Jordan Spieth capped off a remarkable fortnight by winning his second consecutive golf tournament at the Hero World Challenge. Against an elite field featuring 18 of the World’s top ranked golfers, Spieth pulled away on day 3 and strolled home to win by a massive ten shots.
Both of Spieth’s wins (the other came at the Australian open) featured a display of control around the greens that had to be seen to be believed, especially around such tight lies and slippery putting surfaces. The Hero World Challenge win featured rounds of 66, 67, 63 and 66, and reinforces Spieth position as a star of the future. At just 21, Spieth has already chalked up three professional wins to go with his celebrated amateur career. His future looks set to include a plethora of further wins, probably in golf tournaments he has had to go toe-to-toe with Rory McIlroy in.
Spieth was ten shots better than Henrik Stenson (69), with Keegan Bradley (70) and Patrick Red (68) a shot further back.
The win was record breaking for a number of reasons:
– Spieth’s 26-under broke the tournament record of 266 set by Woods in 2007 and Davis Love III in 2000, both at Sherwood Country Club in California;
– The victory margin of ten shots broke Tiger Woods’ tournament record of seven shots that Woods had in 2007; and
– His victory is the biggest margin in golf in 2014.
At the other end of the tournament leaderboard was Tiger Woods, returning to golf for the first time since the PGA Championship at Valhalla in August. Tiger battled an opening 77, a fever, and a horrific short game to record two sub-par scores on his former home course. He mixed some decent golf with some expected rustiness in a tournament where he only briefly left last position. The silver lining for him was the ability to make aggressive swings pain free.
Spieth though got his 2014 wish of two wins. What look improbable only a few weeks ago became a reality; a familiar one too as he strode down the 18th hole at Isleworth with a big lead, just as he had done in his amateur career.
