World No. 1 Jordan Spieth and fifth-ranked Rickie Fowler have formally committed to play in next week's Shell Houston Open, giving the PGA Tour stop at the Golf Club of Houston significant additional gravitas leading into the Masters, where Spieth is the reigning champion.
The 22-year-old Texan lost the SHO in a three-way playoff but then routed the field in Augusta, tying Tiger Woods for the lowest 72-hole score ever at 18-under par. In June, Spieth became the youngest U.S. Open champion since Bobby Jones in 1923 and he subsequently contended in the British Open and the PGA Championship before finishing one of the greatest years in golfing history by capturing the season-ending Tour Championship.
"It's exciting to have Jordan back with us," Houston Golf Association president Steve Timms said. "Not only is he the world's No. 1 player, he's such a solid young man."