Jordan Spieth failed to defend his title at the Hero World Challenge, but it was tough to find much fault with the effort -- or the year, for that matter.
The two-time major winner in 2015 ended up 5 shots behind Bubba Watson at the Albany Golf Club to finish fourth, capping a terrific 12 months of golf that saw him win five times on the PGA Tour.
A year ago at this time, even after his unofficial win at the Hero tournament, he still had but a single PGA Tour victory.
As he finished his round Sunday, Spieth, 22, knew the year was coming to an end and had a nice chat with his caddie, Michael Greller.
"Michael and I had a nice talk after I hit my second shot walking [up 18],'' Spieth said. "Michael said, 'Hey, man, it's been an honor to be in the passenger seat sitting shotgun for this ride this year. Thanks for everything.'
"I obviously thanked him, but it's been a team effort this year, just as we always stress. But there was a sigh of relief. I actually said, 'Mike, is there any way this putt won't go in?' It seems fitting, it has to.''