On Friday, Arne Slot considered the number of league goals Liverpool’s forwards have scored this season and said simply: “That is not enough.” If the message was conveyed privately to his players, they were swift to provide the right kind of answer. Hugo Ekitike scored inside five minutes against West Ham on Saturday. Cody Gakpo ended his own drought.
As no Liverpool attacker had found the net in their previous three Premier League matches, it was a step in the right direction. And yet Slot’s overall analysis probably still rings true to him: Liverpool, who spent £200m on strikers last summer, have too few goals from the front three. Certainly they have a lot fewer than last year.
After 28 league matches of last season, Liverpool’s six main forwards had 51 goals. Now that number is down to 26, little more than half. The first may represent more than could realistically be expected, the second fewer.
Some of the explanation lies in the breakdown of who has scored – or, this season, who has not.
2024-25 (first 28 league games only): Mohamed Salah 25, Luis Diaz 9, Gakpo 8, Diogo Jota 5, Darwin Nunez 4, Federico Chiesa 0.
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2025-26: Ekitike 11, Gakpo 6, Salah 4, Chiesa 2, Alexander Isak 2, Rio Ngumoha 1.
There is a case for adding Florian Wirtz into the equation, given that he was the third major attack-minded signing last summer and that some of his minutes have come when playing on the wings, though the majority have come as a No 10. If so, the 2025-26 forwards tally goes up to 30.
It may be simplifying matters but the drop-off can be traced to two players: Salah and Isak. Even by the Egyptian’s standards, he was scoring at a remarkable rate in the first two-thirds of last season, averaging a goal every 99 minutes, allying them with 17 assists. His numbers had tailed off even before the end of a campaign that ended with him anointed PFA Player of the Year and Footballer of the Year. Now, however, Salah has his smallest return at the start of March in his time at Anfield. He has gone four months – albeit interrupted by a spell on the bench and the African Cup of Nations – without a Premier League goal.
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Mohamed Salah has failed to replicate his form from last season amid Liverpool’s striker struggles (AP)
Then there is Isak. After Newcastle had played 28 top-flight games last season, the Swede had 19 goals in the division. At one every 109 minutes, he was almost in Salah territory. If some of Liverpool’s thinking was that, as Salah got older, Isak would assume the goalscoring mantle, his fragile fitness means he has not yet. A broken leg accounts for his absence now, incurred a fraction of a second after scoring just his second Premier League goal. They have come in 519 minutes. Salah, meanwhile, averages one every 429.
Each may be paying a penalty for Liverpool’s lack of spot kicks. Slot is aware it is a factor. Liverpool got nine, the joint most in the division, last year. So far this, they have been awarded two, the joint fewest, and Dominik Szoboszlai missed one of those.
But Salah and Isak’s numbers are down in other respects. Twelve months ago, they had overperformed their expected goals by 4.77 and 3.29 respectively. Now they have underperformed them, Salah by 2.78. The Egyptian’s xG per 90 minutes has halved, from 0.73 to 0.36. His shot count is down, but not as dramatically.
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Alexander Isak’s first season with the Reds has been hampered by injuries (AFP via Getty Images)
For Isak, semi-fit for some of his time on the pitch with Liverpool, his shot count is reduced from 2.97 per minutes to 2.60, his xG from 0.68 to 0.48; again, the average quality of the chance is not as high.
In the rest of the forward line, the evidence is mixed. Chiesa and Ngumoha have overperformed their xG and have excellent goal-per-minute ratios, but have one league start between them. Ekitike and Gakpo have underperformed theirs; but, in the Frenchman’s defence, he was perhaps not bought to be the top scorer in his debut season and he is. When the final whistle blew on Saturday, only three players had more Premier League goals.
Go back a year, meanwhile, and Gakpo and Diaz could call themselves clinical, each with a goal tally that exceeded his xG. The late Jota and, unsurprisingly, Nunez had fewer than the statistics suggested they should.
