British Open: Jordan Spieth making more magic at Carnoustie

He may never top last year’s British Open performance, but Jordan Spieth is right in the thick of it again this year at Carnoustie.

Jordan Spieth – the 24-year-old from the heart of Texas – is finding a new kind of magic at the British Open.

The defending champion golfer of the year hasn’t always made it look pretty, but thankfully, “pretty” doesn’t go on the scorecard. And after 36 holes, he finds himself just three shots behind co-leaders Zach Johnson and Kevin Kisner.

Spieth has struggled to find his confidence, as well as a swing thought that he’s confident with, throughout much of the 2018 PGA TOUR season. but if he’s somehow not at 100 percent right now, here’s something that will pick him up right away.

Spieth could very easily be leading this tournament at the midway point, without changing much of anything at all.

The closing stretch at Carnoustie is one of the most famously difficult series of holes on the planet. On holes 15-18 this week, Spieth is five over. One painful double on Thursday (Spieth described that sequence – accurately – as a brain fart) , and a couple of routine Carnoustie bogeys.

Obviously, that’s a tough run, and one that likely won’t get any easier on Sunday. But Spieth is also a flawless eight under par on holes 1-14 this week. And with every passing bogey-free hole, his momentum picks up that much more.

Then, there’s shots like this. At some point, you just get the feeling that Spieth is willing himself up the leaderboard more than anything else.

Pure brilliance from @JordanSpieth #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/VdjR91gTHe
— The Open (@TheOpen) July 20, 2018

That’s what we call “Jordan Spieth doing Jordan Spieth things”.

And that’s when he’s at his most dangerous. Spieth’s mind for golf is brilliant, potentially one of the all-time greats. He certainly has that potential.

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But more than that, he’s a gamer. Put the ball on the ground, a club in his hand, and ask him to get the job done. The vast majority of the time, he’ll figure out a way.

Spieth was underestimated this week because of the challenges he’s faced on Tour this year.This week, though, he’s been able to fight through those moments, not succumb to them.

That chip-in above came on a hole when Spieth air-mailed the green. He missed more fairways than he hit for the second straight day, he hit two more greens and shaved a few putts of the round, but what he did best was find a way to score, regardless of the setup. And his short game, from the putter to the wedges, is cooperating once again.

"“I know that my swing isn’t exactly where I want it to be; it’s nowhere near where it was at Birkdale,” he said. “But the short game is on point, and the swing is working in the right direction to get the confidence back.”"

Currently in a tie for 11th place, Spieth faces just a three-stroke hole between himself and the leaders. As we’ve seen so many times, that can turn around in the blink of an eye, especially on a British Open weekend.

Next: Dustin Johnson, Justin Thomas headline group of stars to miss British Open cut

I’ve been on the Spieth bandwagon pretty much from Day One, and while it’s impossible to predict “magic”, we’ve seen it enough times to know he’s got plenty in store. He wants the Claret Jug back, and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if he found himself on top of the leaderboard by Saturday night.

After all, that’s just Jordan doing Jordan things.

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