The humble, prodigious kid from Texas is in rarefied air at the moment in the world of golf. Late Sunday afternoon at Chambers Bay in Wisconsin Jordan Spieth joined an illustrious list. Craig Wood, Ben Hogan, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and now Jordan Spieth are the only players in the history of golf to win the first 2 majors of the calendar year. Not a bad list to join considering that at 21 years old he is 5 years younger than Tiger Woods when he achieved the feat in 2002 at the age of 26. He will continue the quest for the “Grand Slam” (all 4 majors in the same year) at St. Andrews in less than a month and here are some reasons why he has a great chance to do it.
Approach putt performance
The Open championship, especially when at St. Andrews, places an emphasis on the ability to lag putt from long range consistently over huge mounds and ridges. This is similar to Chambers Bay where Jordan just ranked 15th in putting for the week and more importantly, won. He ranks 1st on the PGA Tour this year in approach putt proximity which will be crucial to success on the humungous green complexes at the home of golf.
Walker Cup record
Jordan was a member of the 2011 American Walker Cup team that played against Great Britain & Ireland at Royal Aberdeen in Scotland. Royal Aberdeen is as true of a links golf course as you will find. He adapted to links golf very well winning both of his singles matches and halving his foursomes match. This record combined with his ability to learn quickly, adapt his game and pick apart a golf course strategically will all be factors in his favour come 16th July at the Old Course.
Stable head and body
The wind nearly always has a huge impact on the Open Championship and 2015 will likely be no different. Many Americans struggle in the strong breezes but Jordan has all the attributes to continue his fine ball striking. First of all, he strikes the ball as pure as any top pro going around. He ranks 19th in smash factor (ball speed divided by club-head speed) this year which is essentially a measurement of how well player “flushes” the ball off the tee. Hitting the ball solid is one of the keys to playing good golf in strong winds as the ball tends to not be affected by the breeze as much if struck well. The reason Jordan can do this is due to his ability to keep his head still throughout his entire swing.
As seen in the golf swing analysis below he moves around his head whilst it remains fairly stable. Another advantage of this for Jordan is that he will be less affected by the wind during the swing therefore able to hold his balance better than many others.
Jordan’s golf swing video is here.
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