Xander Schauffele jokes he was 'trending towards an alcoholic,' but he's happy to be back in Scotland

Winning the Claret Jug and being the “Champion Golfer of the Year” has been an intoxicating feeling of sorts for 2024 British Open winner Xander Schauffele.

“I drank a little bit more than I normally do, that was probably the biggest change that I had in my life was trending towards an alcoholic,” he said with a laugh on Tuesday during a press conference ahead of the Genesis Scottish Open, which begins Thursday at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick, Scotland. “It's been awesome.”

But that high also marks Schauffele’s last victory and following an early-season rib injury, which sidelined him for six weeks, he said he’s been humbled and is battling just to make the playoffs. The third-ranked player in the world has recorded just one top-10 finish, a T-8 at the Masters in April, in 11 starts and is languishing in 57^th place in the season-long FedEx Cup. Schauffele noted the positioning of his mug in the media center at this week's Scottish Open and said it was an apt description of his recent form.

“It was nice to see my photo out by the toilet. That was heartwarming. Summed up how I feel about what's going on right now,” he said, laughing again. “I actually chuckled when I saw that one.”

Potty humor aside, Schauffele had never dealt with a significant injury before and said he didn’t know what to expect coming back. Last year was point and shoot. This year? Not so much, but he said he couldn’t single out one part of his game that has been holding him back.

“Probably downplayed it in my own mind. Yeah, you'll be fine, you've been playing great golf; you just came off the best year of your career. And I've backed it up currently with the worst year of my career,” he said. “It's been a hot one.”

Golf is fickle and Schauffele has endured a wide range of emotions as he’s tried to recapture some of the magic from last summer’s two-major haul. With the final major on tap next week at Royal Portrush, Schauffele knows the clock is ticking to turn his frown upside down.

“Try and feel something again other than upset. I think I've just been angry-ish. That's like been the biggest emotion of this is frustrating, versus why we love playing to be in contention and kind of see what you can do,” he said.

His mental toughness remains sharp, allowing him to extend his made cut streak to a Tour-best 67 in a row. He’s trying to keep his winning attitude intact even as he searches for his ‘A game.’ 

“I'd say the belief is good. I don't think I've given myself a lot of reasons to believe that I'm playing OK. It's been a pretty bad year to be completely honest,” he said. “Any expectation I had of whatever I thought I was capable of doing, you know, from a feel standpoint last year, has been sort of reset and I am in full chase mode, like a kid.”

He added: “If I can just get out of my own way, that would be the thing that would make me happiest right now more than even winning a tournament.”

He’s tasted victory at the Scottish Open before, claiming the title in 2022. It might be the perfect place to — pardon the pun — flush away his disappointments from an uncharacteristically pedestrian season.

“You know, if we can move my photo away from the toilet it would be awesome,” he said. “I'm just kidding. You can leave it there for the next 10 years. If I can play 72 holes without fiddling with my golf swing this week, that would be a massive win, and wherever I finish, I finish. That would be a good place for me to get to before I play next week.”

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Xander Schauffele jokes he was 'trending towards an alcoholic