Scottie Scheffler angrily snapped at a fan during his first round at The Open, far from happy with the supporter for noise that their phone was making before he bogeyed the par-three 17th hole.
Immediately after hooking his tee shot left, the American turned back to the crowd and singled out one member of those watching on, seemingly upset that one fan was not turned on silent during a pivotal moment in Scheffler’s round.
“You need to keep those things on silent!” he fumed, before a poor chip ensured his tee shot could not be rescued, going on to miss a putt for par.
Scheffler was in disbelief that his 15-foot putt went astray, tapping in for bogey, before making a birdie on the last hole of the day after some smart approach play.
That birdie put the world No. 1 in a much better mood walking off the course at Royal Troon, four shots behind leader Shane Lowry, while disappointed with a ringing phone and his own putting.
In difficult Scottish weather conditions, Scheffler was one of the few golfers who did not struggle to find the fairways, playing well on the tees and approach aside from a contentious 17th hole.
Scheffler was perhaps peeved with a certain fan because he could have come in even better than one-under on a day where his putting was well below his usual standard.
The 28-year-old rarely has such outbursts on the course, making his fury at one fan at The Open all the more curious, considering his usual level-headed approach.
Scheffler remains in a strong position while other big names struggle in Scotland, with Rory McIlroy coming in at seven over – one better than Tiger Woods.
Lowry leads for the first time since winning the Claret Jug at Portrush in 2019 but Scheffler, even after a rare vent of frustration during his round, will feel confident that he can continue his strong run of form this week.