FANTASY GOLF
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CHARLES SCHWAB CUP
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Jordan Spieth, who finally celebrated his 21st birthday in July, continues to grow up before our eyes. He picked up his first PGA TOUR victory two years ago and nearly won his first major in 2014 as Spieth held a share of the third-round lead at the Masters with Bubba Watson and ended up tying for second in his Augusta National debut.
Spieth's first appearance at THE PLAYERS Championship was also a big success. As was the case at the Masters, he was tied for the 54-hole lead with the eventual champion, Martin Kaymer -- the eighth time in just 37 starts as a pro where Spieth had started the final round inside the top five. Spieth owned the lead after making birdie on the fourth hole but bogeyed five of his next 11 holes to fall back into a tie for fourth.
The Texan also had another runner-up finish at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and a total of eight top-10 finishes. Spieth put those close calls in the rear view mirror over Thanksgiving weekend, though, when he won the Emirates Australian Open -- closing with a 63 at The Australian Golf Club to win by six and beating, among others, world No. 1 Rory McIlroy and No. 3 Adam Scott.
As if that wasn't impressive enough, the humble Texan blitzed the field at the Hero World Challenge a week later, winning by a whopping 10 shots. Spieth will be looking to make the TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola for the third straight time in 2015 after finishing 15th in the FedExCup last year.
He'll start next year inside the top-10 in the Presidents Cup standings, too, but must continue to play well if he wants to make the U.S. Team for the second time and play in the matches in October in South Korea. -- Helen Ross, PGATOUR.COM
Each day in December, PGATOUR.COM will count down our Top 30 Players to Watch in 2015, with No. 1 unveiled on Dec. 30. TOP 30 TO WATCH: Back to No. 12 | Archive
SOCIAL MEDIA STATUS
Although he might post to Twitter and Instagram less than most 21-year-olds, Spieth is always weighing-in on his beloved Longhorns and Cowboys and sharing photos and videos from his life on TOUR.
He also doesn’t mind poking a little bit of fun at himself, as evidenced by this all-time great tweet.
Rinaldi needs to get a grip!! Don't leave me hangin next time bud.. https://t.co/lXBp6LocKc
— Jordan Spieth (@JordanSpieth) July 18, 2013
Jordan Spieth is 158th in the FedExCup race after seven events. He has competed for the FedExCup two times in his career. Here's how he fared:
2014 ... 15th | 2013 ... 7th
BY THE NUMBERS
Check out Jordan's rankings for the 2013-14 season in the Strokes Gained categories.
INSIGHT FROM OUR INSIDERS
PGATOUR.COM's team of insiders look at Jordan Spieth's upcoming season from their expert vantage points.
TOUR INSIDER by Brian Wacker
Spieth didn’t have the success most thought he would following a runner-up at the Masters, but a win in Australia late in the year could spur him on the way it did Rory McIlroy. Just about very young player goes through an adjustment period but the thing about Spieth that could make him great is that he has always played his best golf in big spots, going all the way back to his amateur days. He just has that 'it' factor.
STATS INSIDER by Bill Cooney
Spieth's putting improved dramatically in 2014, moving from 60th (.178) to 20th (.398) in strokes gained. However, his tee-to-green game moved in the opposite direction. Spieth fell from 18th (67.80 percent) in driving accuracy to 129th (58.79 percent) and from 37th (66.94 percent) in greens hit to a hard-to-believe 152nd (62.47 percent).
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EQUIPMENT INSIDER by Jonathan Wall
(Titleist) Spieth kept the changes to a minimum in 2014, putting Vokey SM5 wedges (56-10 and 60-04 degrees) in play at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions. He made two late season additions at the WGC-HSBC Champions when he added a Titleist 915Fd 3-wood and Pro V1x prototype ball.
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STYLE INSIDER by Greg Monteforte
Jordan Spieth has a great understanding of how to balance colors and textures. His classic, yet sporty looks will carry him through 2015 in style. The only question is when his prototype Under Armour shoes that created a stir this year will be available for the rest of us.
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FANTASY INSIDER by Rob Bolton
The sky remains the limit. With his sophomore season in the books, the primary question is how often he'll play. He added the full slate of World Golf Championships and THE PLAYERS in 2013-14 to touch 27 starts. Meanwhile, we may be only one year away from him being a top-two pick in most full-season formats, but even if you've already bitten that early, you have to feel good about getting your guy. Enjoy the ride.
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Jordan Spieth: The Natural
