Bittersweet day for Spieth

bruced
April 14, 2014

It was a case of oh so close, but yet so far for Jordan Spieth after he narrowly missed out on becoming the youngest Masters winner.

The 20-year-old finished tied second with Jonas Blixt at Augusta National on Sunday, three strokes behind winner Bubba Watson.

Having started the day in a tie for the lead with Watson, the rookie found himself with a two-shot lead with 11 holes still to play, but bogeys at the eighth and nine cost him dearly as his main rival picked up birdies there.

In the end he came up short and missed out being the first rookie to win at Augusta since Fuzzy Zoeller in 1979, but he still had plenty of positives to take out of it.

“I’ve worked my whole life to lead Augusta on Sunday and although I feel like it’s very early in my career and I’ll have more chances, it’s a stinger,” Spieth said.

“I had it in my hands and I could have gone forward with it and just didn’t quite make the putts and that’s what it came down to. But ultimately, I’m very happy with the week, happy with the way my game is at going forward.

“The standing ovation coming down the back nine of Augusta is a feeling I won’t forget.”

With the tension on during the final round, his inexperience perhaps counted against the youngster.

“I learned that I actually can have patience,” the American said. “That’s something I’ve been struggling with when in these kind of positions. That’s why I don’t think I’ve won more when I’ve had a chance.

“This week I proved to myself that if I can go in with that kind of attitude that I’ll be successful more often than not.

“I feel like I’m ready to win. It’s just a matter of time and maybe a little bit of course knowledge.”