Jordan Spieth rocks the Waste Management for one day, Brooks should get more credit, and an announcement
By: Grant Murphy
Jordan Spieth shot a Saturday round of 61 (10-under par) and was tied for the lead with Xander Shauffele heading into the final round. Low and behold, what happens? Spieth looked as lost as ever in the final round, the driver failed him yet again, and he ended up shooting a final round 72. That tied him for 4th in the tournament and once again dashing the dreams of golf fans everywhere for a comeback for the ages. There is no denying that Spieth is one of the few players on tour that really can get a crowd into a frenzy.
His Saturday round was a sight to behold. Spieth had 10 birdies, no bogeys, drained every put he looked at and was finger pointing to the crowd. This was the Spieth that everyone wants to come back. For the PGA Tour, this is the Spieth that they need to come back. Spieth has that aura about him that draws people in. He, for being a golfing prodigy as a kid, always looks like the guy you see banging balls on the driving range or playing nine holes after work at your local muni. His swing is nowhere near perfect (see Adam Scott and Justin Thomas) and he always looks like the ball could go sideways off of the club at any moment. He has the chicken wing finish and barely holds on to the club with this pointer finger. Yet, he can absolutely destroy a golf course at any moment.
Spieth’s highs over the course of a year/year time period and a half in 2015 have been only accomplished by a select few golfers. It has been a shame to see how far he has fallen after he self-admittedly got caught up trying to chase a little distance. I believe he will find his game again and become more consistent. Anything is better than watching him mutter to himself after every golf shot or hit balls on the range by himself trying to find some glimmer of hope. One thing for sure is that I hope Spieth finds a way to put it all back together soon because the golf world is better with him being competitive and near the top.
Speaking of former World No. 1 golfers, while Spieth was trying to find something on Sunday, Brooks Koepka put together a great round of 67 to win the Waste Management Phoenix Open by 1 shot over K.H. Lee and Xander Shauffele. It was capitalized by a smooth chip-in eagle on Hole No. 17. This gave Brooks his 8th career PGA Tour win, including 4 major championships.
One thing that I love about Brooks is that he is probably, if not the most underrated superstar golfers in the world. He gets almost no press at any golf tournament he enters and is never considered a favorite at any of them. He rarely gets talked about by traditional golf media other than to get ripped on for not looking excited enough during rounds, losing weight for photo shoots, or working out to often. Brooks does not get the credit he deserves. Brooks is a throwback to a time where not every golfer had this picture perfect image and brand. He is in the gym pumping iron and making sure the chest and biceps are looking good for that final walk up 18 after he buries the competition. He can drive the ball over the top of mountains, roll the rock as smooth as anyone, and just wants to go out and beat your ass on the golf course.
The one negative thing you can say about Brooks is that he is definitely not always mentally there when it comes to regular tour events, though he is trying to squash that. In my opinion, who cares if he isn’t always there. If he shows up at majors and a few high level PGA Tour events each year and puts on a show, he can do that if he wants. Heck, did Angel Cabrera do anything but show up at Augusta? Does Louis Oosthuizen do anything else other than pop up at majors and big tour events? Not really. There are just some people who are big time show guys and who live for the pressure of big events. Keep on doing what you are doing Brooks. The game is better for it.
Finally, there will not be a podcast episode this week. I am in the works of having a guest or two coming over the next few episodes so be on the look out for those. I hope everyone is enjoying the content on Spotify and this website and will speak to everyone later.
P.S. - Shout out to the pride of Wheaton, IL native, Kevin “Streels” Streelman on shooting 11-under and tying for 22nd place.