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Hugo Ekitike has been Liverpool’s main threat but even he is underperforming his xG (REUTERS)
A year ago, Liverpool’s attacking numbers – goals, xG – were far and away the best. Now they stand fourth, or close to it, in most markers. Some it comes down to chance creation. Their six forwards have 15 Premier League assists now. A year ago, Salah had 17 on his own, the others 11 between them.
Salah’s shift from unstoppable to unexpectedly impotent has come quicker than envisaged; indeed, Liverpool scored five goals on Saturday without him scoring or assisting. Isak’s injuries and ineffectiveness are another factor in a drop-off. If Ekitike should be exempt from much of the criticism, Slot’s verdict probably still stands. Twenty-six goals from their forwards is not really enough.
Martin O’Neill praised Kelechi Iheanacho after Celtic fought back to beat St. Mirren 6-2 after extra time and reach the Scottish Cup final.
Celtic looked in full control early in the match at Hampden Park, taking a 2-0 lead through Daizen Maeda and Anthony Ralston.
However, St. Mirren responded in the second half as Mikael Mandron scored to reduce the gap. He then struck again in stoppage time to make it 2-2 and force extra time.
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Celtic took charge in the added 30 minutes, scoring four more goals to seal a 6-2 victory. Iheanacho was the star, scoring twice, while Luke McGowan and Benjamin Nygren also found the net.
After the match, O’Neill praised the Nigerian forward for his impact.
“Kelechi has had a great career,” he said. “He has had injury problems, but he looks sharp and wants to do well. I have praised him a lot in the dressing room.”
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Celtic will now face Dunfermline Athletic in next month’s final.
The game will see O’Neill come up against Neil Lennon, his former player, in a repeat of the 2007 final which Dunfermline lost 1-0.
O’Neill said Iheanacho’s goal in extra time changed the game.
“We found something in extra time, and his goal gave us belief again,” he added.
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Celtic’s strong finish ensured they moved into the final in style after an exciting eight-goal match.
LAS VEGAS – Rhea Ripley’s path back to the top of the women’s division was a long one, but on Sunday night, she survived the storm and recaptured the WWE Women’s Championship at WrestleMania 42.
Ripley won the Women’s Elimination Chamber match back in February to earn a shot at a title. She chose to set her sights on Jade Cargill’s championship. What transpired next was a war of words between the two goddess-like figures in the pro wrestling industry.
Rhea Ripley is introduced before the WWE Women’s Championship match against Jade Cargill during WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on April 19, 2026.(Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Cargill vowed to bring the disrespect to Ripley, even turning B-Fab and Michin against Ripley in the process. The match at WrestleMania was supposed to be a one-on-one match, but Michin and B-Fab got involved in the action.
Cargill had the advantage for most of the match. And just as the referee was going to throw Michin and B-Fab out, Iyo Sky came to the rescue. She hit a springboard moonsault on B-Fab and Michin.
Jade Cargill is introduced before the WWE Women’s Championship match against Rhea Ripley during WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on April 19, 2026.(Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Ripley hit Cargill with a headbutt and a Riptide. But she couldn’t get the pin on Cargill.
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Cargill hit Ripley with a boot, but it was almost to no avail. Ripley countered Cargill’s finisher, put her in the Riptide and pinned her for the win.
It marks the first WrestleMania loss for Cargill since she joined WWE.
Rhea Ripley is introduced before the WWE Women’s Championship match against Jade Cargill during WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev., on April 19, 2026.(Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Ripley is now a two-time holder of the WWE Women’s Championship and a four-time women’s champion overall. Her last reign started on Night 2 of WrestleMania 37 when she defeated Asuka in Tampa, Florida.
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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.
Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya hasn’t had much going his way in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season. While MI are languishing at the bottom of the 10-team points table, Hardik hasn’t been able to create much impact on the field, be it with the bat or with the ball. The all-rounder has even had his captaincy skills questioned, including his inability to get the best out of Jasprit Bumrah, the finest fast bowler in the world. Ahead of MI’s clash against GT, former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) star Aakash Chopra has asked Hardik when his last match-winning knock was for MI.
