Jordan Spieth and the AT&T Byron Nelson go way back.
Spieth was barely in elementary school when his dad, Shawn, took him to his first Nelson, where a young Spieth was just as concerned with getting autographs as he was watching golf shots.
“I remember Davis Love being so nice to me,” Spieth recalled. “From then on, that kind of solidified my dream to be a professional golfer.”
Spieth’s dream has come true in a big way—three major championships among 16 worldwide victories, 26 weeks at world No. 1 and seven total Cup appearances. However, he has yet to win the hometown Nelson.
That could change Sunday after Spieth fired an 8-under 64 Saturday at TPC Craig Ranch. At 20 under, he sits just a shot off Sebastian Munoz’s lead in this low-scoring affair.
“Having a chance to win this event, this will be kind of the best chance I've maybe ever had going into Sunday,” Spieth said. “So, it's really exciting, a lot of friends and family out, done a good job not putting too much pressure on myself. I just wanted to get into contention and obviously see what needs to be sharpened for next week. But there's no better prep for a major than winning the week before.”
Spieth can obviously complete the career Grand Slam at next week’s PGA Championship at Southern Hills, but with a victory this week he can draw closer to the Texas Slam. He owns victories at Colonial (2016) and the Texas Open (2021), with wins at the Nelson, Houston Open and the WGC-Dell Match Play in Austin still eluding him.