A year ago Jordan Spieth was on the cusp of becoming the youngest ever Masters champion. Holding the lead with 11 holes to play on Sunday, it didn’t happen for him and he finished runner-up.
But from that performance, he has grown into a perennial contender. And as the world’s number four-ranked player, at just 21 years of age, he looks like he wants to atone for last year’s missed opportunity on the evidence of his eight under par 64 yesterday, which gives him a three-shot first round advantage.
He's also the youngest ever first round leader in the Masters.
"I was very pleased, it’s one of the better rounds I’ve ever played" - Jordan Spieth
After a steady start, two under after seven, he birdied six of the next seven holes. He threatened briefly to set the all-time low round in a major before a bogey on the 15th stalled his progress.
However, he birdied the last for a hugely satisfying day’s work, which has followed some extremely consistent recent form in his past three tournaments, in which he’s been either a winner or a runner up.
Spieth said: “I was very pleased, it’s one of the better rounds I’ve ever played. I carried a lot of momentum into this week and I think that was the trickiest thing coming here – to keep that momentum going.
“I didn’t drive the ball particularly well, didn’t strike the ball great, got some good breaks and capitalised on some really good breaks today.”
Spieth leads by three from a quartet of five under par 67s of Justin Rose, Jason Day, Ernie Els, and the first man out in round one, Californian Charlie Hoffman.
The Irish challenge on one under is led by Graeme McDowell and Rory McIlroy. McDowell was actually two under before bogeying the last, while McIlroy scrambled past numerous misfortunes through the first 11 holes before making birdies on the two back nine par fives to get in under par figures.
McIlroy said: “It was a tricky day, the wind was swirling a little bit, pin positions were tough, anything under par I felt was a good score. It was nice to pick up a couple of birdies on the back nine on the par fives and, you know, I’m pretty satisfied with the day’s work.”
I asked McIlroy if that was a round in the past which might have been one of those 77s, but now maturity around Augusta has given him the nous to get around in 71? “Yeah, I think so," he replied. "I mean it could have been a round that got away from me – you know I bogey 11, and again I just stayed patient and realising it’s a 72-hole golf tournament and not having to press too much and that’s what I did.
“It was good to get into red numbers after day one and I feel with the way I’m driving the ball, if I can keep doing that and just be a little more efficient with my iron play and give myself more opportunities, I’ll hopefully be right there at the end of the week.”
Meanwhile, Padraig Harrington let a good round go awry with bogeys on 16 and 17 to shoot a level par 72. Darren Clarke had a 74 and Shane Lowry a 75.
And with the eyes of the world on his comeback, Tiger Woods shot a 73 - two shots worse than the 71 by twice former champion, 65-year-old Tom Watson.