Hardik, widely considered as India’s most prominent pace-bowling all-rounder, has struggled this season. He has only scored 81 runs in 4 matches this campaign for Mumbai. Chopra, in a video on his YouTube channel, has asked some tough questions to the MI skipper.
“You have corrected the batting order now. I won’t talk about Surya because he played many match-winning knocks last time, but Hardik, I don’t remember when the last match-winning knock you played was. We have seen many good cameos, but that match-winning 70 or 80 runs where you win the match alone, Hardik is capable of that,” Chopra said.
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The former India opener also feels Mumbai need some fresh ideas to bring their campaign back on track. Chopra backed the promotion of Sherfane Rutherford to help MI overcome the current middle-order crisis.
“If you get less than that repeatedly, you think this is the time when Hardik does what he can do, because you are capable of doing that. They need fresh ideas and freshness, a little fearless approach, and Sherfane Rutherford should bat slightly up the order. All of that is required because the truth is that the five-time champions, the Mumbai Indians, are at No. 10 at this point in time,” he added.
At present, MI are placed 10th in the points table with just one win in 5 matches.
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Liv Morgan has addressed Dominik Mysterio’s loss to Finn Balor at WrestleMania 42. While Morgan was victorious against Stephanie Vaquer in Night 1, his Daddy Dom failed to beat Demon Finn.
The reigning AAA Mega Champion appeared confident ahead of his Street Fight against his former Judgment Day stablemate. However, The Demon had a different aura and energy that got Dirty Dom scrambling at the start.
Thanks for the submission!
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Dominik Mysterio had several chances of getting the win over Finn Balor, but The Demon was on another level on Sunday night. He hit a devastating Shotgun Dropkick to Dominik while a chair was around his neck before putting him away with a Coup de Grace through a table.
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In a post on Instagram, Liv Morgan seemingly doesn’t care about the outcome of Dirty Dom’s match.
“Always a winner in my eyes 🫶✨ @dominik_35,” Morgan wrote.
It will be interesting to see what’s next for Dominik and Liv for Monday’s post-WrestleMania episode of Raw. Liv is expected to celebrate her championship win, but Dominik and JD McDonagh were unsuccessful in their respective WrestleMania matches.
McDonagh failed to capture the Intercontinental Championship in the Six-Pack Ladder Match on Sunday.
Why did WWE make Dominik Mysterio vs. Finn Balor match a Street Fight?
The initial match between Dominik Mysterio and Finn Balor at WrestleMania 42 was just a singles match. A week later, WWE announced that Balor will be using The Demon in the match, marking the return of his alter ego after nearly three years.
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Fast forward to Sunday, and WWE made another change to the match, making it a Street Fight. According to Fightful Select, the company decided to add a stipulation due to the number of singles matches on the card.
“Fightful Select has learned that the street fight stipulation was added to Finn Balor vs. Dominik Mysterio within the last week due to the number of singles matches on the Wrestlemania 42 card,” the report said.
There were six matches on Night 2 of WrestleMania 42, five of which were one-on-one matches. Three of the five were title matches, while the opener was Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi, so adding a stipulation to a heated rivalry like Dominik vs. Finn wasn’t too complicated to make.
Bayern Munich secured yet another Bundesliga title after beating Stuttgart 4-2 at home on Sunday.
Top scorer Harry Kane scored his 32nd goal of the season after coming on as a second-half substitute as the Bavarians won their 35th German league title — 34 of them coming in the Bundesliga era.
“To finish the league off in the way we have with the goals we scored… credit to the lads… we still have a lot to play for… but all the hard work, this makes it all worth it,” said Kane.
Bayern Munich cruise to title
The win moved the Bavarian giants an unassailable 15 points clear of second-placed Borussia Dortmund with four games to spare.
