Who could forget the shot on the 18th green last year at The Colonial.
With the tournament in hand, Jordan Spieth calmly knocked down a 34-foot birdie putt to seal the deal. The Dallas native defeated Harris English by three strokes to win the Dean & DeLuca Invitational in his home state.
This time around, Spieth goes into this year’s tournament the defending champ but also looking to regain his form. He missed the cut at the final Byron Nelson in Irving last week after a disastrous back nine during the second round.
Going into No. 16 at 1-under, Spieth would quadruple-bogey the hole after hitting two tee shots out of bounds. Needing one birdie to possible avoid an early exit, Spieth’s 17-foot attempt on No. 17 curled by the cup. He would then miss a 14-footer on No. 18.
“Just trying to do too much,” said Spieth. “Just trying to move up the leaderboard instead of just letting it come to me on this course.”
It was the second straight tournament that the 23-year old missed the cut, which included The Players Championship the previous week. The last time he missed consecutive cuts was in 2015, the same year he won both The Masters and the U.S. Open.
Spieth will have a second shot to get back into the groove in the metroplex this week and recent history is on his side. He went into this tournament last year after struggling at the Byron Nelson and was able to rebound. The good news is precise iron play and a strong short game are needed with the twisting course along the Trinity River, which plays into Spieth’s strengths.
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“It’s so cool,” said Spieth. “I love this place. I love this club. This golf course is one of my favorite ones we play all year. The tournament is always top notch. Players rave about it. You never hear complaints about this tournament and this golf course. You always hear how people can’t wait to go back to Colonial.”
Having your name on the Wall of Champions at the course is also a good confidence boost. Spieth looks to become Colonial's first back-to-back winner since Ben Hogan in 1952-53.
The stage is set for more memories to be made in Fort Worth.
