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By Julio Cesar Valdera Morales
Contributing Sports Writer
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Scottie Scheffler leads by four strokes with just 18 holes left in the Open Championship. His record shows him to be virtually unbeatable when he's been in these kinds of situations, but the World No. 1 isn't leaving anything to chance.
Of course, being the best player in the world, one might think he'd have a state-of-the-art game plan, featuring advanced technology and even a few secret shots to be used only in life-or-death situations.
The reality is much more mundane. Scheffler plans to keep it simple during the final round of the Open.
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"Winning major championships is not an easy task, and I've put myself in a good position," he said after his Saturday performance, according to the post-round interview's transcripts. "Going into (Sunday) I'm going to step up there on the first tee and I'm going to be trying to get the ball in the fairway, and when I get to the second shot I'm going to be trying to get that ball on the green. There's not really too much else going on."
Hitting fairways with the tee shots, hitting greens with the second shots. It's easier said than done, as more than a few might be thinking.
And yet, Scheffler has come very close to doing exactly that over the past three days. He hasn't hit half of the fairways he's played so far (42.9%), but his approach game has been spectacular, hitting 76% of the greens in regulation, ranking fifth in the field.
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The icing on the cake has been his putting. Scottie Scheffler is, surprisingly, the tournament's best putter, with 7.87 strokes gained on the putting green. He has three-putted just one of the first 54 holes.
"I've done a really good job just being committed to my (putting) line," was his analysis on the matter, according to the post-round interview's transcripts.
According to golf statistician Justin Ray, Scheffler has won the last nine tournaments in which he's led through 54 holes. It's a trend he'll be trying to maintain this Sunday.
"I like being out here competing," Scheffler said, according to the post-round interview's transcripts. "This is why we work so hard is to have opportunities like this, and I'm excited for the challenge of (Sunday)."
It should certainly be a final round to remember.
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