Jordan Spieth at AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am 2016: Thursday Leaderboard, Reaction
Jordan Spieth turned in a disappointing effort in Thursday's first round of the 2016 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am but still finished under par. That should terrify the rest of the field with three rounds remaining for the No. 1 golfer in the world to find his consistency.
Spieth shot a one-under 71 in Thursday's opening round and is staring up at plenty of competitors. Here is a look at the top scorers, per PGATour.com:
| 1 | Chez Reavie | -8 |
| T2 | Freddie Jacobson | -7 |
| T2 | Cameron Smith | -7 |
| T2 | Bronson Burgoon | -7 |
| T5 | Justin Rose | -6 |
| T5 | Dawie van der Walt | -6 |
| T5 | Roberto Castro | -6 |
| T5 | Ricky Barnes | -6 |
| T5 | Shane Bertsch | -6 |
| T5 | J.B. Holmes | -6 |
| T5 | Spencer Levin | -6 |
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The former Texas Longhorns star failed to establish consistency while posting four birdies and three bogeys on the day:
| Par | 5 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 36 |
| Round 1 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 35 |
| Overall | E | E | E | +1 | E | E | E | -1 | -1 | -1 |
| Par | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 36 |
| Round 1 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 36 |
| Overall | -1 | -1 | E | E | -1 | E | -1 | -1 | -1 | -1 |
It is rare for anyone to overshadow Spieth at a golf tournament, but plenty of celebrities were out for the pro-am tournament. PGA.com caught the 22-year-old phenom chatting with movie star Bill Murray before teeing off Thursday:
Spieth had the opportunity to play alongside one of the greatest athletes in sports history, hockey legend Wayne Gretzky. Brian Wacker of PGATour.com provided Spieth's thoughts on his playing partner:
While it may have been great to play with Gretzky, Spieth didn't look like his dominant self throughout Thursday's round. He never generated consecutive birdies and struggled to take advantage of the par threes on the back nine. In fact, Spieth bogeyed Nos. 12 and 15, which took away the momentum he established by shooting two under par from Nos. 5 to 11.
Will Gray of GolfChannel.com described some of Spieth's struggles:
"Spieth sent multiple approaches toward the galleries lining the cozy confines of Spyglass Hill, and some of his swings early in the round ended with one-handed finishes. It was clearly not a typical day for the all-everything player, as Spieth estimated that he could have shot 6 or 7 under had his play from the fairways been more precise.
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Fortunately for Spieth, his putting saved him after some of those errant approaches. According to PGATour.com, he averaged 1.7 putts per green in regulation. One of his best strokes finished off a birdie on No. 5, as the PGA Tour shared:
One of the primary problems for Spieth was the fact that he hit only 10 of 18 greens in regulation, per PGATour.com. Even though he was solid with the putter, he didn't give himself enough chances to make up ground on the greens because of the approaches.
However, he did turn in a beautiful approach on No. 16, which he birdied. PGATour.com passed along the video:
Unfortunately for Spieth, he didn't shoot like that throughout the round and now has ground to make up as a result.
What's Next?
An early deficit would be a problem for many golfers, but part of what makes Spieth so talented is his ability to come from behind. Justin Ray of Golf Channel put Spieth's bounce-back prowess in perspective:
Spieth won the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in January and made his biggest charge in the second round (shooting a nine-under 64 and seizing control of the tournament). If he dominates again Friday, he will put pressure on the leaders on moving day and perhaps eventually win the tournament.
Spieth won the Masters and U.S. Open in 2015 and understands what it takes to perform under pressure. If his name is alongside the leaders Sunday, it will put additional stress on those who aren't as decorated as Spieth or accustomed to competing for championships, which will work in his favor.
Spieth already flashed moments of brilliance Thursday. If he develops more consistency in the later rounds, he is still a threat to win this tournament.
Post-Round Reaction
Spieth discussed his struggles after his round, per Gray: “I played the hardest holes on this golf course four under par, and then I played all the easy ones over par. Just kind of a bit odd. I just was not quite dialed in with the wedges or short game.”
Spieth added more context, per Gray: "I was hitting a couple shots where I told (caddie) Michael (Greller) that’s one out of 50 or one out of 100 where I hit wedge that far off line. Stuff that I don’t need to look into too much, it was just bad timing where the misses were in the wrong spots.”
The No. 1 golfer on tour wasn't ready to give up on the tournament yet, per Gray: “I’ve got a lot of very easy golf holes coming in the next couple days if I put myself in positions off the tees. I’ll certainly get better when it comes to the wedge play.”
The rest of the field has been warned.
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