Having been granted full status on the PGA
Tour as a result of that win, Spieth was selected
as part of Fred Couples 2013 Presidents
Cup team and was also named PGA Tour Rookie
of the Year. By the end of the 2013 season,
Spieth had played himself up to 22nd in the
world rankings.
Through his 2013 efforts, Spieth earned
entry to the 2014 Masters and finished tied
for second on his debut. Spieth set another
record, being the youngest golfer to ever finish
second in The Masters and also broke in to the
top 10 world rankings for the first time. The
success continued in 2014, with victories at the
Australian Open and Hero World Challenge.
It didn’t take long before Spieth was on the
winning trail in 2015, claiming the Valspar
Championship and finishing runner-up at
the Valero Texas Open. At this stage, it was
becoming clear to all those watching, that
this was a player punching above his weight,
“Jordan Spieth comes off to me as a grown
man”, commented Paul Azinger, a former PGA
Championship winner. Little did he know at the
time, that Spieth’s best performance to date,
was just around the corner.
At the 2015 Masters, Spieth didn’t just win the
tournament, he dominated it. Records were
broken as Spieth led from the start, made his
way to -20 and claimed his first major golf
title. Following a huge victory like that, comes
increased pressure and Spieth found himself as
favourite, along with world number one, Rory
McIlroy, for the US Open. Spieth won the
tournament by one stroke from Dustin Johnson
and in doing so, became only the sixth player to
win The Masters and US Open consecutively.
An astounding achievement.
So what’s next for the world’s second ranked
player? The answer to that, lies in the question.
In 2014, Spieth commented on how his ultimate
goal was to become the number one golfer
in the world. With McIlroy stating how
confident he felt for the summer, following his
play at Chambers Bay, the duo could start what
would be one of the biggest and best rivalries in
world sport.
38 | YOURCADDY MAG - ISSUE 04