SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Jordan Spieth had only played 16 holes when the first round of the WM Phoenix Open was suspended due to unplayable conditions, but what a wild ride it already had been en route to an eventual score of 3-under 68, and, at the time, good for fourth place.
Spieth, who started his round on the back nine, got the party started at the par-5 11th by pouring in a 55-foot birdie putt. Among the morning wave competitors, he ranks fourth in Strokes Gained: Putting (+2.128). He made a more conventional birdie at the par-5 13th, pitching his third to 2 feet for a kick-in.
Then the round started to go sideways. From 283 yards at the par-5 15th, Spieth’s layup trickled into the water. He took a penalty, dropped and that unforced error led to his first bogey of the tournament. One hole later, at the iconic par-3 16th, his tee shot provoked a round of boos as his iron from 151 yards caught the left greenside bunker. Another bogey and he slipped back to even for the day. He currently ranks 80th in SG: Approach the green (-2.563).
How?!@JordanSpieth | @WMPhoenixOpen pic.twitter.com/6745NcxzRg
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 8, 2024
Spieth revved up the birdie machine again and got back into red figures by draining an 8-footer an 17 and then Jordan did Jordan things at 18, holing a bunker shot from the right greenside bunker from 27 feet.
He turned in 2-under 34 and still had more tricks up his sleeve. At the par-5 third, Spieth flared his drive to the right and it rolled 376 yards into the native area, according to ShotLink. He had some tree trouble that limited his options but managed to advance it back to the fairway and then wedged inside 2 feet for yet another birdie. From there, he reeled off four straight pars before play was suspended at 12:32 p.m. local time (2:32 p.m. ET).
Fifty-seven players never started their rounds before the delay and only 15 had finished their round. Play resumed at 4 p.m. local time, after a delay of 3 hours and 28 minutes
It was some pretty vintage play from Spieth, who usually puts on a good show in the Valley of the Sun – none better than when he shot 10-under 61 in the third round in 2021 and finished T-4.
As Golfweek’s Adam Woodard put it, Spieth is “like Griswold’s jelly of the month club, the gift that keeps on giving.”
Wizard with a wedge 🪄@JordanSpieth holes out from the bunker @WMPhoenixOpen. pic.twitter.com/hvr4zxm7wt
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 8, 2024
Spieth parred his last final two holes when play resumed to shoot a 68 and trailed leader Sahith Theegala by three strokes when play was suspended again — this time due to darkness.
