Jordan Spieth is officially back in the winner’s circle, as he prevented Charley Hoffman from winning the Valero Texas Open at the TPC San Antonio on Sunday. Here’s everything you need to know:
Ranking: Jordan Spieth (-18), Charley Hoffman (-16), Matt Wallace (-15), Lucas Glover (-12), Anirban Lahiri (-10)
What does it mean: Nearly four years and 83 starts since his last PGA Tour victory – or any other victory – Spieth is the champion again. He looked in a vintage form, closing with a confident and confident 6 and under 66 and turned his third best Tour advantage into 54 holes of the season in his first Championship win. Open since 2017. With four top-10s and now a win in his last seven starts, Spieth enters this week’s Masters tournament with a nice boost and will look to win his second green jacket as he becomes the fifth player – and the first from Phil Mickelson in 2006 – who will win at Augusta National, after also winning the previous week’s event in the Tour.
Valero Texas Open: complete field scores Full coverage
How did it happen: Spieth tied the game on Sunday with Wallace 12 under and two shots up on Hoffman. At first, Spieth looked a little nervous, hitting a few whimsical tee balls in the first few holes and bird par-5 seconds, despite not hitting a fairway shot. However, those nerves were short-lived. Spieth never lost control and made things go almost by making an ace at 174-yard, par-3 third. He made the two legs, one of the four birds in front of him, take over his first solo ride of the day and never look back.
“Actually, I felt very light,” he said afterwards. “I felt like I just wanted to go out and smile, try and have fun. It was a challenge for me these Sundays, when I was in contention.”
Spieth details the “long road” to the first victory of 2017
After years of struggling with his cradle, Spieth hit the clutch tightly, looking particularly sharp with feathers, while shaking challenge after challenge by Hoffman, the all-time winner of the tournament fighting for a ticket to Augusta National. When Hoffman sank a 20-foot par-3 16 to reach a shot from Spieth for the third time in the final round, Spieth climbed the next tee and drove a car up to 75 feet 366-yard, par-4 17 to set up another bird and return to two at a distance from Hoffman. And because Spieth always finds a way to make it interesting, he hung an 8 iron – and barely over a video dashboard – while sitting at the par-5 finishing hole, but managed to escape with it. equal and win by two.
Round of the day: Patton Kizzire handled seven birds to shoot 65 and get to the fourth final of the T-11 or better this season.
Picture of the day: Spieth hit some nice shots on the back nine to establish important birds, but the 3rd place tee ball was the spark of his closing round.
The biggest disappointment: Wallace. Spieth and Hoffman turned the final into a show of two, while the Englishman, who closed in 69 due to the three straight birds he closed, was essentially just a spectator in the final of three.
Quote of the Day: “Man, it’s been a long road. Many times I wasn’t sure if I was here talking to you [Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis] about that right now. I never really doubted in myself that I could go back to where I wanted to go, but when you lose confidence you often find it hard to see the positive in the future. … This is a monumental gain for me. It’s one I’ve been thinking about for a long time. ” – Spieth