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Germany captain Joshua Kimmich, who won his 10th league title with Bayern, called the victory “very special.”
“The way we did it, we were very consistent…and we haven’t achieved that form so often. I hope 10 more titles come on top of this,” he said.
The “Meisterschale” (“champions’ shield” in English) trophy is expected to be handed out after Bayern’s final game of the season at home to Cologne on May 16.
Vincent Kompany (center) became Bayern Munich head coach after Thomas Tuchel’s exit in 2024Image: Martin Agüera/kolbert-press/picture alliance
Another dominant campaign
Bayern have only suffered one defeat in the league this season, at home to fellow Bavarians Augsburg in January, and a league-low of four ties so far.
They have also scored 109 goals so far this season — another record.
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Bayern already clinched the Super Cup in August, also against Stuttgart, and will take on Bayer Leverkusen in the German Cup semi-final on Wednesday.
In Europe, Vincent Kompany’s team has reached the Champions League semi-finals, where they meet holders Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg on April 28.
“It is April 19 and we are in every competition. We have had lots of success with every player in the squad. We go to Leverkusen knowing anything can happen, but with real belief,” Kompany told DAZN.
Kompany, whose only previous job as head coach was at Premier League side Burnley, took over in 2024.
Kurt Angle has confirmed that a major WWE Superstar is now retired. The aforementioned star was in action at WrestleMania 42.
Night Two of WrestleMania 42 kicked off with a singles match between Brock Lesnar and Oba Femi, where the latter picked up the win inside five minutes. After the loss, Lesnar left his gloves and boots in the ring before embracing Paul Heyman and bidding an emotional farewell to the fans, leaving everyone speculating that he’s done with in-ring competition.
Thanks for the submission!
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Kurt Angle, who was one of Brock’s fiercest opponents back in the day, took to X to reflect on the shocking turn of events. The Olympic Gold medalist confirmed that the Beast Incarnate is indeed retired.
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“Love you my brother. There will only be one like you. Enjoy retirement Brock.”
Brock Lesnar picked Oba Femi as his WWE WrestleMania 42 opponent
Fans had been salivating at the thought of Brock Lesnar facing Oba Femi ever since the latter made his main roster debut. WWE fulfilled their wishes as the two powerhouses squared off at WrestleMania 42 in an enthralling bout. It was reported after the match that it was The Beast Incarnate’s choice to face Oba in what looks to be his final WWE match.
“It feels amazing, because it’s one thing to tell everybody what you are, and another to show everybody exactly what you are. I took 25 years of history, 25 years of dominance from the Beast and made it null, because I am what I say I am. The Ruler, the Destroyer, the Bringer of War, Oba Femi!”
There is still no confirmation from WWE regarding Brock Lesnar’s retirement. The Beast Incarnate could still swerve the fans and return to action down the line. However, his actions at WrestleMania 42 indicate that he has, indeed, donned his wrestling boots for the last time.
A clean sweep of Sydney’s Saturday Group 1s was sealed by Hall of Fame conditioner Chris Waller when his charge Fireball saw off stablemate Campione D’Italia in the $1 million Champagne Stakes (1600m) held at Royal Randwick on Saturday.
This outcome represented the final of eight unbroken Sydney Saturdays of Group 1 fixtures in the 2026 autumn carnival, during which Waller claimed at least one top-level success weekly.
No other figure in Australian racing history has matched this consistent elite performance, and Waller appeared mildly overcome when apprised of the record by Racing And Sports.
“These are the results our team works hard for all year,” Waller said.
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“We have had some tremendous results this autumn carnival and I can’t thank my team enough.
“To be able to win at least one Group 1 race each Saturday for eight weeks of the carnival makes me very proud.”
In Sydney’s autumn Group 1 schedule for 2026, Waller amassed 11 wins. Among the highlights of his major race mastery were:
James McDonald, Waller’s go-to jockey, had steered the trainer’s previous 10 Group 1 autumn winners, yet aboard Champagne Stakes favourite Campione D’Italia he couldn’t stretch that sequence further.
