The Year Everything Came Up Jordan

Beyond being the best golfer in the world today, there are many things to like about Jordan Spieth.

He’s unfailingly friendly and polite. He gives generously of his time. He shares credit with the members of his estimable team. He is the best answerer of questions in a press conference, ever. In the almost necessarily narcissistic world of pro sports, he’s in the running for most mature 22-year-old.

Above all, Spieth plays with a captivating passion and verve. Like Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, he gives off the strong sense that the golf shot before him is, at that moment, by far the most important thing in the world. When Spieth plays, golf matters.

The intensity it all takes often spills over into a verbal barrage of self-commentary (“Oh Jordan, what a huge mistake that is!”) some traditionalists find annoying. “It just comes out,” says Spieth of talking to his ball, though his predisposition to follow decorum is gradually tempering the habit.

But, hopefully, not too much. Spieth’s jet fuel, along with the innate balance and perspective from his upbringing and natural temperament, give him the tools to do that most difficult thing of all in golf—consistently meet the moment.

Highlights From Jordan's 2015 PGA TOUR Season

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  It might have been Jordan’s first visit to Australia but not his first connection with Australia. His coach Cameron McCormack is from Melbourne and joined Jordan on the trip to Sydney

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  Starting off the day sharing the lead with Greg Chalmers and Brett Rumford, Jordan quickly pulled away from the Australians with the best round of the tournament — and his career.

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  Jordan sinks his birdie putt on 18 and celebrates his first title of 2014, becoming the first American to win the Australian Open since Brad Faxon in 1993, when the 21-year-old Spieth was four months old

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  Jordan holds the Stonehaven Cup, the trophy awarded to the winner of the Australian Open. Seeing that his name will go right under Rory McIlroy, last year’s Open winner, Jordan said, "If I had the follow-up year that Rory had this year, I'd be pleased this time next year”

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  Jordan flew directly from Australia to Florida for Tiger Wood's event at the Isleworth Golf & Country Club. The jet lag didn't seem to bother Jordan as he delivered a 26-under performance over the four days that earned him a 10-stroke victory over Henrik Stenson

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  Jordan's 26 under par total broke Tiger Woods’ Hero tournament record of 22 under in 2007. Jordan’s margin of victory also set a record at this tournament, and he was the first wire-to-wire winner

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  After the Hero World Challenge, Jordan said, “This caps off the best golfing year that I’ve ever had. Each year has been a little better than the last. Hope it continues in 2015”

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  Tiger and Jordan talk together at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Shooting a final round 65, Jordan would finish T7 at TPC Scottsdale

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  For the second year in a row, Jordan got to play with country superstar Jake Owen at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

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  Jordan was 16-under for the tournament and finished T7

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  Jordan had another Top 10 finish at the Northern Trust, barely missing a playoff after an aggressive pitch on the final hole.

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  Jordan got his first win of 2015 at the Valspar Championship. A clutch putt on the final hole put Jordan in a playoff with Patrick Reed and Sean O'Hair. He won the tournament with a 28-foot birdie putt on the third hole of the playoff

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  It was Jordan's second win in his PGA Tour career and fourth worldwide

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  Jordan is presented with his trophy after winning the Valspar Championship. Jordan became the fourth player since 1940 to win twice on the PGA Tour before his 22nd birthday

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  After Jordan's second place finish at the Valero Texas Open, Jordan moved to No. 4 in the Official World Golf Rankings

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  Jordan, the hottest player on the PGA going into the Masters, got into his second playoff and three weeks at the Shell Houston Open

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  After finishing T2 to Bubba Watson in last year's Masters, Jordan would get more than a green jacket at Augusta National. He would get redemption

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  He would also get a place in the history books by setting the 36-hole scoring record at the Masters

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  Jordan's full-swing flop shot off the 18th green captivated the gallery and media alike, allowing him to save par and maintain momentum. Joe Posnanski of the Golf Channel called it, "a shot that buckles the knees of every player of every skill level around the world." Read the story.
  

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  Jordan made 26 birdies, a Masters record, and was the first PGA golfer to get to -19 in a Major

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  In addition to his 36 hole scoring record, he also had the lowest 54 hole total and tied for the 72 hole scoring record. Jordan also became the first wire-to-wire winner in Masters history

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  "This was the ultimate goal in my golf life," Jordan said in his remarks to the members of Augusta National, patrons and media

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  Jordan reacts after making a 25-foot birdie putt on No. 1. Watch the putt.
  

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  Jordan hits his tee shot on the 15th hole.
  

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  Jordan watches a putt on the 12th green. Jordan started slowly on the front nine but the Masters champion compensated with a dramatic stretch, announcing his arrival with three straight birdies starting on No. 11 to put him squarely in the mix going into Friday. Read the story.
  

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  With his caddie looking on, Jordan reacts after his clutch par putt on the fourth green. For Michael Greller, a resident of nearby Gig Harbor, this was a Father's Day with special significance. 

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  With his third victory this year — fourth since embarking on his pro career in 2013 — Jordan will head to the British Open in St. Andrew’s, Scotland, in search of more history. Jordan's grand slam chances? As Ian O'Connor wrote in ESPN, don't bet against him.
  

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  The condition of the greens was a major topic of conversation on and off the course, but Jordan gives his respects to the grounds crew who worked relentlessly through the tournament.

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  Jordan follows up his hole-out eagle on 17 with a birdie on the final hole.
  

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  After taking his sand wedge and spinning it back into the hole for eagle on the par-5 17th, Jordan shares the crowd's excitement.
  

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  Jordan Spieth pats the back of Tom Gillis while walking off the 18th green after their pars on the first playoff hole.
  

