28 May 2021: Jordan Spieth and Sergio Garcia rained birdies on a benign Colonial course, firing their way to an impressive 7-under 63 to start the Charles Schwab Challenge. Even as fans serenaded Phil Mickelson, the PGA Championship winner smiled his way to a harmless 73. Anirban Lahiri, back from a bout of coronavirus, soaked his card in sweat. An opening 77 left the Indian at the bottom of the board at 7-over.
Garcia nearly made the lead his own with a brilliant 15-footer on the 18th hole, but the ball defied gravity, circling the cup before demanding an extra shot from the 2017 Masters champion.
Mickelson was playing alongside Spieth and Daniel Berger, who made 68. The 50-year-old had a moment behind the microphone though, besides a sterling 22-foot birdie on the final hole. “Yeah, I didn’t play well,” Mickelson said. “But I won the PGA, so.”
But the day clearly belonged to Spieth and Garcia, who remained bogey free through a breezy day in Fort Worth, Texas.
The Spaniard must also have experienced some deja vu, as he matched the 63 he shot as a 21 year old upstart with prodigal powers, when he chalked up his maiden PGA TOUR win 20 years ago. An eagle landed from the greenside bunker at the 620-yard eleventh to cushion Garcia’s card.
“It was quite breezy. It was gusty, so it wasn’t easy to pull some of the clubs,” Garcia said. “There were some tough holes out there, but I was able to hit really good shots on those holes, and a couple up-and-downs when I needed them.”
Spieth ended the day with three straight birdies, including a nice chip from 71 feet on the par-3 eighth hole.
“It’s hard to go any lower,” said Spieth, the winner in 2016. “That’s what I talked about before the tournament. If I could get a couple to go in early in the first round, and the confidence, and the work I’ve been doing on my stroke the last few days … I thought that would exude just a little bit of confidence into the rest of the round on greens where I’ve been very successful on before.”
Two heart transplants haven’t done much to dim the aspirations of Erik Compton. Playing on a sponsor’s exemption, the 41-year-old shot a 65, for a share of the third spot with Jason Kokrak.
Spieth is home in Texas and a victory in the Texas Open helped him end a lengthy drought that stretched back to the Open in 2017. He has been in the hunt this entire season, and when he starts another Friday in familiar climes, Spieth will know that he is going to be in contention on Sunday. A consistent run has meant that he is ninth on the FedEx Cup standings with seven top-10s in his last ten starts.
At Colonial, Spieth has six top-10s in just eight starts, besides the victory in 2016, when he could barely put a foot wrong.
“Colonial, it’s Hogan’s Alley,” he said. “Fit it into tight windows, trying to hit fairways, and control the ball on the green. I’ve putted these greens historically very well, that’s No. 1. I’ve had a knack for reading and dialing in the speed out here.”
