Scottie Scheffler insists he will be "fighting like heck" to get the Claret Jug back when he competes at The Open Championship next week.

Scheffler won at Royal Portrush last year, claiming a four-shot win over Harris English to earn his fourth major title.

That was the world number one's second major victory of 2025, but this year he has struggled to top the charts, coming closest at the Masters, where he finished second behind Rory McIlroy.

Scheffler will have to hand back the Claret Jug next Tuesday, and his thoughts are already on getting it back to become the first back-to-back winner since Padraig Harrington.

"I don't really sit around too much and think about the past, to be honest with you," Scheffler said ahead of the Scottish Open.

"I feel like I'm in the middle of my career, and probably the end of my career is more a time to reflect.

"Right now, I'm just focused on what I need to do. Maybe I should sit and enjoy things more, but that's just not my nature – my wife is better at that than me.

"One thing I will say is that I was surprised how much I enjoyed the Claret Jug. I always understood the history and the significance; you see the names on there and how far it goes back. It's the perfect-size trophy – not too big, not too small – and you get to drink out of it. That's an added bonus.

"It was something that is very special to me. It will be very tough to hand it back on Tuesday next week, but I'll be fighting like heck to get it back on Sunday."

In a league of their own

Since May 2024, only three players have won five or more times on the PGA TOUR. pic.twitter.com/1aBz0PYgoQ

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 6, 2026

Scheffler missed his first chance at completing his career Grand Slam at last month’s U.S. Open, finishing in joint-fourth.

He made a winning start to his PGA Tour season, triumphing at The American Express, but he has not topped a leaderboard at any of his events since.

Since January, the 30-year-old has posted four runner-up finishes, including last time out at the Travelers Championship, as well as three further top fours, but he is confident another victory is not far away.

"I feel like I get that question every single week – I haven't had a good answer yet," Scheffler admitted. "I think I've been really close to winning some tournaments, and that can be frustrating.

"At the same time, I've had some good results – a fourth and a second are not bad results by any means. Margins in golf are really small, and I just keep trying to do my best.

"I feel like no matter how the season goes, there's always shots I wish I could have back. There's always tournaments I feel like I should have won, and I didn't. That's just part of the game.

"You've got to ride with it, the highs and lows. Like I said last year at The Open: It's not a satisfying venture playing professional golf, so try to take the good with the bad."