Scottie Scheffler on fan behavior after concession: ‘There’s no place for that’

MEDINAH, Ill. – While the fact that Scottie Scheffler beat Nico Echavarria on Sunday at the Presidents Cup likely won’t be viewed as a stunner, his act of sportsmanship toward his opponent after a moment of unruly fan behavior certainly turned heads.

Scheffler never trailed against the Colombian, helping to propel the Americans to a stirring comeback at Medinah Country Club. The world No. 1 was 3 up and in control through 13 holes, but the match took a turn at the par-4 14th. It was there that a fan yelled out a vocal “Go Scottie” call in the middle of Echavarria’s back swing, causing him to sky his tee shot just 226 yards into the right rough.

Echavarria immediately dropped his club upon contact, and Scheffler quickly approached the rope line to admonish the fan who had yelled out.

“There’s just no place for that,” Scheffler said. “I was very frustrated. It was honestly a big distraction.”

The two played the hole out until they reached the green, where Echavarria’s third shot had rolled off the back of the green and left him a 40-footer for par from the back fringe. Facing a 19-foot birdie putt of his own, Scheffler decided to concede the par to Echavarria, and they ultimately halved the hole after Scheffler’s birdie putt missed.

“It’s unfortunate that in some way the crowds can affect performance like that,” Echavarria said. “But we have the No. 1 player in the world who’s a class act. I wasn’t expecting for him to give me that putt for par.”

The concession meant that Scheffler retained a 3-up advantage heading to No. 15, although the match got a little closer than expected when Echavarria chipped in for birdie on the par-3 16th. Scheffler closed out the match one hole later, improving his individual record to 3-1 for the week as the U.S. Team rallied for a 17-13 victory.

While it ultimately had little bearing in the end result, Scheffler didn’t second-guess his decision in the moment to offer his opponent a bit of leniency after Echavarria’s play was materially impacted by a voice from outside the ropes.

“It just didn’t really sit well with me,” Scheffler said. “He would never have hit a shot as poorly as he hit, I think, off the 14th if there wasn’t a fan yelling in his swing. It was just very frustrating.”