Jordan Spieth off to Augusta as a PGA champion once again

At long last: Jordan Spieth snaps a nearly four-year-long winless drought by capturing the Valero Texas Open

Five months ago, Jordan Spieth was a forgotten man at the tournament he once dominated.

Spieth won the Masters in 2015 at a then-tournament record 18-under. He nearly added another Green Jacket in 2016 and 2018. But, last November when he arrived at Augusta National, those achievements seemed like distant memories. Spieth was lost on the course, enduring a three-year winless drought as his meteoric rise to the top of the golf world came to a crashing halt.

Spieth was a phenom, winning 11 times on the PGA Tour with three majors by his 24th birthday. That’s what made his long drought so puzzling: How did someone who looked like a natural at the game lose it so suddenly?

He kept grinding away, trying to capture the magic he once had, and for the past few weeks, he found it. His long journey back to the top culminated on Sunday with his win in his native Texas at the Valero Texas Open, snapping his 1,351-day-long winless streak.

Spieth is heading to Augusta National playing his best golf in years

Spieth’s finished in the top-five at four of his last six stroke-play events. When he missed the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open, he was ranked 92nd in the world rankings; he’ll be 38th on Monday, his best ranking since 2019.

He gave his first indication he was finding his way back at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February, taking a share of the lead into the final round before ending up tied for fourth. A week later, he held a two-shot lead at Pebble Beach and tied for third. He had another top-five at the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Twelve of his last 24 rounds have been 68 or better.

This week at TPC San Antonio, Spieth ranked just 49th in fairways hit and 57th in greens regulation. But he made up for it in areas of the game that are his strengths, iron play and putting. He was fourth in Strokes Gained: Approach, third in tee to green, and sixth in putting; his 1.426 Strokes Gained: Putting was his best week on the greens since last June. He made only one bogey over his final 32 holes on his way to beating Charley Hoffman by two shots at 18-under.

Spieth has been around so long it’s easy to forget he’s still just 27. He’s the sixth-youngest player since World War II to reach 12 career wins, behind only Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Justin Thomas, Rory McIlroy and Phil Mickelson. He still has a legion of fans who were hoping he would finally get the job done on Sunday. He did it, and the relief was evident on his face.

“Man, it’s been a long road,” Spieth told the Golf Channel after tapping in for par on the 18th to seal his victory. “There were a lot of times I wasn’t sure if I would be here talking to you about this right now. I never really doubted in myself to get back to where I wanted to go, but when you lose confidence, a lot of times it’s hard to see the positives going forward.

This is a monumental win for me. One I’ve thought about for a long time.”

It’s perfect timing. The Masters begins in just four days. When the tournament was held in November, a still-struggling Spieth limped his way to a tie for 46h. This time, he’ll enter as one of the favorites. The road to success on the PGA Tour is seldom straight, and for Spieth, it’s more closely resembled a roller coaster.

He’s back at the top now.