Scottie Scheffler has won four majors, an Olympic gold medal, and three legs of the career Grand Slam. Yet somehow, his team-event record tells a very different story.

Golf statistician Rick Gehman shared the numbers on X: among all players who have competed in at least 23 combined Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup matches, Scheffler’s points percentage of 39.1% ranks fourth-worst of all time, trailing only Robert Allenby (33.9%), Jason Day (34.8%) and Sam Torrance (35.7%). His overall mark stands at 7 wins, 12 losses and 4 halves across 23 matches, worse, by percentage, than known team-event strugglers like Bubba Watson, Pádraig Harrington, Justin Leonard, and Rickie Fowler.

Honestly, this is not a fresh problem for Scheffler. Before this week’s Presidents Cup at Medinah, he was already 3-5-1 in his two previous Presidents Cups and 3-6-3 across three Ryder Cups. Put it all together, and he was sitting at just 6-11-4.

That is a pretty strange record for a golfer who is usually so dominant. Last year’s Ryder Cup at Bethpage made things even worse. Scheffler lost all four of his team matches and only avoided a completely winless week by beating Rory McIlroy in the Sunday singles match. That made him the first player since 1967 to lose all four team matches in one Ryder Cup.

And then there is Sam Burns. Burns is Scheffler’s close friend and one of his most common partners in these events. But together, they just could not catch a break. They went 0-3-1 across the 2022 Presidents Cup and the 2023 Ryder Cup.

The low point came in Rome. Scheffler and Burns were crushed 9&7 by Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Åberg in foursomes, one of the biggest losses in Ryder Cup history. Scheffler was reportedly in tears afterward. One of the best golfers in the world went eight straight Cup matches without a win, and three of those matches were halves, but still, eight straight without a victory.

Then, finally, something changed. At the 2024 Presidents Cup, Scheffler teamed up with Russell Henley and finally got a win in the opening match. He finished that week 3-2, which is still his best team-event showing so far. So yes, the numbers seem bad. But what makes the story so fascinating is just how different Scheffler looks in team events compared with almost everywhere else.

The funny thing is, Scheffler knows the numbers are not good. He even talked about it this week. Scheffler admitted that his team-event record “hasn’t matched up” with what he feels it should be. He also wondered if he’s been trying too hard.

Maybe that is the entire problem. Scheffler said he may need to “try less.” That sounds strange when you are talking about one of the best golfers in the world, but team events are just different. In normal tournaments, he has 72 holes to let his game take over. In the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup, everything can change in just one hole, and you also have a partner beside you.

U.S. captain Brandt Snedeker isn’t worried about Scheffler’s record, though. His message is simple: the U.S. team needs all 12 players to do their part. Scheffler doesn’t have to carry the team by himself.

Russell Henley made an even better point. He basically said that if you put Scheffler on a hard course for 72 holes, you would expect him to beat almost everyone. But team events are different. You only play 18 holes, and sometimes you have a partner. One bad hole can change the whole match.

There is also a pretty interesting comparison: Tiger Woods. He was one of the best golfers ever, but even Woods had a losing Ryder Cup record. He finished his career at 13-21-3. In partner matches, he was 9-19-1. So maybe there is something bigger going on here. One former U.S. team analytics staffer has suggested that players like Scheffler and Woods may face the other team’s best possible pairing almost every time they play.

This week at Medinah has already added another twist. Scheffler and Burns finally won together, beating Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im 1 up in Thursday’s foursomes match. That was a big moment for a partnership that had struggled so much. But Friday brought another loss, and it affected Scheffler’s overall Cup record.

That number could still change before the Presidents Cup ends, and Scheffler isn’t focusing on the numbers as much as everyone else is. He has said he doesn’t need to go 5-0 for the week to be successful. For him, the goal is to prepare well, play hard, and give his best effort. Still, watching the best player in the world struggle this much in team golf is one of the strangest stories in the sport right now.