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THE MEMORIAL TOURNAMENT PRESENTED BY NATIONWIDE

June 1, 2017

Jordan Spieth

Dublin, Ohio

Q. 6-under par, a round of 66. Four birdies in the last five holes, how are you feeling about that play?
JORDAN SPIETH: It was an awesome finish. I knew once you get to the front nine, which was our back today, you actually do get quite a few birdie opportunities. You get a 9-iron, wedge, wedge. Then the par-3s are mid-irons. But pretty much every other hole you can get up to a short iron or wedge in. The back nine is where it's tough. You only get a couple of breaks.

We just stayed to the game plan. Knew we were playing well, just needed to give myself opportunities. Got a tough break on the tee shot on 18, and a pretty significant lip-out on 1. But hit a bunker shot that was going past the hole that dumped on 12. I played the way -- I felt like I played the way I scored, just needed to finish well to get to that point.

Q. Just recently you talked about how to be patient with your short game. What was it, was it something technical or having to hang out and wait for it?
JORDAN SPIETH: A little bit of both. Getting comfortable with my alignments, so I hit my pitches at the right time. It's still not there on and around the greens. It's close, and close enough that I can capitalize if I have the opportunities.

We hit a bunch of greens and that was the key to success today and it was last week, was the ball-striking that gives an opportunity for that short game to kind of start to blossom. It's getting close. Repetitions are most important, and today was a good day for it.

Q. You're a big historian of the game. How special is it being at Muirfield Village, but playing Jack's event?
JORDAN SPIETH: It's really special. Jack's been a special host. The little time he has this week, he comes and finds and spends it in the locker room talking to guys. And for the game's greatest major champion that's awesome to see. It's a fantastic golf course, one of the best ones in the country in my opinion, with maybe one hole, No. 16 that's -- it's very difficult. But all in all it's very well designed. Some of the best greens we play all year. Everyone is very excited to get to this event.

Q. You made a couple of bogeys as you a approached the turn, but closed with a 31. How would you describe your round?
JORDAN SPIETH: I felt like I scored the way I played today. I got an awesome break on my third hole today, No. 12. I didn't have much of a chance to stop the bunker shot unless it hit the pin and it dunked. That saved me a couple of shots. I figured it could be a good day when your off shots you're making birdie on.

But an awesome back nine on the front nine for us, and a great finish. You get more opportunities on that nine. It was about staying patient after making bogeys on some hard holes and allowing myself to hit the ball to the right spots and have some chances. Short game is getting close. It's closer and closer. Last week was a great week for it. Today was important. It's almost to where I feel totally comfortable on the greens. It's nice to putt on fast greens.

Q. Let's talk about your last week and your great finish there. Did that open up the optimism as you made your way to Ohio?
JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, I felt like we were optimistic for missing two putts in a row. I kept reiterating that we were very close. That it was a short game off here or a bad break or one bad swing from getting something going. And it was. And kind of felt that way and needed to stay patient and not get too frustrated.

We went back -- after I kind of fixed my alignment on the putting, we went back last week to the old, trusty putter, gained a stroke and a half a round. If you're gaining strokes on the field, you're going to have a chance to win tournaments. And the last couple of rounds last week and the first rounds this week are very optimistic. We look forward to the rest of the week and obviously the U.S. Open.

Q. You made the cut every time here, tied for third a couple of years ago. What is it about this golf course and tournament that's special to you?
JORDAN SPIETH: As different as it looks, it plays pretty similar to Augusta. It's a second shot golf course where it's not the toughest off the tee, but playing to certain sides of the fairways have big advantages on angles to the pins. It's tough to get the ball below the hole. Same as Augusta, unless you're in the right spot where you're attacking, and take your medicine if you're not. And recognize on mid range, where other courses you can knock in a 15-footer, out here, you have to play defensive. Because these greens are as fast as we see all year. I love that. I love that it's strategic, and I love that it requires some touch, a lot of touch around the greens and especially on the greens.

We've had some success and we've had some rounds where it wasn't so great where I tried to do too much. Fortunately after today's start, I can stay patient and stay in it.

Q. Nice round. How are you feeling?
JORDAN SPIETH: Feel good. It was a good day. With eight birdies on this golf course, there's no complaints. I made a couple of bogeys around the turn, stayed patient, set a goal for the back nine. And not only achieved but surpassed it by a couple of shots. It's nice to get off to a really good start on a course like this where it's important to stay patient. Now I feel like I can and still stay in this tournament. The second you get out of it, you try to force things, that's where this course eats you up.

Q. Describe the bunker shot on 12.
JORDAN SPIETH: It wasn't far off on the tee shot from being on the green. And when it trickles into the bunkers, a lot of times it goes to the back. I thought it was a hard shot to get on the green.

I told Michael, I'm going to aim for the steepest slope, get it to about 15, 18 feet and knock it in there it from there. The last thing I said before I hit it was, The idea is to have the pin stop it. And I hit it and it just landed right in the hole. I've never done that before. So that was awesome.

And I knew that I would immediately take crap from Kis and Justin. Justin said he was so flustered he wanted Kis to putt first. Because they already give me the nickname Golden Child, so they were feeding off that from that hole on.

I told Michael, I was trying to hit the pin, so I can't be upset that it did. It was very lucky and saved me probably a shot and a half.

Q. Playing with your buddies, how much fun was that being with them? Justin was saying sometimes you've got to put the blinders on because you forget you're playing in a tournament?
JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, a little bit. But then you get paired so often. I played with Justin probably close to ten times this year, I think, in tournament rounds, let alone practice rounds and fun rounds. It's kind of normal at this point. Yeah, I guess at times you can get caught up. But that's also really fun.

Thursday, Friday, intensity is not quite as high. It's more fun loving. And Kis coming off the win last week, and all of us kind of having good years, it was pretty even-keeled out there and that was a lot of fun to be playing.

Q. Your approach shot here on No. 9?
JORDAN SPIETH: Yeah, so I was trying to hit it left of where I did. I knew the wind was off the right. And I had a pitching wedge in from 135. It's tough because the wind is swirling a little, but I figured I'd play it a little more than the number, because I had room to fly it past it. It came off a little right of where I wanted. I was trying to cut it, it was probably three yards right of where I was trying to go, just left of it. But the wind ended up kind of hitting it midair and it knocked it down. As it was coming down I thought it was going to be perfect distance and it was. It's nice to finish that way. It's a tough pin because it's hard to be below the hole. You've almost got to play your miss to get it below the hole and it was kind of a good miss.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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