DUBLIN, Ohio – With Ben Crenshaw, one of the greatest putters the game has ever seen being The Memorial honoree, it was natural to ask players in the field who was the best with the short stick they've ever seen.
Jordan Spieth's name popped up quite a bit.
“Jordan Spieth is up there,” Rory McIlroy said. “I think especially from that sort of middle distance, every putt he hits is just like the perfect speed. I think that's one of the things I always notice when I play with Jordan.”
Spieth proved why his name popped up so many times in Thursday's first round of Jack Nicklaus' annual gathering at Muirfield Village Golf Club. He had 11 1-putt greens, gained 3.250 on the field with his putting and needed just 25 in all.
He made birdies from 12, 8, 12 and 7 feet and canned par saves of 7, 17, 8, 3, 7 and 10 feet en route to a 2-under-par 70.