Yesterday, Jordan Spieth accomplished something that no young American golfer has been able to do since Tiger Woods back in 1997. And I’m not talking about the fact that with one of the great performances in golf history, he donned the Green Jacket, symbolic of being the Masters champion. What Jordan did this week at Augusta, was capture the hearts of millions of golf fans around the world…and give them hope that the game they love will not be heading down a path of less relevance due to dwindling participation.
Golf really needed something like this….not because of Spieth’s mind-boggling shot making performance… But because of who he is as a person. The several minutes after the final putt dropped, said it all about Jordan…hugs with his loved ones, including one with his grandfather, were so real , that if you weren’t a Jordan Spieth fan before, you probably became one. And then he walked back out on the 18th green and applauded everyone that was there. That’s not something you see most 21 year olds do. His acceptance speech was as brilliant as many of his putts.
We’ve been waiting a long time for a young American, superstar golfer to come along and win not only major championships, but our hearts….yesterday, Jordan Spieth did that!