Fireball ($6.50), under Tim Clark, repelled Campione D’Italia ($2.15 favourite) by half a neck, while Diameter ($26) was a long head away in third.
Clark’s ride delivered his 27th lifetime Group 1 win on Fireball, the first such for Waller.
“He got a great run today.,” Clark said. “I was thinking before the race, I don’t want to get there too soon, but just how the race unfolded, I had to present him when I did.
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“The challenge came early enough that he had the opportunity to fight back and that he did. He’s obviously so tough and he’s been running in all the big races. I’m thrilled to get a good result for Chris and James Harron and all of his connections.”
James Harron paid $460,000 for Fireball, a Snitzel product and the sire’s 28th individual Group 1 hero, at the prior Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale.
Post-Champagne Stakes, Fireball’s stud prospects command over $20 million.
Waller praised Fireball’s resilience through a drawn-out preparation, affirming the colt’s right to Group 1 glory.
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“Full credit to the horse because he’s been able to deal with it,” Waller said.
“You wouldn’t know he’s deep into a ‘prep’, each run has had so much merit and not a lot of luck, so he deserved that today.
“He’s got there by telling us that he’s coping well with his racing. Distance-wise, I’ve never really been too concerned.
“I thought in the Golden Slipper, he was beaten at the 300m, but he was still strong through the line, then last start at 1400m, he didn’t have much luck. But today he was great.”
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Runner-up Campione D’Italia battled stoutly, fresh off a ATC Sires Produce Stakes victory a couple of weeks back, as another elite Snitzel Group 1 colt.
“A fantastic result as both colts are by Snitzel, he’s an amazing stallion,” Waller said.
“Campione D’Italia’s a young ‘lad’, he’s still learning his trade and he’ll be much better next season.”
Per McDonald, a cleaner run would have seen Campione D’Italia claim the Champagne Stakes.
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“He is an outstanding colt but is still a work in progress,” McDonald said.
“He has come a long way to win the Sires which was tremendous and he went down fighting today.
“With even luck through the midstages, he probably would have won the race.”
Visit leading racing betting markets to wager on top contests including the Champagne Stakes.
Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has been linked as a potential candidate to be Manchester United’s next permanent manager.
TEAMtalk have reported that United and Real Madrid have identified Emery as an option to be their respective next manager ahead of this summer.
Emery has guided Villa to fourth place in the Premier League so far this season, as well as the semi-final of the Europa League, and is the latest name mentioned as a potential candidate to get the United job on a permanent basis.
Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua are edging closer to a fight in 2026 after years of failing to make it happen. Dave Allen, who has shared rounds with both, has made an early prediction.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Allen said drawing on his sparring experiences with the two former heavyweight champions may not be relevant in 2026.
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“I always picked [Tyson] to beat Joshua because I always held Tyson in the highest regard as the best that I’d been in with. Joshua, for me, I would rate him probably fourth, third or fourth … You always think Fury will beat him based off that. For many years that was my train of thought.
“In 2026, it’s a totally different fight now, because we don’t really know what they’ve got left. I didn’t think Tyson was amazing [against Makhmudov], I thought he was a bit off the pace, but that fight will bring him on a lot. 12 rounds would’ve done him a favour but I’d have liked to see him get Makhmudov out of there, he’s that many levels above him.
“Then you look at Joshua. The Jake Paul thing, I don’t think it has [got the rust off Joshua]. I don’t think the [Fury] fight will happen next. I think Wilder is still a hard fight for Joshua.”
As for a prediction, ‘The White Rhino’ – who faces Filip Hrgovic next month at the Eco-Power Stadium in Doncaster – still sides with Fury, with the caveat that Joshua’s superior power could end it all in an instant.
