Spieth bucking history with 1 Slam title to go

SOUTHPORT, England — Three down, one to go for Jordan Spieth. Only it’s not always that simple.

Spieth has to wait only three weeks until he gets his first crack at the career Grand Slam at the PGA Championship. He won the Masters and U.S. Open in 2015 and added the British Open to his major titles with his furious finish Sunday at Royal Birkdale.

Of the five players who have won the career Grand Slam, no one has ever completed it at the PGA Championship.

Gene Sarazen got the final leg at the 1935 Masters before anyone knew what the professional Grand Slam was. Ben Hogan might be the most impressive of the quintet — he won the only British Open he played. Gary Player completed the slam in the 1965 U.S. Open, and Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods got it at the British Open.

“It’s a life goal of mine,” Spieth said.

His hope is that it doesn’t take a lifetime, and he only has to consider Arnold Palmer and Tom Watson.

Palmer achieved the third leg when he won the British Open in 1961. He played the PGA Championship 34 more times without winning. He was a runner-up three times, trailing by one shot going into the final round in 1964 (won by Bobby Nichols) and two shots going into the final round in 1968 (won by Julius Boros).

Watson got the third leg in the 1982 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach. He played 24 more times in the PGA Championship, two in a more ceremonial position as the Ryder Cup captain, and had his best chance in 1993 at Inverness. He started the final round one shot behind Greg Norman but closed with a 72 and finished four shots behind.

Watson led from the start at Oakmont in 1978 until closing with a 73 and losing in a playoff to John Mahaffey.

Spieth turns 24 on Thursday. He already has a runner-up finish in the PGA Championship, two years ago at Whistling Straits.

Rookie’s surge

Xander Schauffele’s fortunes surely have changed in the last month.

The PGA Tour rookie from San Diego had missed six cuts in 11 events this year and had not cracked the top 20. And then he earned the final qualifying spot for the U.S. Open in a playoff, and golf has never been more fun.

He tied for fifth in the U.S. Open, and that was just the start of his remarkable run. Mostly because of his victory in the Greenbrier Classic, he has gone over $2.3 million for the season and is No. 27 in the FedEx Cup standings. He is coming off a tie for 20th in the British Open after closing with a 65 and gets a week off before going to the Bridgestone Invitational for his first World Golf Championship.

Consistent contender

Amy Yang is the only player to finish in the top 10 at all three LPGA majors this year. She tied for eighth in the ANA Inspiration and the U.S. Women’s Open, and she tied for fourth in the KPGA Women’s PGA Championship.