The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Auriemma witnessed Spieth’s shot
WEST HARTFORD » With Jordan Spieth’s glorious final stroke en route to winning the 2017 Travelers Championship still fresh in people’s minds, there’s been chatter that it could rank among the greatest moments in Connecticut sports history.
Spieth, a true golf Alister, won the Travelers Championship at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell as his shot out of the sand dropped in on the first playoff hole. The largest gathering of fans in Cromwell in recent memory roared their approval.
Hall of Fame UConn women’s basketball coach Geno Auriemma was among those in attendance.
Auriemma has been front and center at many of those unforgettable moments over the last three decades, coaching UConn to 11 national championships and 18 Final Four appearances.
He was still talking about Spieth’s shot on Monday at the Geno Auriemma Fore The Kids charity golf tournament at the Hartford Golf Club.
When asked to compare it to memorable moments in Connecticut sports history, only Tate George’s shot on a full court pass from Scott Burrell to defeat Clemson in the 1990 NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament came to mind.
However, that game was played in New Jersey and did not give the Huskies a national title. If someone were to suggest to Auriemma that Spieth’s incredible shot could be the best sports moment to take place in Connecticut, he probably wouldn’t put up much of an argument.
“That comes pretty close when you think about how dramatic it was,” Auriemma said. “It is a playoff and it is Jordan Spieth. I know people went crazy, I am standing right there and I watched it. You almost get to the point where you go, ‘yeah, I could see him doing that.’ You couldn’t have written a better script for that. He is a great kid, a great champion and to have him represent the list of winners in Connecticut, it is a pretty impressive list.”
With 11 national titles and two Olympic gold medals as a head coach, Auriemma typically doesn’t have to sweat out the little details when it comes to taking part in a sporting event. That wasn’t the case on Sunday.