Jordan Spieth is ready to defend his title when the John Deere Classic opens on Thursday near the Quad Cities.
Last year’s victory was his first on the PGA Tour and came just days shy of his 20th birthday. “I won’t get caught up in the hype, I won’t be thinking about any of that….what defending is like. It hasn’t felt any different other than seeing the tickets and the bobble heads…it hasn’t felt any different and I don’t imagine that it will,” Spieth says.
Spieth says he is sure he will have a lot of adrenaline with the memories, but he says “that’s a really cool thing.” After nearly winning the Masters this year Spieth is considered a rising star in golf. It is not something he is focused on. “I go about my own game, I love talking with my peers out there, anything on the outside — whether it’s positive or negative — I don’t think it’s good for me either way, so I do my best to stay away from comments on social media or to read anything else and just go about my business,” Spieth says.
Spieth feels the TPC at Deere Run will play tougher than it has in the past. He says the rough is up and it won’t be cut, and the greens will be firm unless it rains. Spieth says 10 or 12 under par could win the tournament, which he says if higher than the scores have been in the past.