Sony Open Round 1 Co-Leader Jordan Spieth Opens Up on Struggles During Winless Streak, Talks about RV Life

Jordan Spieth shot a 6-under 70 to end up as the co-leader at the Sony Open in Hawaii following Thursday’s opening round.

The day included several saves, which can be described perfectly by watching his progression on the par-4 17^th hole.

“That was pretty Spieth-y.”

Wild par from @JordanSpieth on No. 17 @SonyOpenHawaii 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Ck3omUdPks

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 13, 2023

A tee shot narrowly avoided disaster. A chip goes long and nearly off the green. But a birdie putt saves the day.

Much like the 17^th hole at Waialae, Spieth’s had an interesting ten years on the PGA Tour. He first won at age 19 at the 2013 John Deere Classic, and three major wins came among 10 more wins through 2017.

After that, a nearly four-year dry spell followed before Spieth won again at the 2021 Valero Texas Open. In 2022, he won the RBC Heritage at Hilton Head and was also a perfect 5-0-0 at the Presidents Cup.

Spieth took the opportunity to open up about that period after his opening-round 64 on Thursday.

Spieth explained:

“I would say like I started really well in 2018, ’19, maybe a couple events in ’20 where a day like today where I shot 5- or 6-under to start. I just remember thinking, I know where my game is at and I can maybe fake it as best I can, but it’s not—I don’t really have great control.” 

“What I will say is I’m confident relative to other time periods I’ve been off to similar starts, which is a really good place to be.”

Jordan Spieth described his entire career today in one sentence: “I believe I can shoot 5 or 6 under each day out here. Not to say that that means it’ll happen, but there are other times I would be sitting there going, ‘How do I hold this shit together,’ to be honest. Seriously.”

— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS) January 13, 2023

Spieth also had a moment of fun, talking about an RV he purchased last year and will utilize with his young family on the West Coast and Florida swings that are ahead in the coming weeks.

Spieth shared:

“The reason was kind of to have home on the road. Got the same mattress I have at home, and we’ll leave a lot of Sammy’s stuff on the bus, therefore won’t to have pack a whole lot and can ride on it a lot in between events.”

He also joked about what caused an availability in RVs among pro golfers:

“At one point I think there was a dozen guys [who traveled in an RV]; four of them went to LIV and sold theirs because they don’t really have the whole swings. It’s hard to go Saudi to Chicago in a two-week stretch in an RV.”

Spieth opens his second round later today in Honolulu, tied for the lead with Chris Kirk and Taylor Montgomery.

Cover Image Via KXAN