San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
Spieth’s eagle carries him to 2shot lead
PEBBLE BEACH — Jordan Spieth, after more than three years in hibernation, once again counts as golf ’s greatest thrill ride — a captivating show reminiscent of Arnold Palmer in the 1960s or Phil Mickelson in the early 2000s.
Spieth squirms and sighs after wayward shots, his mood perpetually evident in his facial expression and body language. Then he animatedly exults when crafting a theatrical, didthatjusthappen moment to right the ship.
“Jordan is great for our tour, because he’s fun to watch,” tour pro Maverick McNealy said. “He has this uncanny knack to do stuff that’s really cool on the course.”
Saturday’s third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach ProAm offered a vivid illustration of Spieth at his entertaining best. He shot 1underpar 71 amid swirling winds along the Monterey Peninsula coastline to reach 13under for the tournament.
That gave Spieth a two
stroke lead entering Sunday’s final round. Daniel Berger and Patrick Cantlay headlined the group at 11under, with Jason Day, Paul Casey and McNealy among those another shot back at 10under.
But cold, plain numbers barely begin to convey Spieth’s latest adventure on the links. He sputtered from the start, visibly uncomfortable. Then he steadied himself a bit before staggering to three bogeys early in the back nine, including one tee shot that bounced into a volunteer’s plastic bag.
Spieth seemed in danger of skidding out of sight, two strokes behind Berger as Spieth stood in the fairway on No. 16. That’s when Spieth, in the grand tradition of Palmer and Mickelson, suddenly and theatrically flipped the script.
He plopped his 8iron shot from 158 yards right of the hole, watched the ball spin sideways, catch the slope … and disappear for eagle. It was Spieth’s second holeout from the fairway this week; he dunked a similar shot Thursday on No. 10 at Pebble Beach.
This time, Spieth broke into a wide smile, raised his arms in triumph and highfived caddie Michael Greller. Berger said, “Good shot,” prompting Spieth to reply to his friend and competitor, “You don’t really mean it, but thanks.”
The sight was all the more stunning given how poorly Spieth had played on the back nine to that point (3over for six holes). And it was all the more striking because there were no spectators to respond with booming applause, as they typically would in nonpandemic times.
“It’s weird because it’s so different from when there’s crowds,” Spieth said. “It’s obviously cool, but it’s just so quiet. … Instead of you and your caddie and the crowd, it’s just you and your caddie and your playing partners.”
Berger saw his twostroke lead vanish in an instant. Soon thereafter, he hit his tee shot out of bounds on No. 18, made double bogey and found himself trailing Spieth by two shots heading to Sunday.
“That’s what makes him special right there,” Berger said of Spieth’s holeout. “He’s a great player and I think there are many more wins in his career going forward.”
Spieth once cranked out wins with goldenboy frequency, as Berger knows all too well. They’re both 27 and occasionally crossed paths in national junior tournaments as teenagers.
They also memorably crossed paths as pros in June 2017, in a playoff at the PGA Tour event outside Hartford, Conn. Spieth dramatically holed a bunker shot to win, prompting Berger to say afterward, “It’s just Jordan doing Jordan things.”
Spieth won the British Open four weeks later, the third major championship of his career (four days before turning 24). He lorded over the golf world, threatening to dominate with Tigerlike regularity.
Then Spieth, previously the planet’s best putter, lost his touch on the greens. His ballstriking became shaky, his confidence fell and he stopped winning.
Now, after a tie for fourth last week at the Phoenix Open, he finds himself again in position to chase his first victory since the British in July 2017. Spieth has made 77 consecutive PGA Tour starts without a victory.
And, no, he doesn’t especially enjoy his penchant for thrill rides. That’s why he told Greller, “It’s never fricking easy,” after Saturday’s holeout at No. 16.
He figures it won’t become any easier Sunday, amid the customary finalround tension as Spieth seeks his 12th tour victory and second at Pebble Beach (he won the AT&T in 2017).
“I look to make it as boring as possible,” he said. “When you’re coming out of a slump, and you’re trying to get things going and trust things under pressure that you haven’t felt in a while, it’s very unlikely to be boring.
“So I don’t expect it to be a whole lot different tomorrow.”