CNN
—
Search for a definition of “eventful” and also you simply could discover a snapshot of Jordan Spieth’s Thursday afternoon.
Of the hundreds of holes the American golfer has performed all through his glittering profession, for sheer spectacle, few can have rivaled the seventh gap he performed throughout the second day of the WGC-Dell Applied sciences Match Play.
Spieth arrived on the quick par-three with a slender one-shot lead over compatriot Taylor Montgomery. The Dallas-born golfer was a house hero at Texas’ Austin Nation Membership, and a big crowd had gathered across the inexperienced to catch a glimpse of the three-time main winner.
And one fan specifically was about to get greater than he bargained for.
“I’m watching Jordan tee off, excited to see Jordan play,” the unnamed fan told the PGA Tour.
“He tees off, I’m watching him swing and all people’s saying, ‘Hey it’s coming lengthy, it’s coming lengthy.’
“Subsequent factor I do know, it appears like any individual’s lifeless legging me within the leg, I look down and see Jordan’s trickling ball down and I used to be like, ‘Oh crap, man, that hit my telephone.’”
Some 220 yards away on the tee, an aghast Spieth had watched as his tee shot went crusing into the gallery. In keeping with broadcast commentary, the ball had initially hit one fan earlier than ricocheting into the telephone, leaving it “shattered,” the fan mentioned.
But the ball was nonetheless in play, deciding on a close-by cart path. After an extended dialogue with rule officers, Spieth was afforded reduction, dropping his ball subsequent to a boulder.
It left Spieth going through an awkward-looking chip onto the inexperienced, however solely after checking in with the close by crowd. After apologizing to the fan for breaking his telephone, Spieth requested to change contact particulars after the spherical, the fan mentioned.
“It was fairly surreal seeing Jordan and getting to speak to him and stuff,” he added.
“I used to be like, ‘Hey don’t fear about it. Simply stand up and down.’”
Promise saved. Regardless of overshooting his method, a surprising lengthy putt noticed Spieth save par and halve the outlet.
Sadly for the world No. 14, three consecutive misplaced holes down the again 9 noticed Montgomery rally to win 2&1. It means Spieth should now beat Eire’s Shane Lowry on Friday and hope Mackenzie Hughes – who he beat within the opening spherical – defeats Montgomery to drive a three-man playoff and stand an opportunity of creating the weekend.
Whatever the end result, the hit fan is greater than content material, with a signed Spieth glove to point out for a lifeless leg and a cracked telephone.
“How cool is that? What a blessing, so thanks Jordan for hitting me man,” he mentioned.
It marks the second time in a matter of weeks {that a} fan has had an sudden assembly with Spieth’s ball.
Earlier in March on the Gamers Championship, Spieth seemed to be sliding in direction of a disappointing missed minimize when he teed off at TPC Sawgrass’ ninth gap – and his final of the day – at two-over for the match.
His distress regarded set to be compounded when his tee shot went crusing in direction of the water, just for Spieth’s fortunes to be modified by a very unlikely supply: a fan’s knee.
The ball ricocheted again onto the golf green, and Spieth chipped in for a spectacular eagle that jumped him to even-par and sealed his secure passage into the weekend.
A tied-Nineteenth end marked a strong enchancment, although for what could be the primary of two occasions in March, Spieth would finish the weekend a glove lighter after handing a memento to the fan.
“It’s the equal of flying [over] a inexperienced in direction of a hazard and hitting a grandstand and coming again on the inexperienced in a method,” Spieth informed reporters earlier in March at TPC Sawgrass.
“Attempting to get that man’s info and see actually no matter he needs this weekend as a result of every part from right here on out is as a result of it hit him.”
One participant in Austin this week who will be capable of relate to Spieth’s weird rounds is Rory McIlroy, who’s having fun with a wonderful begin after victories over Scott Stallings and Denny McCarthy.
On the one hundred and fiftieth Open Championship in July 2022, the Northern Irishman noticed a tee drive grounded by an historic stone on the St. Andrews Outdated Course and broke a PGA Tour worker’s hand with a stray shot – all around the course of his first spherical.