What ‘surprised’ Scottie Scheffler about Masters setup?

World number one Scottie Scheffler experienced an array of emotions during the 2026 Masters Tournament. He was frustrated after posting a 74 on Friday, seemingly insulted by a reporter’s question following an impressive showing on Saturday, disappointed after barely missing a difference-making putt on the 17th hole on Sunday and overall satisfied with the resilience he displayed in nearly overcoming a 12-stroke deficit over the weekend. But the four-time major champion concluded his Masters experience by expressing another emotion.

Surprise. Although Scheffler did not make excuses after falling one stroke shy of history-making Rory McIlroy (12-under par), he was sure to highlight an unfortunate characteristic of the revered Augusta National Golf Club.

“I’m not in charge of course setup, {but} I would have liked it to have been a bit more equal in terms of the firmness on Thursday and Friday,” the two-time Masters champion told reporters, per the Golf.com X account. “I was a bit surprised at how soft things were on Friday afternoon, especially as it got late in the day, but the weather also changes and it was a bit windy on Thursday. So who knows?

“That’s part of the game. We play an outdoor sport, and you don’t know how conditions are going to change, especially course conditions. Overall, just Friday for me, going out early {and} not being able to shoot an under-par round definitely hurt my chances.”

Scottie Scheffler was “a bit surprised” to see the firmness change so much from Thursday to Friday. pic.twitter.com/eZII81mMOI

— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) April 13, 2026

Scottie Scheffler, who was remarkably bogey-free in the final two rounds of the Masters, could not get into a groove during his third round of play. He was two-over par and tallied two bogeys on par-five holes on the back-nine. Like he alluded to, those struggles forced him into an extremely difficult spot entering Saturday.

The 29-year-old is drawing attention to something that others have claimed in the past, putting some light pressure on the tournament to monitor Augusta’s links. Scheffler knows he had his chances, though. He will take some pride in a valiant Sunday effort and try to earn his first win of the spring at RBC Heritage. next week.

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