It’s been nearly four-and-a-half years since Jordan Spieth’s last PGA Tour victory, and over nine years since his last major triumph. For many fans, that’s far too long. But Spieth’s yearslong win drought could be coming to an end.
Following a frustrating season where he played well but failed to earn a single top 10, Spieth has his best chance yet to do that, and more, at the 2026 FedEx St. Jude Championship.
In Thursday’s opening round, Spieth got off to a steady if not blazing start on TPC Southwind’s front nine. While he didn’t make a birdie over his first eight holes, something else that has haunted his scorecards in 2026 was also missing: a bogey.
At the 9th hole, Spieth finally got into red numbers, then stayed hot the rest of the round. He made four birdies over five holes from 11-15, then closed out his round with three straight pars.
The bogey-free start put Spieth in a five-way tie for the lead with Michael Thorbjornsen, Kurt Kitayama, Jake Knapp and Michael Kim.
With 54 holes left to play against a loaded field, Spieth has a lot of work left to do to secure a victory. But after his round, Spieth expressed an overwhelming sense of confidence in his game, hinting that even if a win didn’t come this week, he was primed to do some damage in 2027.
Jordan Spieth after tying lead: ‘I’m a lot better golfer than I’ve been in a very long time’
When reporters asked Spieth about his hot start Thursday afternoon, he responded by arguing that he’s been playing well for weeks now, but the results just weren’t showing it. Until the FedEx St. Jude Championship began Thursday morning, that is.
“I just tried to come into this week and just be as patient, nonreactive as possible, dumb it down to try to win the golf tournament and not worry about anything else,” Spieth said after his round.
He revealed that he strongly believes he’s “a lot better golfer” than he has been in years, and whether or not his score shows it at the end of the day, he sticks with that belief. That philosophy served him well in Round 1 at TPC Southwind.
“Just knowing that I’m a lot better golfer than I’ve been in a very long time and continue to believe in that,” Spieth explained. “If low scores come, they come. If they don’t, it doesn’t change the fact that I know that I’m better than I’ve been in a long time. That mentality is what I came into today and stuck with it throughout the round, and it paid off.”
Spieth was ranked 54th in the FedEx Cup standings heading into this week’s FedEx St. Jude. He needs to move within the top 50 to qualify for next week’s BMW Championship and to earn spots in next year’s Signature Events.
It’s a similar position the 13-time Tour winner found himself in the last two seasons, sweating out the top-50 cut.
But, unlike the last two years, Spieth isn’t stressing about it this week. Why? Because he knows his game is in a great place, and, whatever happens this week, he expects to do big things next season.
“I just feel like, as I just mentioned, I’m just in a very different place about the game of golf than I was the last couple seasons heading into this event. Again, if it’s going to work out, great. If it doesn’t, I know next year is going to be an awesome year for me,” Spieth argued. “So it takes a lot of the stress off of this week.”
That closing remark should thrill Spieth’s many fans, and, perhaps, send a chill through the spines of his competitors heading into 2027 and beyond.
