Jordan Spieth struggles at World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational
AKRON, Ohio – Jordan Spieth’s starting to get that Groundhog Day feeling.
He’s certainly hoping it doesn’t last another six weeks.
For the second consecutive round in the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club, the world No. 2 struggled to post a decent number and remain in contention.
For two days – make that three if you extend this min-stretch of uneasy play back to his last round of the U.S. Open – Spieth hasn’t felt comfortable standing over the ball and he certainly hasn’t felt great looking at his ball when it’s airborne. In two rounds, the two-time major champion and two-time winner this season has hit only 12 fairways and 15 greens in regulation, which should equate to 75-75.
Only when he’s holding his Scotty Cameron 009 putter has he felt confident in what the ball is going to do, and seeing as he’s one of the best in the world on the greens, he’s instead shot 68-71 and left a lot of people shaking their heads in wonderment watching it all unfold before them.
On Thursday, when he shot 2-under-par 68 and called it one of the “happiest 2-unders” he’s ever shot, he needed just 21 putts and made 115 feet of putts. In Friday’s round of 71, when he was hitting it sideways from tee to green once again and fighting his emotions as stiff winds swirled about him, he needed just 27 putts and made 84 feet of putts.
His post-round comments Friday had the same ring as his words on Thursday when he said he won the “mental battle.” Spieth said he’s in a bit of a “lull” right now with his swing, where he’s just trying to find something to free himself up to swing through the ball, especially with his wedges, the scoring clubs. He’s hit plenty of balls and the swing looks like the one he had when he won the year-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions in an 8-shot romp but something remains off.
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He’s close, he said, and he’s just searching for something to click.
Firestone’s South Course, however, with its tree-lined fairways, nasty rough and small greens, isn’t exactly the ideal spot to find your happy place. But despite his troubles, Spieth has a bounce in his step as he’s only 3 shots out of the lead of world No. 1 Jason Day with 36 to play.
“Just didn't hit that many fairways but held it together, again, to remain in a good position for the weekend,” Spieth said after his second round. “Still need to go work on (my swing). But again, holding a round together, hopefully it clicks here soon, and we can shoot a few under on this golf course. I'm certainly capable of it. I feel pretty good about being in the thick of things.
“ … Recognizing that on this golf course, we're not going to necessarily hit our (best numbers) for the year. Any time you feel a little bit uncomfortable over the ball, it's obviously not ideal, but we're working towards it.”
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On top of all of this he’s dealing with, Spieth is also working on quickening his pace of play. That includes cutting down on the chatter with his caddie Michael Greller. So in his mind it’s play quicker. Now he has to play better.
“It's a bit more challenging,” Spieth said. “The quicker part actually helps me because then I just get up there and fire away. Kind of a gun-slinging mentality, just to go up and hit the way I always have played.
“ … I'd get plenty of comments on it from other people, hit the ball, you're taking forever, and it's too boring. You'd hear it from even the crowd sometimes. But Cameron (McCormick, his coach) also mentioned, hey, I think you're going to play better if you just step up and swing.
“So I'm trying to do a bit of that.”
And so, Spieth is in an unusual position – on the course and on the scoreboard.
“It's tough,” dealing with it right now, he said. “Again, like I said before, I certainly want to improve the way I am feeling over the ball, but at the same time, recognizing where we're at and how tough it is.”
