World number one Scottie Scheffler has gone six months without a tournament victory, a striking drought for a player who won 14 times over the previous two seasons and both the US PGA Championship and The Open in 2025. His barren run continued at the weekend when he finished runner-up at the 3M Open in Minnesota, beaten by PGA Tour rookie Jackson Koivun, prompting fresh debate over whether golf's dominant figure has passed his peak or whether his renowned consistency simply masks a temporary lull.

BBC Sport examines several possible explanations. Scheffler, 30, has traditionally been a formidable front-runner, converting 75% of his 20 tour wins from a final-round lead, yet this season he has never even shared the lead after 54 holes, leaving him chasing every Sunday and losing two play-offs, to Matt Fitzpatrick and Viktor Hovland. His putting, usually a strength, also let him down at The Open in Birkdale, where he missed several short birdie putts as Ryan Fox claimed the title, while slow starts, including nine rounds of 70 or worse this year, have repeatedly forced him into catch-up mode. Scheffler himself has downplayed the importance of winning and making history, saying family life matters more to him than his golfing legacy, and he recently missed a cut for the first time in 78 events, ending the tour's longest active streak.