Scottie Scheffler reacts to Rory McIlroy's advice: "My coach joked about that"
World number one Scottie Scheffler joked it was funny timing that Rory McIlroy urged the PGA Tour superstar to try a mallet putter.
Did Rory McIlroy's advice to Scottie Scheffler inspire the American to try a mallet putter?
No, but the world number one did admit the timing of the Northern Irishman's comments were amusing.
McIlroy implored Scheffler to try a new putter when he joined the broadcast at the Genesis Invitational after seeing the golfer struggle.
"I'd love to see Scottie try a mallet," he said. "But selfishly, for me, Scottie does everything else so well..."
McIlroy was right. Scheffler does everything superbly - except for putting.
To illustrate this point, just check out this graphic that was shared during the second round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill:
Yikes!
To say Scheffler has turned a corner in this department would be far too premature.
But it was evident the tide was perhaps beginning to turn after the putts began to drop during the second round of the signature PGA Tour event.
At the halfway point, Scheffler was in a five-way tie for the lead at Bay Hill.
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"I think they just went in today," Scheffler told reporters on Friday evening.
"And I would argue that there's a few that I thought were going to go in that didn't."
A reporter asked Scheffler: "Rory had said on the broadcast at Genesis about switching to go a mallet. Did you hear that at all? Did that inspire your decision at all or influence it?
Scheffler did not.
He explained: "My coach Randy joked about that at home, because he had already thought about it, and I think Rory just had said it in a way in which he used the blade for a long time and then he switched to a mallet, and that's something that works for him.
"I think, as a lot of good players out here know, something that works for Rory may not work for me, and something that works for me may not work for Rory. I did hear that he said that, and it was just kind of funny timing."
McIlroy was also paying close attention to his putting at Bay Hill.
In the first round, he led the field in strokes gained off the tee and on the green.
But that didn't stop him from spending an hour on the practice green after round one with renowned putting coach Brad Faxon.
Watch:
McIlroy said: "Sometimes with the mallet, because it is so much easier to start it on line, you get a little lazy.
"So, I brought the blade out last night just to hit a few putts to sort of get a feel of what I need to do to get the ball to the start on line with a real putter."
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