Opinion & Analysis
Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy: Golf’s new rivalry?
When Jordan Spieth lost in a playoff last week at the Shell Houston Open–possibly in part due to an ill-timed camera shutter on the first extra hole–it appeared the public had been robbed of the most appealing story from the event before the year’s first major.
Oddly, though, Spieth’s loss was the Masters’ gain.
If the 21-year-old had been victorious in Houston, he would have moved to No. 2 in the world a week before the big event at Augusta. Instead, Spieth placed runner-up and put his energy into a dominant performance at the Masters, an otherworldly victorious showing that allowed him to storm into that No. 2 spot with a force of youthful promise that we haven’t seen so powerful, well, since Rory McIlroy four years ago.
And speaking of Rory, he’s No. 1 and now Spieth’s No. 2. For the first time in McIlroy’s place at the top, he has a younger counterpart one spot behind him.
Rory and Jordan. No. 1 and No. 2. A combined 46 years of age and approximately a billion seasons between them before we should anticipate decline courtesy of Father Time. Are we being handed golf’s new rivalry for the foreseeable future?
It’s a tantalizing vision after the week that just transpired at Augusta. Spieth shook off a disappointing final round last year at Augusta, returning in 2015 to the tune of 18-under, absolutely obliterating a course that had not yielded a 72-hole total better than 10-under since 2011.
On a layout that has long been cast as a bomber’s paradise, he dominated the field without impressive power. Spieth, in fact, ranked 44th in driving distance among the 55 weekend competitors!
And this performance only reinforced a recent trend, as the 21-year-old entered the event coming off finishes of first, second and tied for second, not to mention his two other victories late in the 2014 season.
As for McIlroy, his week wasn’t as impressive, but didn’t exactly make us question his talent. After faltering to at least one big round in every Masters since 2011, the Northern Irishman finally broke the curse, posting a 71-71-68-66 finishing in solo fourth and six shots short of the Career Grand Slam.
Those numbers don’t do his work justice either.
The 25-year-old was 3-over through 27 holes of the tournament and below the projected cut line, and summoned all of his power to produce a final 45 holes that he played in 15-under. In a way, it was reminiscent of what Tiger Woods did in 2007 at Augusta when he briefly flirted with the cutline only to storm back to second place by the end.
In any case, Spieth and McIlroy performed at a high level, and with both now major championship winners in their earlier 20s, it seems based off these recent events that the two are guaranteed to dominate the sport together and fight vigorously for that top post.
But let’s not be premature here.
Spieth’s week at Augusta was as magnificent as his score suggests, and in a way it is actually underrated. His four-stroke triumph appears in the record books as a worthy but less than dominant performance. That’s kind of misleading, considering Spieth did this wire-to-wire, which only adds to the difficulty, and considering this aspect of his four-shot 54 hole lead:
Justin Rose just posted the 10th best Masters three round score relative to the field since 1989. He's four back.
— Jake Nichols (@jalnichols) April 11, 2015
But whatever Spieth says, his month of brilliance has not been his norm, and will likely be an extended peak to his usual play. He could keep up his series of wins and runner-ups for another week or two, but after that he’s likely to revert closer to his (highly enviable) average in the short term. It’s easy to anoint during a player’s peak, less simple to do so when time has passed and the player has regressed to his norm.
There’s also the harrowing issue of length off the tee. As I noted, Spieth pummeled Augusta without using much driving power, instead relying more on an all-around effort that was most potent in his putter. To an extent this is Spieth’s norm. For the past two seasons, he was remarkably average in driving distance on the PGA Tour finishing 80th of 180 in the category in 2013 and 89th of 177 in 2014.
Spieth has made remarkable improvement in club head speed in 2015 and that has shot him up the list to 55th, and his place among the above-average lot in power may be his true spot. Even if that’s the case, Spieth is nowhere near McIlroy’s top five rate in power, and that portends trouble.
Rory certainly has his flaws, his putting can be suspect and his accuracy off the tee can sometimes go awry, but those are defects that can be mitigated through extensive practice. A lack of elite power, though, is unfixable. And barring another pair of significant jumps in club head speed, Spieth will be forever saddled with this disadvantage.
