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McKINNEY, Texas — Jordan Spieth gave a subtle hop of anticipation as his nine-foot putt on the sixth green at TPC Craig Ranch began its slow, true roll on Friday, the moment carrying just enough spark to hint at the rhythm in his round.
At home in North Texas, the jump seemed to help the ball into the hole, as the crowd erupted and the scoreboard behind him announced a new leader: Jordan Spieth -11.
More: Byron Nelson Friday leaderboard, PGA Tour live cut line updates
It's not a major, and it's only Friday, but after posting a career-tying six straight birdies during the second round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, it sure felt like the Dallas-area native, who has been working to regain his form since a 2024 wrist surgery, has come full circle.
Spieth surged to the top of the leaderboard at the newly renovated course, following his 68 on Thursday with a pair of birdies on his first nine (he started on the back), then ripped off a half-dozen straight birdies. As of 12:55 p.m. ET, Spieth is 11 under for the tournament and tied for the lead. He did miss a birdie effort on the seventh hole to end the streak.
He has shown flickers that his game is turning the corner. Though he is nearing a year since his last top-10 finish at the 2025 Memorial, Spieth has quietly pieced together four top-12 results this season while missing just one cut in 12 starts. The putter, once a glaring weakness — it dipped to 101st in 2024 — has steadied into a strength, climbing to 34th this year.
Still, the pieces have rarely aligned all at once.
“If you look at the stats, yeah, it’s a whack-a-mole situation,” Spieth said at the PGA Championship. “I’ve had weeks where I’m leading in putting, weeks where I’ve led in driving, weeks where I’m leading in ball-striking. I just haven’t been able to put it all together — or lean on something on an off day without having another part of the game kind of throw me out of it.”
It’s been a familiar pattern: just as momentum builds, something stalls it out.
“It’s just not quite consistent enough yet to be contending week in and week out,” he conceded. “But I know what to do and how to get there. I just have to stay the course and trust it will happen.”
There have been small signs. Spieth worked his way into one of the final weekend groups at Doral — his first such position of the season — an encouraging step even if he felt he left something on the table over the past few weeks.
Tim Schmitt is the managing editor of Golfweek.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Jordan Spieth takes lead Byron Nelson after six straight birdies
Continue reading...
At home in North Texas, the jump seemed to help the ball into the hole, as the crowd erupted and the scoreboard behind him announced a new leader: Jordan Spieth -11.
More: Byron Nelson Friday leaderboard, PGA Tour live cut line updates
It's not a major, and it's only Friday, but after posting a career-tying six straight birdies during the second round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, it sure felt like the Dallas-area native, who has been working to regain his form since a 2024 wrist surgery, has come full circle.
Spieth surged to the top of the leaderboard at the newly renovated course, following his 68 on Thursday with a pair of birdies on his first nine (he started on the back), then ripped off a half-dozen straight birdies. As of 12:55 p.m. ET, Spieth is 11 under for the tournament and tied for the lead. He did miss a birdie effort on the seventh hole to end the streak.
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He has shown flickers that his game is turning the corner. Though he is nearing a year since his last top-10 finish at the 2025 Memorial, Spieth has quietly pieced together four top-12 results this season while missing just one cut in 12 starts. The putter, once a glaring weakness — it dipped to 101st in 2024 — has steadied into a strength, climbing to 34th this year.
Still, the pieces have rarely aligned all at once.
“If you look at the stats, yeah, it’s a whack-a-mole situation,” Spieth said at the PGA Championship. “I’ve had weeks where I’m leading in putting, weeks where I’ve led in driving, weeks where I’m leading in ball-striking. I just haven’t been able to put it all together — or lean on something on an off day without having another part of the game kind of throw me out of it.”
It’s been a familiar pattern: just as momentum builds, something stalls it out.
“It’s just not quite consistent enough yet to be contending week in and week out,” he conceded. “But I know what to do and how to get there. I just have to stay the course and trust it will happen.”
There have been small signs. Spieth worked his way into one of the final weekend groups at Doral — his first such position of the season — an encouraging step even if he felt he left something on the table over the past few weeks.
Tim Schmitt is the managing editor of Golfweek.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Jordan Spieth takes lead Byron Nelson after six straight birdies
Continue reading...
