After two weeks off from the PGA Tour grind, Dallas native Jordan Spieth re-emerged into the spotlight on Tuesday at Colonial Country Club.
For Masters champion Spieth, 21, this week’s Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial is the first of two “hometown” events. Next week he’ll be in Las Colinas for the AT&T Byron Nelson.
“This is going to be a really fun stretch,” Spieth said during a 20-minute news conference at Colonial. “To come back home with the green jacket and be introduced like that is really special. That’s where it really starts to hit me, kind of what it means.”
Since winning the Masters and tying Tiger Woods’ record-low score of 18-under on April 12, Spieth has played in three PGA Tour events. But these two weeks are his first splashy public appearances in North Texas since April 26, when Mavericks owner Mark Cuban presented him with a jersey prior to Game 4 of the Dallas-Houston playoff series.
Spieth touched on a variety of topics Tuesday, some golf-related and others of a more off-beat nature.
For example:
On what he’s been doing during his short break from the tour.
“I’ve been in the gym. I’ve been with my instructor. Mainly practiced.
“I went to Baltimore for the Preakness kind-of pre-festivities with Under Armour. It’s a big weekend for them. So I went up there Thursday and came back Saturday morning. I didn’t stay for the race, which by the weather it looked like that was probably a good decision.”
On playing two hometown events as the Masters champion.
“I obviously put expectations on myself this year for these events, as I do every year. That’s not a negative thing. That’s positive. I focus as if they’re major championships _ and that’s how I approach them ahead of time.
“There’s nothing better than playing well in front of your hometown family and friends. I’m going to try and do a little bit better this year than I have in the past couple of years, but still obviously can very much enjoy what it means to come back with the green jacket, but try and enjoy that off the course.”
On where he keeps the green Masters champion jacket:
“It’s just in my closet. I think it’s sandwiched between a couple of shirts.
“I know exactly where it is, though. And, yeah, I go in there, I look at it, pull it out here and there and just kind of, you know, hold it up as if it’s the greatest trophy that I’ve ever had -- because it is.”