Spieth’s focus on majors comes up trumps once more
UNIVERSITY PLACE, Washington: Blessed with a game fit to match his winning personality, American young gun Jordan Spieth’s meteoric rise to the upper echelons of the golf world continued with a second successive major victory at the US Open on Sunday.
Aged just 21, Masters champion Spieth arrived at Chambers Bay at the start of the week with his sights set on a possible calendar grand slam of all four majors and he now leaves the Pacific Northwest halfway towards that unique target.
“It’s incredible to win a major championship,” Texan Spieth told reporters after benefiting from a final hole threeputt by fellow American Dustin Johnson to triumph by one shot.
“You only get a few moments in your life like this and I recognise that. And to have two (majors) in one year and to still be early in the year, that’s hard to wrap my head around.
“But sitting here right now, I am understanding that this is a special time for me after the conclusion of the round and onward until the next major starts.”
That next major is the July 16-19 British Open at St Andrews, where Spieth hopes to replicate his recipe for success.
“The focus this year was on the majors,” said the world number two, who completed a stunning wire-to-wire Masters victory by four shots in April.
“They weren’t on winning a certain number of times or getting into contention in a major. It was, ‘Let’s find a winning formula in a major.’
“To go to the home of golf in the next tournament, that is the sole focus.
“We’re going to go to St Andrews looking for the Claret Jug and I believe we’ll be able to get it done if we get the right prep there.”
The other half of the ‘we’ in Team Spieth is caddie Michael Greller, a former school teacher, who used to be a bagman at Chambers Bay and was a calming influence for Spieth on a punishing links-style layout where danger was ever- US Open and US Masters winner Jordan Spieth is rated the 7-1 second favourite by bookmakers William Hill to win next month’s British Open, the third major of the year. “Spieth proved he is the man of the moment with back to back major victories and could dominate the game for years to come,” the bookmakers said in a news release on Monday. “William Hill now offer just 20-1 that he manages to win the grand slam in 2015 while he is 7-1 to win the Open at St Andrews.” Rory McIlroy is the 7-2 favourite to land the coveted Claret Jug for the second year running. Spieth’s meteoric rise has propelled the 21-year-old within 1.71 points of McIlroy at the top of the world rankings, a list the Northern Irishman has topped since August. Looking further ahead Hill’s are offering odds of 20-1 on Spieth equalling or exceeding Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18 major wins. - Reuters present.
“What a special place for Michael,” said Spieth, who has worked with Greller since 2012. “He was married here. He shares arguably one of the best moments of his life here.
“I was able to add to that history that he has at Chambers Bay.
“That was probably the best work Michael has ever done this week to get me through. At Augusta, I was on (form) and making everything and striking the ball fantastic.
“He was the one that got me through this week when I wanted to get down when things weren’t going well.
“Michael knew this course better than anybody this week and he made sure I was in the right spots without my best stuff, and that’s why I won.” – Reuters