PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — Jordan Spieth is no stranger to turbulence on the golf course, and his opening round at The Players Championship was another testament to that fact.
After just six holes, his scorecard displayed an exciting mix of an eagle, a birdie, a par, a bogey, and a double bogey. The sounds of fans celebrating when he successfully holed a bunker shot were quickly balanced by the collective sighs when his tee shot veered into the water.
Spieth wrapped up the day with a 2-under 70, a solid start on the unpredictable course. Recently coming off surgery for his left wrist last August, which sidelined him for five months, Spieth is gradually working his way back to peak form.
“I wish it could be less eventful,” Spieth remarked. “I’m still on the journey back to where I want to be, and that means there’ll be some ups and downs along the way.”
The round commenced with what Spieth described as a “dream start,” making a birdie with a wedge shot landing just a foot from the hole on the 10th. He followed that up with an eagle on the par-5 11th after a bunker shot amazingly found its way into the hole, placing him 3 under after just three holes.
However, the 14th hole brought its challenges when his tee shot splashed into a pond on the left. Spieth, uncertain about where the ball last flew over land, chose a conservative penalty drop to avoid any ambiguity, reasoning, “Even though it might have grazed land, I couldn’t justify taking a close drop.”
This decision resulted in a double bogey, setting him back to even par. The volatility didn’t stop as his approach on the 15th took an unfavorable bounce and subsequent events led to missing a short putt, a characteristically unpredictable Spieth moment.
Mud on his ball from the fairway of the 16th turned into a blessing in disguise as he misjudged his shot but then impressively chipped it in for another eagle. A lengthy three-putt bogey on the 17th was immediately followed by a precise shot into three feet for a birdie on the 18th.
The back nine concluded with Spieth shaking his head, his score could have ended up in many different ways. On the front nine, a steadier pace resulted in one birdie, one bogey, and seven pars—less chaotic, but something Spieth was content with.
“You want to know there’s potential for big scores,” he explained. “If you make all pars with just a couple of birdies, you’re left wondering how to up your game. But if every shot is on target, the birdies will come. Cutting down bogeys is easier when birdies are plentiful.”
