Jordan Spieth Still One to Watch at Masters In Spite of Tepid Season
This time last year Jordan Spieth was a betting favorite to win his second Masters.
Now? He’s still a player to watch, but he’s not on the hot streak he was entering last year’s event.
Spieth played in the final round of Sunday’s Valero Texas Open in San Antonio, finishing in a tie for 35th after shooting 5-under in a tournament he won last year. It wasn’t quite the momentum he was looking for going into one of his favorite tournaments, the one where he had his breakthrough on the major championship stage in 2015.
In fact, Spieth, at least when it comes to his overall season, has taken a step back from last year. He’s No. 41 in the FedEx PGA Tour standings and has won $1.3 million this season. He has just one Top 10 finish this season, a second-place at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, another layout where Spieth feels comfortable and typically plays his best golf.
After that? His best finish was a tie for 18th at the CJ Cup Summit.
Last year Spieth went into the Masters with a significant head of steam. After a slow start, Spieth finished in a tie for fourth in the Waste Management Phoenix Open and followed that with a tie for third at Pebble Beach.
From there, Spieth finished in a tie for 15th at the Genesis Invitational, followed by a tie for fourth at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. He took a step back at the Players Championship, where he finished in a tie for 48th, but came back at the World Golf Championships Match Play and finished in a tie for ninth. Then, his win at the Texas Open positioned Spieth to claim his second green jacket.
He was competitive until the final day at Augusta but ended up in a tie for third place with a 7-under 281.
Spieth didn’t win again the rest of the season, but he finished in the Top 10 at the Byron Nelson, in second place at the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth and nearly won the Open Championship.
This season? Spieth has played in eight events, but his second-place finish at Pebble Beach is his only Top 10 finish so far.
Winning at Augusta wouldn’t be a surprise for Spieth, where he’s finished in the top three five different times.
But he’s not cruising into the Masters like he was last April.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
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