Paul McGinley
Golf Columnist
What to expect from the US Open: Hopes of Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Brooks Koepka and more
Can Scottie Scheffler continue his dominant form this week at the US Open? Will Brooks Koepka add to his major tally? What can we expect from Rory McIlroy and conditions at Los Angeles Country Club? Watch live on Thursday from 3pm on Sky Sports Golf
Last Updated: 15/06/23 4:41pm
After a week where off-course drama has left the golfing world at times likened to a reality TV show, Paul McGinley looks at who will impress at the US Open and the test players will face in Los Angeles...
This is going to be a real tough test, rather than the generic assignment you would get on the PGA Tour. It's also a totally different examination to what the players faced in the last major in the PGA Championship at Oak Hill.
It's firm, it's fast, it's tricky and it's going to frustrate the players. It's going to be volatile in terms of the scoring and we're going to see everything from twos and maybe ones on this course all the way to sevens, eights, nines and even 10s - it really does have that potential.
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I love this style of golf because it asks so many questions of the modern player that we don't normally ask of them. How often do we get a golf course on the PGA Tour as hard and as tricky as this? It really is a unique assignment for them.
The players here are going to be thrown out of their comfort zones. They're used to a certain style of playing the game, which is normally a front-footed style, but this course challenges the players to redefine what is considered good.
Is Scheffler the man to beat?
Scottie Scheffler comes in as the pre-tournament favourite and in his last 16 events he has finished no worse than 12th, with his ball-striking statistics during that period nothing short of unbelievable.
He almost won at The Memorial a few weeks ago, just missing out on the play-off, despite finishing last in putting. That shows you how well he must have played from tee to green to perform as well as he did.
This guy is playing golf to a level that we haven't seen since Tiger Woods on a consistent basis from tee to green, it really has been that good. If he gets even a moderate week going with the putter, he's obviously a guy you would fancy.
When you look around this course, you really do fancy the cream to rise to the top. The last 15 winners of the US Open have all been ranked top 10 in driving distance, so the event is certainly advantageous to the big hitter.
Majors are the toughest golf test of the year that the players face, as not only is the atmosphere the biggest, and the scrutiny at its highest, which requires focus, but it's also that golf course demands are difficult.
It's rare that you have a low winning score, the golf courses are set up tough. You've got to love the grind, you've got to love the battle. A lot of players don't like to be stretched, whereas Brooks Koepka does. He thrives in that and has that very unique mindset, so this week could suit him again.
Has golf's off-course drama affected McIlroy?
I think the big thing from the players' point of view is, if there's going to be a partnership, how do you integrate the players who have gone to LIV back into the players who stayed loyal? And how do you make that fair in a compensatory, financial way?
"Obviously a lot of them have got a huge amount of money to leave, whereas the guys who were loyal say, 'we're not going to be paid for our loyalty, so what's in it for us?' So, like a lot of things, unfortunately, everything is coming back to money and the green-eyed monster as well too is in play.
McIlroy last year used the launch of LIV Golf as a motivating force and had an unbelievably strong year, winning the FedExCup, winning four times worldwide and posting four top 10s in the majors.
This year, I don't know if this is the reason why his game has gone off. You can't say it drove him last year and then this year it's distracting him, I just think his game is not quite as good as it was last year and his confidence level isn't where it was.
He has obviously had a few chances to finish tournaments and hasn't taken them. I think just a little bit more focus on his golf and playing a little bit better and finishing things off is what's needed more than anything else.
What can we expect in Los Angeles?
This course requires great ball-striking and the ability to elevate the ball into some of these tight pins, while the ability to remain patient when out of position and the ability to know the places where to miss are both going to be important skillsets to have.
There are some gnarly places out there that you just can't hit the golf ball, because if you do and you get unlucky then you'll be taking two or three shots to get out. I think every player in the field is going to have a challenge at some stage during the week and some will have several!
When you're out of position and a big number is staring you in the face, the ability to extradite yourself from that situation and get away with a score that keeps you in the game is going to be key.
It's going to be brilliant to view on TV, that's what I can ensure all those watching into the early hours from home. We're in a wonderful setting, right in the middle of Tinseltown, and everything creates the ambiance of what is going to be a great event.
Who will win the US Open? Watch the third men's major of the year exclusively live on Sky Sports. Live coverage of the opening round begins on Thursday from 3pm on Sky Sports Golf.