McIlroy, then, will always have the upper hand when it comes to the tools to dominate and possess more leeway to employ flaws while retaining top-of-the-world status. That’s the sizable advantage long hitters profit from.
So maybe there are some reasons to cool off on an incoming Spieth-McIlroy rivalry hype, but that doesn’t mean I believe it won’t come to fruition.
A golfer doesn’t have to be a power hitter to challenge for the top spot; it’s just unlikely, not unprecedented. In fact, Luke Donald, a far shorter hitter than Spieth, kept his reign as the game’s best player for basically a full year. While Spieth’s recent play is probable to be classified as a peak, there’s no reason to believe he won’t reach more peaks in the future or that his average weekly performance won’t improve as he continues to gain experience on the professional circuit.
Spieth also appears to have the confidence and mental acumen to bulldoze any perceived disadvantages.
And how do we even classify rivalry in golf anyway? The distance issue may just be a red herring, as some have classified Woods-Mickelson a true rivalry despite its clear lack of near-equals.
The idea of a Spieth-McIlroy battle seems a foregone conclusion in the afterglow of this year’s Masters.
But let’s hold off for a bit on a definitive answer. Maybe give some time to view subsequent performances rather than handing over full control to recency bias.
I’m optimistic that we will see a robust rivalry between these two young superstars in the time to come, I’m just not willing to stamp it into certainty yet.
Whatever the case, this is an exciting time in golf. Let’s not ruin it by rushing into conclusions.
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The PGA TOUR heads to New Orleans to play the 2023 Zurich Classic of New Orleans. In a welcome change from the usual stroke play, the Zurich Classic is a team event. On Thursday and Saturday, the teams play best ball, and on Friday and Sunday the teams play alternate shot.
TPC Louisiana is a par 72 that measures 7,425 yards. The course features some short par 4s and plenty of water and bunkers, which makes for a lot of exciting risk/reward scenarios for competitors. Pete Dye designed the course in 2004 specifically for the Zurich Classic, although the event didn’t make its debut until 2007 because of Hurricane Katrina.
Coming off of the Masters and a signature event in consecutive weeks, the field this week is a step down, and understandably so. Many of the world’s top players will be using this time to rest after a busy stretch.
However, there are some interesting teams this season with some stars making surprise appearances in the team event. Some notable teams include Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, Collin Morikawa and Kurt Kitayama, Will Zalatoris and Sahith Theegala as well as a few Canadian teams, Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin and Taylor Pendrith and Corey Conners.
Past Winners at TPC Louisiana
- 2023: Riley/Hardy (-30)
- 2022: Cantlay/Schauffele (-29)
- 2021: Leishman/Smith (-20)
- 2019: Palmer/Rahm (-26)
- 2018: Horschel/Piercy (-22)
- 2017: Blixt/Smith (-27)
2024 Zurich Classic of New Orleans Picks
Tom Hoge/Maverick McNealy +2500 (DraftKings)
Tom Hoge is coming off of a solid T18 finish at the RBC Heritage and finished T13 at last year’s Zurich Classic alongside Harris English.
This season, Hoge is having one of his best years on Tour in terms of Strokes Gained: Approach. In his last 24 rounds, the only player to top him on the category is Scottie Scheffler. Hoge has been solid on Pete Dye designs, ranking 28th in the field over his past 36 rounds.
McNealy is also having a solid season. He’s finished T6 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and T9 at the PLAYERS Championship. He recently started working with world renowned swing coach, Butch Harmon, and its seemingly paid dividends in 2024.
Keith Mitchell/Joel Dahmen +4000 (DraftKings)
Keith Mitchell is having a fantastic season, finishing in the top-20 of five of his past seven starts on Tour. Most recently, Mitchell finished T14 at the Valero Texas Open and gained a whopping 6.0 strokes off the tee. He finished 6th at last year’s Zurich Classic.
Joel Dahmen is having a resurgent year and has been dialed in with his irons. He also has a T11 finish at the PLAYERS Championship at TPC Sawgrass which is another Pete Dye track. With Mitchell’s length and Dahmen’s ability to put it close with his short irons, the Mitchell/Dahmen combination will be dangerous this week.
