Scottie Scheffler has been a busy man the last few days.
He and his wife, Meredith, along with son Bennett, explored Paris on Saturday, including a stop at the famous Louvre museum. They also saw the Mona Lisa.
On Sunday, Scheffler went to the table tennis competition, and he plans to attend gymnastics Tuesday. All of this in the midst preparing for his first Olympics golf competition.
“Obviously my biggest priority is showing up ready to play this week, but I definitely want to experience a little bit of the Olympics,” Scheffler said, “but it’s definitely been fun, being part of the Olympics, and it’s definitely a different vibe this week.”
Scheffler said come Wednesday, it’s all business as he, along with Xander Schauffele, Collin Morikawa and Wyndham Clark, represent Team USA in the Paris Olympics. The men’s golf competition, featuring 60 golfers from across the globe, will take place at Le Golf National, site of the 2018 Ryder Cup, beginning Thursday.
As for the No. 1 golfer in the world, he’s one of the favorites, along with Schauffele, the defending gold medalist and winner of two majors this year, including two weeks ago in the Open Championship at Royal Troon.
And Scheffler would be more than willing to don the gold medal come Sunday afternoon.
“It would be very special to have the gold medal,” Scheffler said. “It’s definitely one of the reasons why I’m here this week. I didn’t come here to — I love going to watch table tennis yesterday but that’s not why I showed up.
“I try to place an equal amount of value to all the tournaments I play. I feel like that any time I show up, I’m trying to do my best, and that’s definitely the case this week. It’s definitely special to be part of the Olympics and I’m looking forward to the chance to compete for a medal for our country.”
Scheffler has six wins this season, including the Masters, and he has grown to become one of the faces of professional golf since bursting onto the scene with his stellar 2022 season.
His fame is worldwide, too. Although he said nothing too crazy happened, he said people have recognized him in Paris and from time to time come up for a picture or autograph.
One of the most memorable moments of his time in Paris thus far was the Louvre.
“As we were walking around, I felt like we saw 1/10th of the museum at most. We were there for two hours and I felt like I could have been there for days exploring around looking at all the old paintings,” he said. “I would say the paintings were something that really took me back. It was pretty wild how big they were and how talented people were back then, and also how long they preserved them for as long as they have.
“I can get pretty interested in that kind of stuff just standing there reading the descriptions of all the stuff and the images, and it was definitely a fun few hours.”
Scheffler said he played 18 holes Sunday and another nine Monday, his first times at the course. He watched footage from the 2018 Ryder Cup, and his caddie, Ted Scott, has experience at the venue from that competition.
When it comes to the golf, Scheffler isn’t worried about how he can perform on the course. When it comes to being an Olympic athlete in another sport?
“I think at one time I would have considered the table tennis that we played elite, and I’m pretty sure it’s far from it,” Scheffler said after watching the competition Sunday. ”
“Could I be a multi-sport athlete in the Olympics? I don’t think so. But sometimes I have irrational self-confidence, and maybe if I really put my mind to it.”