The Daily Telegraph - Sport

Spieth sticks with his lucky gum to hit an effortless 65

- By Daniel Zeqiri at Royal Birkdale

With the help of a lucky piece of chewing gum, Jordan Spieth breezed to an effortless five-under 65 to place himself firmly in contention at the Open yesterday.

Prophets of doom predicted a brutal morning at Royal Birkdale but Spieth made light of their pessimism with a bogey-free, though not flawless, opening round.

Perhaps thrown out of kilter by pre-round nerves, Spieth ate breakfast after brushing his teeth so chomped on a single piece of mint gum for his entire round, reluctant to dispose of it in case it halted his fine play.

The American said: “I brushed my teeth and then I ate breakfast. And then I got out here and Cameron [Mccormick, coach] offered me a piece of gum, I was one-under through two, and I thought I better keep it in and it’s still in now. It’s probably about time for a new piece. Payne Stewart used to do it and it served him well.”

The two-time major champion is easy to read, and from the off there was an authority to his stride, the head was up with shoulders back and there was less post-shot chuntering to both himself and his caddie. So much is made of Spieth’s velvet touch around the greens and unerring precision on them, but it was his iron play that was the foundation of his round.

Finding just five of 15 fairways, Spieth was still able to fire at flags from Birkdale’s wispy rough, rating his performanc­e as among his best half-dozen in major golf.

Spieth said: “It could be a lot more significan­t in three days’ time than I would consider it right now. I’d call it probably a top-five major round that I’ve played, maybe fifth or sixth, something like that. There are scores that I’ve shot that were closer to par that were better given what I needed to do.”

The 2015 Masters champion had spoken on Wednesday about wanting to see an improvemen­t with the putter, and when his long-range effort at the first shaved the hole, it was clear he had the speed of Birkdale’s greens.

A birdie followed at the second after one of several well-judged approaches from the rough, before a pair of threes at the eighth and ninth added further momentum.

The back nine affords a few more opportunit­ies, but after picking up another shot at the par-three 14th he produced a superb save to keep his card unblemishe­d.

Stuck in the back of a greenside pot-bunker at the 16th with an awkward stance, Spieth splashed out safely to the right of the pin and drained the par putt.

Spieth said: “I was on the downslope of one of those where I knew I couldn’t catch any spin, with a shot that you had to get up quickly, and then if it got running at all, it could – if I were to hit it at the hole and it goes more than four feet, five feet past the hole – go off the green the other side and be in the downslope of the next bunker.”

Spieth took full advantage of the downwind par-five 17th, finding the green in two and two-putting for his final, and simplest, birdie.

With persistent rain expected this afternoon, Spieth will have to use all his powers of perseveran­ce.

“I’m kind of prepared for the worst,” said Spieth. “You control the ball off the tee, keep your hands dry, and you grind from inside.”

Intriguing­ly, the Texan said changes to his diet may have played a part in his recent improvemen­t.

“I’ve just been more focused on what I’m putting in my body,” said Spieth. “I’ll still go have a burger and a beer, but I think, as a whole, when I’m home, I’m just trying to learn a little bit more about what’s best for me to be at my best.”

 ??  ?? Chewing it over: Jordan Spieth quickly adapted
Chewing it over: Jordan Spieth quickly adapted

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