Taylor Moore/Matt NeSmith +6500 (DraftKings)
Taylor Moore has quickly developed into one of the more consistent players on Tour. He’s finished in the top-20 in three of his past four starts, including a very impressive showing at The Masters, finishing T20. He’s also finished T4 at this event in consecutive seasons alongside Matt NeSmith.
NeSmith isn’t having a great 2024, but has seemed to elevate his game in this format. He finished T26 at Pete Dye’s TPC Sawgrass, which gives the 30-year-old something to build off of. NeSmith is also a great putter on Bermudagrass, which could help elevate Moore’s ball striking prowess.
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After having four of the top twelve players on the leaderboard at The Masters, LIV Golf is set for their fifth event of the season: LIV Adelaide.
For both LIV fans and golf fans in Australia, LIV Adelaide is one of the most anticipated events of the year. With 35,000 people expected to attend each day of the tournament, the Grange Golf Club will be crawling with fans who are passionate about the sport of golf. The 12th hole, better known as “the watering hole”, is sure to have the rowdiest of the fans cheering after a long day of drinking some Leishman Lager.
The Grange Golf Club is a par-72 that measures 6,946 yards. The course features minimal resistance, as golfers went extremely low last season. In 2023, Talor Gooch shot consecutive rounds of 62 on Thursday and Friday, giving himself a gigantic cushion heading into championship Sunday. Things got tight for a while, but in the end, the Oklahoma State product was able to hold off The Crushers’ Anirban Lahiri for a three-shot victory.
The Four Aces won the team competition with the Range Goats finishing second.
*All Images Courtesy of LIV Golf*
Past Winners at LIV Adelaide
- 2023: Talor Gooch (-19)
Stat Leaders Through LIV Miami
Green in Regulation
- Richard Bland
- Jon Rahm
- Paul Casey
Fairways Hit
- Abraham Ancer
- Graeme McDowell
- Henrik Stenson
Driving Distance
- Bryson DeChambeau
- Joaquin Niemann
- Dean Burmester
Putting
- Cameron Smith
- Louis Oosthuizen
- Matt Jones
2024 LIV Adelaide Picks
Cameron Smith +1400 (DraftKings)
When I pulled up the odds for LIV Adelaide, I was more than a little surprised to see multiple golfers listed ahead of Cameron Smith on the betting board. A few starts ago, Cam finished runner-up at LIV Hong Kong, which is a golf course that absolutely suits his eye. Augusta National in another course that Smith could roll out of bed and finish in the top-ten at, and he did so two weeks ago at The Masters, finishing T6.
At Augusta, he gained strokes on the field on approach, off the tee (slightly), and of course, around the green and putting. Smith able to get in the mix at a major championship despite coming into the week feeling under the weather tells me that his game is once again rounding into form.
The Grange Golf Club is another course that undoubtedly suits the Australian. Smith is obviously incredibly comfortable playing in front of the Aussie faithful and has won three Australian PGA Championship’s. The course is very short and will allow Smith to play conservative off the tee, mitigating his most glaring weakness. With birdies available all over the golf course, there’s a chance the event turns into a putting contest, and there’s no one on the planet I’d rather have in one of those than Cam Smith.
Louis Oosthuizen +2200 (DraftKings)
Louis Oosthuizen has simply been one of the best players on LIV in the 2024 seas0n. The South African has finished in the top-10 on the LIV leaderboard in three of his five starts, with his best coming in Jeddah, where he finished T2. Perhaps more impressively, Oosthuizen finished T7 at LIV Miami, which took place at Doral’s “Blue Monster”, an absolutely massive golf course. Given that Louis is on the shorter side in terms of distance off the tee, his ability to play well in Miami shows how dialed he is with the irons this season.
In addition to the LIV finishes, Oosthuizen won back-to-back starts on the DP World Tour in December at the Alfred Dunhill Championship and the Mauritus Open. He also finished runner-up at the end of February in the International Series Oman. The 41-year-old has been one of the most consistent performers of 2024, regardless of tour.
For the season, Louis ranks 4th on LIV in birdies made, T9 in fairways hit and first in putting. He ranks 32nd in driving distance, but that won’t be an issue at this short course. Last season, he finished T11 at the event, but was in decent position going into the final round but fell back after shooting 70 while the rest of the field went low. This season, Oosthuizen comes into the event in peak form, and the course should be a perfect fit for his smooth swing and hot putter this week.
