How Merseyside putting master helped Scheffler
Coach Phil Kenyon explains the detail behind American’s transformation on greens to become golf ’s dominant force
To Tiger Woods, the 106th USPGA Championship is simple enough. “If he putts decent, he wins. If he putts great, he blows away the field. If he has a bad putting week, he contends. The ball-striking is that good.”
“He” is Scottie Scheffler, that supreme being who for a few months has been operating in a different realm, with four wins and a second in his past five tournaments, highlighted by Masters glory last month.
Of course, it is not as straight-forward as Woods makes out, not least because Scheffler indicated he would take “a little time away” when his wife gave birth to their first child – and Meredith was due to go into labour a week ago.
It is conceivable that Scheffler could skip Valhalla. But if he does tee it up on Thursday, many will concur with Woods’s assessment.
The Wanamaker Trophy – and a third major – will be the Texan’s to lose on the greens. So no pressure on Scheffler’s putting coach, then.
Step forward Phil Kenyon, the 50-year-old from Southport, home of Red Rum, who has been working with the thoroughbred for nine months and has trained the 27-yearold to look almost unstoppable in the final furlong.
The pair have forged quite the relationship since Scheffler, in a putting rut, sought him out late last summer. This bond was evidenced by Scheffler’s reaction when spotting Kenyon by the Augusta National recorder’s hut, minutes after securing his second Green Jacket. Scheffler strode over and gave Kenyon a hug, before lifting his instructor high off the turf. “No, that has never happened to me before,” Kenyon said when talking to Telegraph Sport last week. “It was a special moment, very cool.”
In his champion’s press conference, Scheffler was effusive about Kenyon’s contribution, commending the coach’s own lack of “ego” and explaining how they quickly connected. “I watched the way Phil coached his players and loved it,” he said. “We hit the ground running.”
It was a process, however, as the mediocrity on the greens continued to let down his peerless mastery from the tee and fairway. But then they introduced the mallet putter in March and, although Rory Mcilroy had advised his rival to make the switch just a few weeks before, Kenyon revealed that the timing was merely a coincidence and that “plenty of work had been put in” before Scheffler showed up at Bay Hill and proceeded to give the rest a glimpse of the next few months of dead-eyed superiority.
Scheffler had a propensity to mishit putts with the blades; a common weakness even at the elite level. The mallet is much more forgiving, which, as Kenyon puts it, “allowed Scottie to free himself up in the mind”. From being 162nd in the PGA Tour’s putting standings, he was suddenly raised into the upper quadrants. “I was not shocked by the improvements, because of the ability Scottie has,” Kenyon said.
As Kenyon alluded, it was not just a technical fix “to ensure the face is more square through impact”. “There’s a lot of psychology involved,” Kenyon said. “Putting is a game within a game, isn’t it? If a pro hits what he considers to be a good drive, then 99 times out of a 100 he will be on the fairway. But he can hit what he thinks is a good putt and the ball will regularly not go in. At times it’s quite difficult for the player to sort of really assess why that is happening.
“My job is to help them evaluate that and put a perspective on it. If it’s not a technical issue, make sure they do not tinker along those lines. It’s not always about giving them lessons, changing the technique.”
Scheffler has clearly learnt how to accept and to separate the quality of the putt from the result of the putt. Like those such as Darren Clarke, Henrik Stenson, Lee Westwood, Tommy Fleetwood, Francesco Molinari, Matt Fitzpatrick and Justin Rose, Scheffler has bought into the Kenyon concept.
Some have come and gone – Mcilroy did so despite seeing a stunning transformation in his time with Kenyon in 2016 – but that is the territory. In 20 years on tour, Kenyon has taken the lows and the criticisms from fans who think they know more.
Kenyon tries to not let it puncture his calm and affable demeanour. But sometimes the temptation is too much. After Augusta, Kenyon went on X to repost a message sent from a user just before Bay Hill. “Phil Kenyon is destroying Scottie,” it read. Words were not required for Kenyon – just a “waving hand” emoji. The US media loved it and declared: “Phil Kenyon keeps receipts.” Indeed, he must be knee deep in them, both metaphorically and physically as his star has risen with his bank balance.
Kenyon has gone from being a struggling pro on tour into a man in demand. Naturally modest, he seems more than happy with his lot, with eight players due to play in Louisville, Kentucky, in the only major not on his mantelpiece.
“Each time any of my players wins it’s brilliant to think I might have helped,” he said. “These are pinch-me moments. As a kid I wanted to just be able to play in big tournaments, but then I saw how good certain players were. So later on, to have the opportunity to work with the best and be involved at this level behind the scenes … well, as a golf fan... there’s no better job.”