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  Chad Everitt, Chairman of the Volunteer Board of the John Deere Classic, presents Jordan with the trophy during the final round of the John Deere Classic.

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  Jordan watches his drive from the second tee during his first round on the opening day of the 2015 Open Golf Championship on The Old Course at St Andrews. Conditions were perfect for low-scoring out on the Old Course on the first morning as play began.
  

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  Jordan plays out of a fairway bunker on the 5th hole.
  

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  Jordan reacts to his putt on the 7th green while Jason Day lines up his putt in the background.

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  Jordan acknowledges the crowd on the 18th green after missing a putt and a chance to join the playoff. 
  

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  Jordan lines up a putt on the first green. Jordan was first in putts per round during the four days at Firestone. He averaged 25.5 putts per round.
  

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  SHEBOYGAN, WI - AUGUST 14: Jordan Spieth of the United States lines up a putt on the 11th green during the second round of the 2015 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits on August 14, 2015 in Sheboygan, Wisconsin.
  

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  Jordan reacts to his birdie putt on the final hole. It capped a bogey-free round of 65 that vaulted him to second place behind Jordan.
  

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  Jordan and Michael celebrate a birdie on the 10th green.

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  Jordan watches his birdie drop on the 18th green. It would give him the outright tournament lead going into Sunday's final round.

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  Jordan gets a fist bump from Henrik Stenson after he sinks a 43-foot birdie putt on the 11th green.

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  Jordan walks up to the 18th green, two putts from a victory at East Lake.

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  Jordan celebrates on the 18th hole green as fans watch after his four stroke victory in the final round of the TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola.

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  Jordan poses on the 18th green with the FedEx Cup and TOUR Championship trophies.

The former two-time U.S. Junior champion did it better than ever in 2015, and the biggest reason might have been how he ended 2014. After some suspicions that he was a shaky closer caused mainly by his failure to hold his Sunday lead at the 2014 Masters, Spieth changed the narrative with a six-stroke win at the Australian Open, followed by a 10-stroke blowout at the Hero World Challenge that purged the past.

Spieth’s new momentum rolled out measuredly. He opened the Florida swing by beating Patrick Reed in a stirring playoff at the Valspar Championship in March, then sharpened his edge for his Masters return by getting into a playoff a week before at Houston. Once in Augusta, Spieth commenced his mission, opening with a 64 to take a three-stroke lead, widening it with a 66, then fortifying himself with a miraculous short-side shot saving par to end the third round that was the up-and-down of the year (see photo). The Texan’s play on Sunday was controlled, as he won by four for his first major.

At Chambers Bay, Spieth held a three-stroke lead on the tee of the par-3 71st hole, but after a badly pushed 6-iron led to a shaky double bogey, he was soon tied. On the par-5 final hole, Spieth gathered himself to hit a good drive and an excellent second for a clutch birdie that eventually won him the U.S. Open title and soon started a serious conversation about the Grand Slam.

A stirring come-from-behind win in July at the John Deere Classic, the site of Spieth’s first career victory in 2013, gave a Bobby Jones aura to his arrival on the ultimate stage at St. Andrews for the third leg of the modern version of the Impregnable Quadrilateral. Spieth battled mightily, tying the lead when he birdied the 70th hole with a bomb. Ultimately, indifferent drives on the Road Hole and the easy 18th led to a bogey-par finish, although Spieth’s 40-footer for birdie from the Valley of the Sin scared the hole.

At the PGA, Spieth again played well but in Jason Day, ran into a power player in the midst of a hot streak. And though Spieth’s finishes of 1-1-T4-2 was the best collective performance in the majors since Woods won three in 2000, the inspired Day’s late brilliance started a debate as to whether he, and not Spieth, should be PGA Tour Player of the Year. On cue, Spieth met the moment again, settling the argument with a satisfying four-stroke win at the Tour Championship and, with it, the year-long FedEx Cup.

Statistically, Spieth would appear anything but a dominator. He finished the year 78th in driving distance with 291.8-yard average, about where he should be with a middling clubhead speed of 112.79 mph. But then the alchemy starts. Though 49th in greens in regulation, Spieth finished fourth in strokes gained/tee to green. Part of the answer lies in leading the tour in proximity to the hole from the rough, a strong indication that Spieth, as Woods said of him, “knows where to miss.”

Then again, whether anecdotally or statistically, Spieth is truly special with the putter, especially from distance. He was first on the tour from between 15 and 25 feet, the frequent putts for birdie that are both long shots and difference makers. He was also second in proximity after the first putt. In essence, Spieth has expanded the range of the expected, making him the Steph Curry of golf.

“People can give up on you easily,” Spieth noted with one of his customarily good answers after his climatic victory at East Lake. “And to not care about that, to worry about our own stuff, and to come into the brightest stages and perform is going to give me a lot of confidence going forward. Because there’s going to be ups and there’s going to be downs, I know it.”

He’s right, as usual, and worrying about his own stuff will probably be his biggest challenge in 2016. He will have Day and McIlroy going after him hard, each intent on regaining No. 1. Spieth’s stated effort to gain a few more yards will be under close scrutiny and require patience if it causes any sort of stall. A sense of duty to carry golf also will make performing that much harder.

But Spieth’s obvious love of the game should hold him in good stead. At season’s end, he went out of his way to play friendly rounds at Royal Melbourne and Kingston Heath in Australia, pulling his bag on a trolley. Two weeks before Christmas, the former Texas All-American (but not graduate) tweeted he was playing “Cyprus” Point, prompting friendly career-long rival Justin Thomas to strike quickly with a tweet of his own: “Cypress you dropout.”

It might have been the biggest mistake Jordan Spieth made in 2015.