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Of all the clubs in our bags, wedges are almost always the simplest in construction and, therefore, the easiest to analyze what might make one work differently from another if you know what to look for.
Wedges are a lot less mysterious than drivers, of course, as the major brands are working with a lot of “pixie dust” inside these modern marvels. That’s carrying over more to irons now, with so many new models featuring internal multi-material technologies, and almost all of them having a “badge” or insert in the back to allow more complex graphics while hiding the actual distribution of mass.
But when it comes to wedges, most on the market today are still single pieces of molded steel, either cast or forged into that shape. So, if you look closely at where the mass is distributed, it’s pretty clear how that wedge is going to perform.
To start, because of their wider soles, the majority of the mass of almost any wedge is along the bottom third of the clubhead. So, the best wedge shots are always those hit between the 2nd and 5th grooves so that more mass is directly behind that impact. Elite tour professionals practice incessantly to learn to do that consistently, wearing out a spot about the size of a penny right there. If impact moves higher than that, the face is dramatically thinner, so smash factor is compromised significantly, which reduces the overall distance the ball will fly.
Every one of us, tour players included, knows that maddening shot that we feel a bit high on the face and it doesn’t go anywhere, it’s not your fault.
If your wedges show a wear pattern the size of a silver dollar, and centered above the 3rd or 4th groove, you are not getting anywhere near the same performance from shot to shot. Robot testing proves impact even two to three grooves higher in the face can cause distance loss of up to 35 to 55 feet with modern ‘tour design’ wedges.
In addition, as impact moves above the center of mass, the golf club principle of gear effect causes the ball to fly higher with less spin. Think of modern drivers for a minute. The “holy grail” of driving is high launch and low spin, and the driver engineers are pulling out all stops to get the mass as low in the clubhead as possible to optimize this combination.
Where is all the mass in your wedges? Low. So, disregarding the higher lofts, wedges “want” to launch the ball high with low spin – exactly the opposite of what good wedge play requires penetrating ball flight with high spin.
While almost all major brand wedges have begun putting a tiny bit more thickness in the top portion of the clubhead, conventional and modern ‘tour design’ wedges perform pretty much like they always have. Elite players learn to hit those crisp, spinny penetrating wedge shots by spending lots of practice time learning to consistently make contact low in the face.
So, what about grooves and face texture?
Grooves on any club can only do so much, and no one has any material advantage here. The USGA tightly defines what we manufacturers can do with grooves and face texture, and modern manufacturing techniques allow all of us to push those limits ever closer. And we all do. End of story.
Then there’s the topic of bounce and grinds, the most complex and confusing part of the wedge formula. Many top brands offer a complex array of sole configurations, all of them admittedly specialized to a particular kind of lie or turf conditions, and/or a particular divot pattern.
But if you don’t play the same turf all the time, and make the same size divot on every swing, how would you ever figure this out?
The only way is to take any wedge you are considering and play it a few rounds, hitting all the shots you face and observing the results. There’s simply no other way.
So, hopefully this will inspire a lively conversation in our comments section, and I’ll chime in to answer any questions you might have.
And next week, I’ll dive into the rest of the wedge formula. Yes, shafts, grips and specifications are essential, too.
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Dave Portnoy places monstrous outright bet for the 2024 Masters
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2-time major champ announces shock retirement from the sport at age of 33
Report: LIV Golf identifies latest star name they hope to sign to breakaway tour
Neal Shipley presser ends in awkward fashion after reporter claims Tiger handed him note on 8th fairway
Sam Burns WITB 2024 (April)
Sam Burns’ what’s in the bag accurate as of the RBC Heritage. Driver: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond S (9 degrees...
Will Zalatoris WITB 2024 (April)
Will Zalatoris’ what’s in the bag accurate as of the RBC Heritage. Driver: Titleist TSR2 (9 degrees, A1 SureFit setting)...
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Driver: TaylorMade Qi10 (8 degrees @8.25) Buy here. Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 7 X (45 inches) 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi10 (15 degrees) Buy...
