Head Coach Kevin O'Connell got in one final round of golf before kicking off Vikings Training Camp next week.

And it was a pretty special round, to boot.

O'Connell joined four-time major winner and top-ranked golf pro Scottie Scheffler Wednesday morning at the 3M Open Pro-Am at TPC of the Twin Cities in Blaine. The duo was joined by O'Connell's oldest son, 11-year-old Kaden, and teed off at 6:40 a.m.

"How often do you get to play golf with the No. 1 player in the world?" O'Connell asked with a smile.

The fifth-year head coach admired Scheffler's calm demeanor and ability to make tough shots, including sinking a 20-foot birdie putt on the first hole, look effortless.

"It's just him and his ball and his club out here," O'Connell told media members. "The way he's able to work his way around the course is unbelievable."

Scheffler's approach is what's helped him rank No. 1 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He enjoyed casual conversation with O'Connell less than a week removed from competing in The 2026 Open Championship in Southport, England.

But when hitting the tee boxes, fairways and greens, it was all business.

"As soon as he gets to that ball, he locks in," O'Connell told media. "There's like a switch that gets flipped, and the ball is 5 feet from the hole."

O'Connell similarly is fresh off a tournament, albeit one with lower stakes. He competed July 10-12 at the American Century Championship at Edgewood Tahoe Resort, as did recently retired Adam Thielen, who also played in the 3M Pro-Am.

A golf gallery — especially one before 7 a.m. — doesn't create quite the same atmosphere as a U.S. Bank Stadium crowd on a Vikings game day … but O'Connell still garnered cheers from fans and stopped to snap a few photos.

Sheffler is an avid NFL fan but roots for the Cowboys — "We won't hold it against him," O'Connell quipped — but noted during the post-round press conference, "I wasn't going to just start hammering him with questions about football."

"He's about to start the season, so he's going to be thinking about football for quite some period of time," Sheffler said. "We did a little bit [of football chat]. He seemed like a really nice guy. You can see why he's such a good choice. He seems very smart. I got to ask him a few questions, and he told me some stuff. It was definitely very fun for me to be able to spend some time with him.

"Like I said, I love the NFL and am fascinated by what they're able to do," he continued. "Especially the head coach. I think in football, it's easily the most important position on the team. I mean, he's gotta handle a lot of different personalities and the Xs and Os. He was definitely a very impressive guy to be able to talk to and spend some time with."

The sentiments were certainly mutual.

"What an unbelievable event," O'Connell told Vikings.com. "It's an unbelievable experience to get to watch the best in the world do what they do at such a high level. The best part was just walking the fairways, learning about him, his family, and getting to bring my son Kaden out, as well."

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