“The question is who wins, Fury or Joshua in 2026? I still make Fury the favourite. No matter how old he gets, he’s a natural with it. Anthony Joshua has probably looked after himself a lot better, but Fury’s just a natural. He’s just got it. My prediction would be Fury on points if it’s to happen next … but you’d be watching through your fingers as a Fury fan, because I think it would only take one from Joshua to end it.”
Check in every week for the unfiltered opinions of our writers and editors as they break down the hottest topics in the sport, and join the conversation by tweeting us at @golf_com. This week, we discuss LIV Golf’s chaotic week and uncertain future, Matt Fitzpatrick’s win at RBC Heritage and Rory McIlroy’s career Masters prospects.
Early last week, several news outlets reported uncertainty regarding LIV Golf’s future, indicating the Saudi PIF was on the verge of pulling its funding. LIV CEO Scott O’Neil told his staff via email on Wednesday: “Our season continues exactly as planned, uninterrupted and at full throttle. While the media landscape is often filled with speculation, our reality is defined by the work we do on the grass.” But O’Neil was more specific about the situation on Thursday, when he said in a TV interview, “The reality is you’re funded through the season, and then you work like crazy as a business to create a business and a business plan to keep us going.” (The clip was deleted but still circulated online.) On Sunday, Jon Rahm won LIV’s sixth event of the season, in Mexico City. What’s your primary takeaway from what was a wild week for the five-year-old league?
James Colgan, news and features editor (@jamescolgan26): My primary takeaway is simple: The Saudis seem to be getting out of the business of running a golf league, which is a truly momentous takeaway for the entire sport. LIV now enters a period in which it will need to work hard to find a path to survival, and as its CEO, Scott O’Neil, himself said, it seems all options are on the table.
Josh Sens (@joshsens). One takeaway is as old as capitalism: that new businesses — even the disruptive variety — are hard to grow no matter how much money you put into them. That said, for Saudi Arabia, getting out of the business of funding a professional golf tour would not have to mean getting out of golf. A new course just opened in Jura. Others are in the works. The ambition is still to grow the country’s presence in the game, but likely now as a host for golf tourism and tour events. Which, in retrospect, seems like it would have been the better path all along.
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Josh Schrock, associate news editor (@Schrock_And_Awe): My main takeaway is that if the PIF pulls out, LIV Golf, as we know it, would need to reinvent itself. O’Neil said he would pursue all avenues to get more funding, but it’s hard to see one or several sponsors willing to bankroll the league at a level that would allow for more nine-figure contracts. O’Neil himself said LIV wouldn’t be profitable for five or 10 years without significant changes.
To Schrock’s point, can LIV continue in its current form without PIF’s deep pockets? If so, what would need to change?
Colgan: Definitely not in its current form. The league has spent more than $5 billion of Saudi funding to date, and, as Josh noted, O’Neil has already said that the league is several years away from any hope of profitability. Depending upon who steps up to help LIV with funding, I’d say any change is on the table.
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Sens: Nope, the league would not be viable in its current form, and I have a tough time imagining what other form it might take. A limited series of world championship events with big overseas dollar sponsorships? But is there really a market for more big-dollar professional golf than we already have? The LIV experiment has shown that certain markets — Australia and South Africa, for example — are hungry for golf star power, but, on a global level, building and drawing eyeballs to a new league is a steep hill to climb.
Schrock: LIV could try and merge with the DP World Tour or reconstruct how it did a lot of things when the PIF spigot was on. But the contracts and purses would have to go down, and, at that point, how many players are going to want to continue when the financial payoff isn’t what it was when they initially signed on? A lot of moving parts to consider, many of which we still have limited to no information on.
If LIV doesn’t survive past 2026, would you expect the PGA Tour to offer LIV’s top players — Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, etc. — a path back to the Tour by way of a similar agreement that Brooks Koepka accepted?
Sens: For the big LIV names, absolutely. If the Tour wants to be a showcase for the world’s best talent, and it does, it will work out a deal with Rahm and DeChambeau and maybe a small handful of others. The rest, I suspect, will have to play their way back in through other smaller tours.