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19th Hole2 weeks agoDave Portnoy places monstrous outright bet for the 2024 Masters
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19th Hole2 weeks agoTiger Woods arrives at 2024 Masters equipped with a putter that may surprise you
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19th Hole17 hours ago‘Absolutely crazy’ – Major champ lays into Patrick Cantlay over his decision on final hole of RBC Heritage
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19th Hole3 weeks agoReport: Tiger Woods has ‘eliminated sex’ in preparation for the 2024 Masters
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19th Hole1 week agoTwo star names reportedly blanked Jon Rahm all week at the Masters
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19th Hole7 days agoReport: LIV Golf identifies latest star name they hope to sign to breakaway tour
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19th Hole1 week agoNeal Shipley presser ends in awkward fashion after reporter claims Tiger handed him note on 8th fairway
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19th Hole6 days agoBrandel Chamblee has ‘no doubt’ who started the McIlroy/LIV rumor and why
JordanJordanJordan
Apr 15, 2015 at 3:17 am
A good story for the near future. A nice way to hype us any Europe VS USA stories. The US needed this win!
brian
Apr 13, 2015 at 12:49 pm
Way to soon to call it a rivalry.
Bobby
Apr 14, 2015 at 11:28 pm
Spieth is the real deal. Rory barely showed up this weekend. Not only that, Spieth is number 2 in the world. It’s a rivalry.
bunty
Apr 13, 2015 at 9:25 am
Wont be much of a contest in hair growing in a few years time
rory>spieth
Jack
Apr 15, 2015 at 5:47 am
LOL yeah. He’s 21 and already balding.
Jonny B
Apr 13, 2015 at 9:16 am
The “rivalry” won’t be created by the two players, it will be created by the media. It’s articles like these, and quips like the one from Jim Nance at the close of coverage yesterday that create them. I think the players (at least Rory and Spieth) have no interest in rivalries, they just try to be every single person they play against, not a specific one. So their rivals are actually all of their competitors, which makes any rivalry moot.
Personally, I’d like to see some more trash talking and rivalry on the tour. It would have been refreshing to see Spieth take some digs at others after yesterday’s win, or even make some cocky remarks in general. I think that is missing from golf vs. other sports. Granted, it’s a gentleman’s game. But the humility and the political correctness of every winner week in and week out is why the viewership isn’t growing. People who don’t golf aren’t interested in watching it because it’s not entertaining. I don’t play football, or baseball, or basketball – but I watch because it is entertaining. There are plenty of heroes and villains in those sports, and true rivalries fueled by hatred of other teams and players. You just don’t have that in golf.
Rory blasted Tiger yesterday by 7 strokes – wouldn’t it have been fun to hear him take some shots at Tiger’s “hurt hand” or something? Or when asked to comment on Jordan’s victory he would have said something like “come talk to me when he has 4 majors” or something like that.
Wouldn’t it have been great if Jordan would have made some “Tiger who?” or “Rory who?” comment after a record win?
Fred
Apr 13, 2015 at 2:55 pm
That’s precisely the problem with many of the other sports. Too much drama. Why can’t you just enjoy the game and the excellence displayed by these great golfers? The need for drama queens and extra trash talk is very telling on your part. Go watch soap operas instead of sports. Nothing wrong with a bit of banter and going back and forth in a friendly and fun way, as I do with my friends. But come on man! People have in our modern day have lost touch. They feel this insatiable need to be “entertained” all the time. Just enjoy golf and enjoy life. Stop looking for drama. It doesn’t spice up life. It’s just needless and pointless.
Jafar
Apr 15, 2015 at 12:21 pm
Golf is a good place to get away from “everyone”.
More people should watch it because they enjoy and understand the game.
That kind of mentality doesn’t help boxing and it didn’t help Seattle win a Super Bowl two years in a row.
Trash talk is for people who are too scared to let their skills do the talking. And doing it right after winning guarantees your quick downfall to reality.
Ronald Montesano
Apr 13, 2015 at 6:28 am
I don’t know that the #2 ranking point is germane to the question, is this a rivalry? It’s trivial.
