Hard to imagine the odds ever stacked against Jordan Spieth.
He’s not the kind of player you’d bet against — ever.
The FedEx Cup pursuit begins for Spieth early Thursday morning at Plainfield Country Club, Edison, N.J. He’s off at 8:26 a.m. with PGA Champion Jason Day and the moody Bubba Watson. That’s the world’s No. 1, No. 3 and No. 4 players, together.
No. 2, Rory McIlroy, is sitting this week out, not wanting to put four straight weeks on his healing left ankle.
Makes perfect sense.
You have to wonder how Day is feeling. He withdrew from the pro-am on Wednesday. He tweaked his back somehow, messing around with something in his motor home.
Now back to Spieth. He’s the top seed in this season-ending playoff that is made up of four tournaments. The Tour Championship is the biggie. The guy who wins that usually takes the FedEx Cup and the $10 million payout that goes with it.
Last top seed to win it was Tiger Woods in 2009.
Thus, the trend doesn’t favor the top seed.
Still, it’s hard not to see Spieth coming through. He’s had a monster year, winning in excess of $10 million. Day is a distant second at just north of $6 million while Watson’s third at $5.75 million.
Spieth has the staying power. Youth is on his side, so is that incredible putting stroke.
Basically, when all is said and done, in four weeks, the guy winning it all will be the guy who makes the most birdie putts.
And Spieth fits that bill perfectly.
