It would seem normal to expect a World No.1 golfer to show his brilliance in all tournaments, regardless of the format. However, that’s not something we can say about Scottie Scheffler. He has won 7 PGA Tours in 2024 and 6 in 2025 to rise to the glory of being the World No.1. But in the 2025 Ryder Cup, his performance did not have the glow that fans look up to usually.

Sharing his emotions through an Instagram post, the four-time major champion wrote, “Representing Team USA at the @rydercupusa was a great honor. There’s nothing like the pride of competing alongside such incredible teammates. Thank you for everyone that came out to cheer us on this past week – it’s something I’ll never forget. A hard-fought week and a major congratulations to Team Europe.”

Scottie reflects on the pride of representing his country in the biennial event. It is this pride and honor that fuels athletes in such team-base.d contests. But with that pride and honor comes a weight on your shoulders that can be almost unbearable to life at times. Scheffler felt that, as he burst into tears after achieving his only win at Bethpage.

Scottie Scheffler’s only victory at Bethpage Black came against Rory McIlroy on the Sunday Singles. Making him set an “unwanted” record by being the only American to be 0-4 through four sessions in a Ryder Cup under the current format since 1979.

He was even seen bursting into tears after his win.

Before 1979, there were six sessions in a Ryder Cup. In 1967, Peter Alliss lost his first five matches and then won a singles match to hold a record of 1-5-0. Europe’s Peter Townsend also had a 0-4 start record in 1971. However, they didn’t have the World No.1 tag on them.

In fact, Scottie became the first World No.1 to lose the first three matches at a Ryder Cup before becoming the third golfer to lose the first four. The streak of unwanted records didn’t end here. He also earned the title of remaining winless in his last 6 Ryder Cup matches. Besides that, he joined the list of American players who lost all their pair matches in a home Ryder Cup. The other players on the list are Steve Stricker (2012), Raymond Floyd (1983), and Fuzzy Zoeller (1979).

However, fans of the Drama Slayer are not faltering with this setback. As Scottie’s message came out, many fans commended his fair play. One fan wrote, “Beautiful display of sportsmanship, Scottie. The way you always lead with humility is to be admired. Proud of you guys.”

While it may seem unlikely for the World No.1 to have such poor numbers under his belt, there are other phenomonal goflers who also succumbed to that pressure.

Top-ranked players who performed just like Scheffler in the Ryder Cup

The World No.1 started the week at Bethpage Black with a lot of promise, but he might only remember it for all the wrong reasons. The 19-time PGA Tour winner went on to say that “one of the lowest moments of my career” occurred in just two days. However, he is not the only one who felt this way.

Scheffler’s poor numbers brought some unwanted comparison with the 15-time major winner Tiger Woods, because he has had it worse. One can even label Woods as the chief culprit of this phenomenon. The legendary golfer has lost seven of his eight Ryder Cups. And on top of that, he only managed 13 victories over these events, while he lost 21 times and tied another 3. That’s a 39.19% point percentage, far below what one might expect for someone of his stature.

It’s not just the American star players as well; European golfers who were brilliant on the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour have faced similar issues. According to the PGA Tour, top-ranked players on either side had won only 38% of their Ryder Cup matches since 1999.

Scheffler’s struggles at the Ryder Cup have highlighted his vulnerability. However, he’s not the only one to blame for it. He has lost in pair matches, and in such games, the partners play a crucial role. For instance, while Scheffler was a little below average for Friday foursomes based on stats, his partner, Russell Henley, was the fifth-worst player for the session, according to Today’s Golfer. Similarly, Scottie Scheffler managed two birdies for Friday four-balls, but his partner, JJ Spaun, lagged behind.

How Scheffler bounces back after this for the upcoming tournaments will be a must-watch for fans. Since he defeated Rory in singles, he is expected to continue playing like the World No. 1 in PGA Tour events.