The answer to the headline question is no, but feel free to disagree. Every golfer on every professional tour rivals her/his colleagues, so saying that any one-on-one is more important. To the best of my knowledge, Rory and Jordan have not gone head-to-head down the stretch in any professional tournament, nor has either expressed any outward dislike for the other.
Sergio attempted to create a rivalry with Tiger in the late 1990s, but that failed due to the Spaniard’s performance. The media loves to create rivalries, as the mere headline tantalizes and creates argumentative discourse. I have no reason to elevate Jordan Spieth above any other, one-time major winner. He’s not even Dave Marr yet.
Rich
Apr 13, 2015 at 9:52 am
The media criticising the media. That’s funny.
dapadre
Apr 13, 2015 at 4:08 am
This Masters brought forth and confirmed the following point for me:
Golf has a new darling and Im a fan. Like how this kid carries himself in all areas.
This is not a fluke. His record speaks for itself even before the Masters. Look at his top 10 finishes and other stats and well as wins or near wins. Keep in mind he tore up the Masters after its was Tiger-Proof.
Distance is WAY overrated. If you can reach Par 5’s in two, whats the issue. Spieth is not a long hitter, TAKEN. but he is NOT short. His iron play and putting is lights out. The scary thing is that this is not the first time he has shown these qualities (strong iron play an putting). What many also fail to realize is that he is not that accurate off the tee. During the Masters he was better than usual, but even when is not he is in contention and that is scary. A player who is always in contention is going to do well.
That Chamblee is a moron and clearly DOESNT know what he is talking about and his tirade on Tiger is strictly personal. Saw no YIPS from Tiger and for a guy who hasnt competed in while did quite well. His partner in crime Haney is Buthurt.
That golf is Tee to Green, period.
Nathan
Apr 13, 2015 at 12:39 am
I knew who wrote this story just by reading the heading.
Kevin Casey
Apr 13, 2015 at 1:09 am
I’m going to be optimistic and take that as a compliment. So, thank you, Nathan!
Scooter McGavin
Apr 13, 2015 at 6:41 am
You shouldn’t take it as a compliment.
Jack
Apr 15, 2015 at 5:51 am
He’s a college student. The whole world is ahead of him.
MHendon
Apr 12, 2015 at 10:59 pm
I’ll take clutch putting, well above avg iron play, and avg distance off the tee over streaky putting, above avg iron play, and well above avg distance off the tee any day. In other words its about the putting. I think people confuse Tigers greatness with his distance but really it was his putting. Jordan reminded me of him on the greens today.
Kevin Casey
Apr 12, 2015 at 11:16 pm
I can see where you’re coming from there. And I don’t think it’s nearly out of the question that Spieth could be as good as or better than McIlroy. It’s just that the greatest players of all time (which McIlroy will be in if he continues on this trajectory) have a high majority of really long hitters.
It goes to show that not having elite power makes it a lot more difficult to be an all time great. But certainly not impossible! And it’s a lot more impressive to see a guy without elite power on that list, because he has a clear disadvantage that he legitimately cannot fix.
Spieth dominating a course that really favors big hitters is certainly a good sign for him, I’m just saying that the distance gap between him and McIlroy could be a looming issue. That extra power allows Rory to be less than stellar in other categories and still be at the top, whereas Spieth doesn’t have near as much margin for error here.
You mention Tiger, and there’s no doubt putting has played a large role in his success. But his power certainly has also. It’s allowed him to dominate despite being absolutely abysmal when it comes to accuracy off the tee.
I really like Spieth and certainly see a bright future ahead. I’d say he has a more polished game than McIlroy, and if anybody could make that distance gap a moot point, Spieth is near the top of the list.
Just a looming issue, though, that I’m unsure of. We’ll have a better answer there a few years from now.
Jack
Apr 15, 2015 at 5:57 am
Spieth has been playing well for a while now, but his putter was just on fire it seemed this tournament. If he somehow maintains it, then he’s going to be a great. Tiger at his prime was awesome with his putter. Doesn’t matter if you drive it really long and then lob it, or drive it fairly long and then PW it. You’re going to score with a great putter.
He killed it on Par 5’s, and if you can do that, then driving distance is enough. He struggled with it last year, and was pretty decent the year before that.