We’re just less than a week away from the start of the 115th U.S Open and excitement is surely building for the year’s second major golf tournament. All eyes will definitely be on Masters champion Jordan Spieth as he attempts to win his second consecutive major title at Chambers Bay.
Read on below as we breakdown Spieth’s chances of lifting that coveted U.S. Open Trophy. While you’re at it, you can check out our complete U.S. Open preview here.
[sc:MultiSportArticles ]
Can Jordan Spieth Win the PGA 2015 U.S. Open of Golf?
Why Spieth Will Win the 2015 U.S. Open
He’s playing some exceptional golf
[sc:Golf240banner ]It’s great to be Jordan Spieth nowadays. The 21-year-old has been playing some spectacular golf since the start of the year, recording nine top-10 finishes in 17 starts this season. He has already won two tournaments this year, including that memorable triumph at Augusta last April. Spieth was simply sensational at the 79th Masters, shooting an 18-under-par total of 270 to tie Tiger Woods’ overall scoring record in that event.
To illustrate how hot Spieth is heading into the U.S. Open, take a look at these numbers. The Masters champion has finished in the top-3 in six of his last 10 starts. That includes his third-place finish at the Memorial last week where he shot a sizzling 65 in the final round to finish two strokes shy of champion David Lingmerth. He’s once again rounding into peak form heading into a major championship and that is bad news for the rest of the competition.
He knows Chambers Bay quite well
For the first time in its illustrious history, the U.S. Open will be held at the county-owned Chambers Bay Golf Club in University Place, Washington. A difficult challenge awaits the world-class field as a links course will get to host the toughest test in golf. It’s going to be a daunting task, especially for those who will play the course for the very first time.
That’s not a problem for Jordan Spieth, though. He already knows what to expect with this golf course as he has already played at Chambers Bay before in the 2010 U.S. Amateur. At the young age of 17, Spieth shot an 83 in his one competitive round on the Open course as he failed to qualify for the match-play portion of the tournament.
He shared in an interview the knowledge he got from that event, saying, “It’s going to be a lot of speed control. I think it’s going to be a lot of judging the undulation. It’s going to be different short-game shots, almost like you’re playing an Open Championship.” That’s experience right there folks. If that wasn’t enough, Spieth’s caddie Michael Greller worked at Chambers Bay before. His familiarity with this golf course will be a valuable tool for Spieth as he tries to navigate this tough links set-up.
Putting
The U.S. Open prides itself in being the toughest test in golf and the one thing that stands out year after year in this event is the difficulty of its greens. Combine that with Chambers Bay’s notorious undulations and we’ve got ourselves one hell of a test at the U.S. Open next week. If there’s one golfer, though, who can conquer that tremendous challenge, it’s got to be Jordan Spieth.
He’s the best golfer in the PGA Tour right now in terms of putting average with an incredible 1.684 clip. He’s also ranked third in three-putt avoidance with a low 1.49% rate. His superb putting has been the main reason behind his success this year and that will play a major part as well in his quest to win the U.S. Open title.
Why Spieth Will Not Win the 2015 U.S. Open
History is not on Spieth’s side
Since the Masters was first played in 1934, only five golfers have managed to win the coveted green jacket in April and then follow it up with a U.S. Open victory three months later. They were Craig Wood (1941), Ben Hogan (1951, 1953), Arnold Palmer (1960), Jack Nicklaus (1972) and Tiger Woods (2002). Winning these two majors back-to-back will be a tough ask for Spieth.
Driving Accuracy
Given his tremendous success this season, you’d think Spieth’s game is firing on all cylinders right now. Incredibly, that’s not the case. Spieth is only 77th in the PGA Tour in driving accuracy with a low 62.63% clip. The U.S. Open is known for its brutal rough so there’s an increased premium on putting the ball in the fairway. If Spieth struggles with this part of his game next week, he can kiss his U.S. Open championship dreams goodbye.
