Jordan Spieth at Valspar Championship 2016: Thursday Score and Reaction
Jordan Spieth has struggled of late, but the Valspar Championship presented a great bounce-back opportunity due to his status as defending champion.
Unfortunately, the world No. 1 couldn't get on track during Thursday's opening round at Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor, Florida. Spieth posted a five-over 76 to start, putting him in danger of missing a second cut in three starts.
Beginning his day on the back nine, the 22-year-old stumbled out of the gates and couldn't scramble enough to salvage what was a woeful ball-striking round. Check out his scorecard below, per PGATour.com:
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| Par | 4 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 35 |
| Score | 5 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 39 |
| Overall | +1 | +2 | +1 | +2 | +3 | +3 | +4 | +4 | +4 | +4 |
| Par | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 36 |
| Score | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 37 |
| Overall | +4 | +4 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 | +5 |
The only truly positive highlight of the round came at the par-four 12th, where Spieth carded his lone birdie:
For someone as accomplished as Spieth, it was astonishing to see him hit only six of 18 greens in regulation. His usually crisp iron play was all over the place, and even his often reliable putter kept failing him.
Getting out of position off the tee also prevented Spieth from attacking certain pins as he'd have wanted to; he missed six of 13 fairways. PGA.com reacted as Spieth played a recovery shot from a spot of bother:
Jason Sobel of ESPN.com provided some fitting analysis in the midst of Spieth's performance:
There's no denying Spieth is the next big thing in American golf, which will inevitably bring about comparisons to Tiger Woods. This isn't fair to Spieth or any of the younger players, but Woods' impact on the game was so significant that many fans still long for his glory days.
One area where Woods will likely forever reign superior is his knack for making cuts. Spieth may well miss out on the weekend unless he's able to come up with a special score Friday.
Also to consider is Spieth's aforementioned age. Adam Sarson of The Score had a fitting response to those who are so quick to write the two-time major champion off:
As recently as January, Spieth blew away everyone at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions with a score of 30 under par. No one on the planet who tees it up is immune to having a bad showing on the course, no matter how gifted they are at golf.
Thursday wasn't even Spieth's worst round of the season. He shot an eight-over 79 at the Northern Trust Open, and although he missed the cut there, he did bounce back commendably with a three-under 68 the following round.
It's quite an achievement to break par at Innisbrook's Copperhead Course as it is. When Spieth won this event last year, he was the only player to post under-par scores in all four rounds.
Brian Davis carded a second-round 76 at the 2015 Valspar Championship and managed to still finish in the top 10, so Spieth can certainly salvage a strong result if he bounces back on short order.
No matter what happens in this tournament, though, Spieth has to be a bit discouraged with the Masters not far away. He's defending at Augusta National and would do well to string together some solid form before his bid for a second straight green jacket.
Post-Round Reaction
Blustery conditions were partially to blame for Spieth's score ballooning to the extent that it did, but Spieth hinted at an overall inability to salvage a decent round of late, per ESPN.com's Bob Harig:
"Unfortunately right now on my off days...typically my history is I'm able to hold that around even par and I'm just shooting too high a number. I didn't quite squeak out even today, even though it was an even kind of round, and hopefully less wind tomorrow and I can work hard and play on the weekend.
"
He added, per Harig, "I had the opportunities on a few holes today and actually there were a lot of holes where I thought I hit great shots and was posing and it's 10, 15 yards off back on the gust of the wind."
Rory McIlroy had a noteworthy and supportive response to how Spieth fared:
Spieth may not have readily admitted to it himself, but Henrik Stenson, who shot an even-par 71 competing alongside the young star on Thursday, had a rather sound theory as to why Spieth continued to play poorly.
"I think he's a bit flat in energy. I think he's just running out of steam," said Stenson, who cited Spieth's demanding schedule, per Harig. "He needs a bit of time to recover."
There isn't much time for Spieth to bounce back in reality if he's meant to play the final 36 holes this week and stage a legitimate defense of the Valspar Championship.
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