fountain of introspection Tuesday at his news conference entering the 2025 British Open, calling golf "an unsatisfying venture" and admitting that he often wrestles with motivation.

Scottie Scheffler says winning is special, but fleeting, and that being a great father means more than being a great golfer.

By winning his second PGA Tour title and a $1,575,000 check, Scottish Open winner Chris Gotterup jumped from 96th on the money list with barely more than $1 million to 51st with $2,586,336.