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Colgan: In that theoretical, I’d think the Tour can afford to offer a “Koepka Deal” to Bryson and Rahm … and probably leave the rest of the LIV contingent to serve out their suspensions on the DP World Tour.
Schrock: From a pure cost-benefit analysis, Tour CEO Brian Rolapp would probably love to add Bryson and Rahm back in the fold just as he did with Brooks. But things are not always that easy when you’re dealing with two players who already turned down an opportunity to come back, who might not be as well-liked by the current membership as Brooks, who kept his head down after he left and didn’t take any swipes or recruit other players. The feelings might not be the same toward Bryson, who was a named plaintiff in LIV’s antitrust suit against the PGA Tour and its members, or Rahm, whose departure post-framework agreement rubbed many players the wrong way. Would they immediately add value to the Tour? Yes. But for Rolapp to sell that vision, it’ll be a tricky high-wire act.
Matt Fitzpatrick won the RBC Heritage in a playoff over Scottie Scheffler, who started the day three shots off the lead but caught Fitzpatrick late. Is your Hilton Head takeaway more focused on Fitzpatrick’s second win in the last month, or Scheffler’s second straight runner-up finish?
Colgan: How quickly we forget that Scottie Scheffler remains a U.S. Open victory away from the career grand slam? Kudos to Fitz for another win, and for continuing to reestablish himself as one of the premier players in the sport … but my eyes are already peeking ahead to Shinnecock.
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Sens: Like Woods before him, Scheffler has twisted our expectations so wildly out of proportion that a second-place finish somehow gets cast as a failure. Fitzpatrick is on a great run of golf. Scheffler is operating in a different dimension. Whatever “struggles” he went through earlier seem to be behind him. So yeah, as James said, eyes on Shinnecock. But also on Aronimink before that. And frankly, anywhere Scheffler tees it up.
Schrock: The Scheffler “struggles” were blown out of proportion as we tend to do when an elite athlete dips below the level at which we’ve become accustomed to seeing them operate. Scheffler almost erased a 12-shot weekend deficit at the Masters with an ice-cold putter. He’s the best in the world, and I expect him to contend every time he tees it up. To me, this was more about Fitzpatrick. A year ago, he was in a bad spot. His game was “rubbish,” and he was ranked 79th in the world. A year later, he has three worldwide wins and has beaten both Rory and Scottie in separate playoffs. His rise back is impressive, and I think he’s a much better player now than what we thought his ceiling was when he won the 2022 U.S. Open. Expect him to threaten at Aronimink and the Open.
Speaking ahead of the Senior PGA Championship, major champ Padraig Harrington made one bold claim regarding how many more Masters Rory McIlroy could win given his success at Augusta, comfortability there and the fact that the course allows some players to stay competitive into their 50s. “Rory could win 10 [Masters] at this stage, or five of them, anyway.” While 10 seems lofty, what say you? How many Masters titles will Rory end his career with?
Colgan: I think we do this a lot with star players: we see them win a little, and we immediately assume they can win a lot. It’s so, so hard to win a Masters. I believe Rory could get to three, like fellow late-Augusta-bloomer Phil Mickelson, but I’ll probably hold off before adding any more to the list.
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Sens: When Tiger won the Masters by a staggering 12 shots, I remember the talk being that he would never lose that tournament again. He got to five. Impressive. But yeah, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Things happen. Life happens. Four green jackets for Rory doesn’t seem entirely outlandish. Maybe five if all the stars align? But 10 is preposterous. Ain’t gonna happen.
Schrock: We quickly forget that Rory went 10 years without winning a major of any kind. Golf is a fickle, weird game. I think he can win a third jacket and maybe, maybe you can talk me into a fourth at the end of his career. But the real question is how many majors does Rory win? I feel like I want to say nine, but again, we like to be prisoners of the moment with these things.
;)
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