The four-times winner is in his best form for years after back surgery but there are plenty of other Americans with a chanceThe Masters has never been a more international affair than in recent years. When the season’s first major championship tees off on Thursday morning amid the flowering dogwoods and blooming azaleas at Augusta National Golf Club it will mark the 12th straight year the Americans in the field will be outnumbered by players from outside the country – with six of the last 10 winners hailing from foreign soil.A global contingent including Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose, Jason Day and the defending champion, Sergio García, are the prime contenders to keep the Green Jacket off a homegrown player’s back...
New Jersey’s Liberty National course does not seem a likely venue for anti-Donald Trump statements, although because of the recent protests there will be extra focus on what is largely a pointless eventIt is the perfect or imperfect storm, depending on one’s outlook. The Presidents Cup does not create a flicker in the wider golfing consciousness through any given year, but this week focus will be intense.The swell of sporting protest last weekend ordinarily would not resonate much in golf, commonly an individual sport, but this time it’s different for a tournament normally afforded little status or interest. A competition bearing the name of the president, which Donald Trump is even likely to attend, will see USA flags raised and...
The Texan is only 24 and may feel like he has run out of worlds to conquer if he completes the career slam on Sunday by winning the US PGA ChampionshipOne of the most gloriously overblown lines in the history of sports broadcasting was delivered in 1984 by the peerless darts commentator Sid Waddell. Contemplating Eric Bristow’s effortless dominion over his peers, Waddell mused: “When Alexander of Macedon was 33, he cried salt tears because there were no more worlds to conquer. Bristow is only 27.”You have to wonder what ancient historical allusion the much-missed Waddell would have extemporised upon exposure to Jordan Spieth. Come Sunday, there is a fair chance that Jordan the Great will have become only the...
The young Texan is looking to complete a full set of majors at Quail Hollow but the Northern Irishman could turn into party pooper for the home crowdThe enthralling conclusion to the Open Championship did not supply proof of Jordan Spieth’s ferocious competitive spirit . Events at Royal Birkdale last month merely served as a reminder. Though his technical ability is hardly irrelevant, Spieth’s psychological approach has played a massive part in pulling him to the brink of history: at this week’s US PGA Championship he can become the youngest golfer in history to complete a grand slam of majors.“The pros and cons of it being so soon? Pros is you believe you’re in form,” says Spieth. “When you feel...
The American’s triumph ended the run of maiden major winners and has put a different slant on next month’s US PGA Championship when he can secure a career grand slamGolf has its mojo back. It should hardly be disrespectful to those who had claimed the seven majors before the Open Championship that Jordan Spieth’s success has a broader appeal. Every sport benefits, after all, from blue-chip players winning blue‑chip events.Such a theory will be borne out in a matter of weeks as Spieth attempts to become the youngest player in history to claim all four major titles. Among those entitled to savour spine‑tingling events at Royal Birkdale on Sunday was the PGA of America; its US PGA Championship has suddenly been ramped...