Three Aggressive Young Golf Stars Are More Old School Than Not

AUGUSTA, Ga. - The young and the restless grouping of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed arrived at the par-4 17th hole a combined four under par in the first round of the Masters. All three hit approaches that looked suitable for posing, but two of the balls rolled like tears off the green.

Only McIlroy took out a putter for his third shot, his ball having stopped roughly a dozen feet from the pin, or about a foot from where Reed's ball landed, spelling certain disaster. At 24, McIlroy is not much older than Reed, 23, or Spieth, 20, but he is infinitely wiser in the ways of Augusta National Golf Club. Thursday's round was McIlroy's 19th in tournament play here; Spieth and Reed were making their Masters debuts.

All three wear their aggressiveness like a sponsor's patch on their sleeves. They are at the vanguard of golf's new wave of players who have never seen a tournament field they didn't think they could dominate.

McIlroy is a two-time major winner, Spieth is the PGA Tour's reigning rookie of the year, and Reed has won twice in 2014. Despite their new-school embrace of strength training, and even as they have paid their dues as professionals in one lump sum rather than over time, they are more old school than not.

Reed, who finished Thursday's round with three straight bogeys for a one-over 73, has drawn criticism for his brashness, but he hasn't rubbed his playing peers any rawer than Lanny Wadkins did in the 1970s. Sure, Reed owned up to wanting to play a practice round at Augusta barefoot. But he kept his shoes and socks on this week, unlike Sam Snead, who removed his and hit off the first tee before the 1942 tournament. And Reed was the only one in his group who doffed his cap to shake the hands of the Augusta National members standing at the first tee box.

Spieth, who carded a 71, is such a baby-faced assassin, it is easy to overlook that he has the head of Ben Hogan and the heart of Arnold Palmer. At one point in a news conference before the tournament, Spieth quoted his favorite player, a decidedly old-school choice, saying, 'Like Ben Hogan said, if you hit the green, you've pulled it.'

On his second shot at the 17th hole, Spieth aimed for the flag, as he is inclined to do.

'I knew what the safe play was but got a little aggressive, which is my nature, which you can't necessarily have out here,' he said.

McIlroy, who also posted a 71, with a bogey on the 18th hole, is an avid student of the sport, often referring in his news conferences to players and results from decades before he was born.

A former world No. 1, McIlroy was asked this week about being grouped with Spieth and Reed. 'Yeah, there's going to be no top-5 players in that group,' he said with a laugh.

Officially, McIlroy started the week at No. 9, four places ahead of Spieth, who was 10 spots in front of Reed.

'It feels funny that they are going to be playing their first Masters and I'm playing my sixth,' McIlroy said. 'I feel like the veteran in the group.'

In some ways, the future of the game has improved upon the past. McIlroy, of Northern Ireland, has an on-course demeanor that Snead never mastered. He passed the time between shots conversing with Spieth about golf courses and scheduling but not too much about sports because, as Spieth, a Texan, said, 'He's more of a football/soccer fan, and I'm more of a football/football fan.'

Nearly three hours before the titanic 20-something threesome teed off, the septuagenarian Gary Player, who joined Palmer and Jack Nicklaus as an honorary starter, sat in the interview room and told a story about losing to Snead in a playoff.

'I said, 'Mr. Snead, is there anything that you can see in my swing that you can help me with?' ' Player said. 'He said, 'Son, I ain't seen you swing yet.' '

Not only did McIlroy watch Spieth's swings, but he also acknowledged the good ones, of which there were many.

'I really enjoy playing with him,' Spieth said. 'He roots for me.'

Spieth's 71 was one stroke better than McIlroy's first posted score here. And while Reed was mad that he did not at least match par, having been two under through 15, McIlroy put both players' efforts into perspective, as elders do.

'I felt they handled it really well,' McIlroy said. 'They both had it under par.'

Augusta National puts a premium on approach shots - it is considered a second-shot course - but Reed found out that hitting well off the tee still matters. His driving was erratic, so he was often hitting longer irons into the greens than his competitors.

The 17th was a microcosm of Reed's round. He didn't find the sweet spot on his drive, and after his second shot rolled off the back of the green, his chip rolled off the front. His next chip slid past the hole, and he made a knee knocker of a putt to salvage bogey.

'I felt like I didn't do anything really well today,' Reed said. 'The good thing is, even without doing anything really well, I only shot one over par. If I get everything turned around and hit the ball solid, who knows?'

Lokasi:

Share :