Tour Championship: Jordan Spieth wary of playing for position in Atlanta
Wednesday 20 September 2017 11:38, UK
Jordan Spieth insisted he would not be taking his "foot off the gas pedal" as he looks to wrap up the FedExCup title with a victory at the Tour Championship in Atlanta.
Spieth tops the standings heading into the final event of the PGA Tour season, although any one of the top five would land the $10m bonus if they win at East Lake, regardless of where Spieth finishes.
The Open champion, who won the Tour Championship and the FedExCup crown to cap a memorable 2015, could actually finish as low as 29th of the 30 starters this week and still win the overall title if his closest rivals also have a bad tournament.
But Spieth wants to take the performances of his rivals out of the equation and declared he will be playing to win the season finale once again.
"If you start playing for position that's when you take your foot off the gas pedal a little bit, and that's not how we normally play," Spieth said at his pre-tournament press conference. "I'm comfortable at East Lake, and I'm in a great position."
Spieth was runner-up in each of the first two FedExCup Play-Offs events before finishing 10 strokes behind runaway champion Marc Leishman at last week's BMW Championship, although the young Texan's closing 65 at Conway Farms gives him confidence and momentum to take into Atlanta.
"I was pumped to have the round I did on Sunday, to gain some momentum, to maintain the No 1 spot," he added. "I was a little bit off at the start of the week in my striking. But I feel pretty close right now to where I was in the first two Play-Off events. Things feel good. If this were a major championship I'd be pretty pleased with how things are feeling.
"In 2014 and 2016 I remember being completely worn out by the time I got to the Tour Championship. There's a lot on the line. It's essentially a major after coming off a pretty hectic schedule in the last six or seven weeks."
Spieth will go out in the final group on Thursday alongside second-placed Justin Thomas, with Dustin Johnson and Leishman in the penultimate pairing.
Live PGA Tour Golf
