adminAUGUSTA. — Jordan Spieth completed the greatest 36-hole start in Masters history yesterday, firing a six-under par 66 at Augusta National to match the lowest 36-hole start in any major.
The 21-year-old American reached the clubhouse on 14-under 130 after two rounds, his bogey-free Friday putting him four strokes ahead of compatriot Charley Hoffman with four-time major winner Ernie Els of South Africa a distant third, nine strokes adrift.
Spieth, seeking his first major title after a runner-up Masters debut last year, opened with a 64 Thursday to become the youngest first-round leader in Masters history, only one stroke off the record low round in the Masters or any major.
Fourth-ranked Spieth broke the prior Masters 36-hole low of 13-under 131 set by Ray Floyd in 1976 and threatened the low 36-hole total in major history of 130. Spieth missed a seven-foot birdie putt at the 18th hole and settled for becoming the fourth player to fire 130 at any major over the first two rounds. The 130 mark was set by England’s Nick Faldo with a 66-64 start to the 1992 British Open at Muirfield, matched by American Brandt Snedeker in the 2002 British Open at Lytham and equaled last year by Martin Kaymer with back-to-back 65s at the US Open at Pinehurst.
Spieth was unaware that he was closing in on a slice of golfing history in Thursday’s first round of the Masters until he was told about it afterwards.
Three birdies in a row from the 12th hole had left him at eight-under par with the par-five 15th to come.
A birdie there and one other on the last two holes would have put him at 10-under par, busting the course record at Augusta National and making him the first player to shoot lower than 63 in any major.
To date, 24 golfers have fired 63s in majors, but none have gone better, as the figure has become something of an impassible barrier over the course of time. Asked if his wayward approach to the 15th, which ended in his only bogey of the day, had been down to nerves over the prospect of making history, Spieth replied in the negative.
“I wasn’t aware what the course record was here, let alone that it actually would have been the lowest round in major championship history,” the 21-year-old Texan said.
“So that’s a little frustrating, because I took a hybrid instead of a four-iron out on 15. But I’m certainly okay with the day. At that time after 14, I wasn’t really sure. It was kind of one of those moments where I wasn’t really sure where I was at. I just wanted to play the last four 1-under, given that 15 was a birdie hole today. Obviously if I had birdied it, then I would have been 10. That would be the lowest round that I’ve ever shot in a tournament round, so that’s why I wanted to do that.”
Still, Spieth’s superb 64, comprised of nine birdies and one bogey, left him three shots clear of the field and it underlined the huge potential that he has showed since turning pro in 2013.
Spieth tied for second behind Bubba Watson on his Masters debut last year after leading by two strokes seven holes into the final round and has risen to fourth in the world rankings after big wins in the Australian Open and Hero World challenge late last year and the Valspar Championship last month.
His astounding maturity for one so young and inexperienced at the top level has impressed many older champions. Four-time major winner Ernie Els, for one, believes Spieth is something special.
“Jordan is 21, and what a player,” he said. “You just cannot see this kid not win many, many majors. I think he is by far the most balanced kid I’ve seen.”
It remains to be seen if the first of those majors will come on Sunday at Augusta, where Spieth believes he can pull on the experiences he had last year to help him out.
“Having only played it (Augusta National) once, it’s still tough to do,” he said.
“It’s tough to sleep on a lead here and I saw that last year. But at the same time, I’m a lot more confident in the way that I can handle certain situations, and the patience level I can have, having closed a couple of events out since and seeing some putts go in obviously today.
“It is tough to kind of bring expectations down and just kind of have a free flow out there. But we did a good job of it today. I was just going to try to take the same mental attitude into the next couple days.” — SuperSport.
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