Spieth Reads: His Time In Austin, His Two-Down Approach

Jordan Spieth cruised to a day one win over Jamie Donaldson. In the first WGC Dell Match Play in Austin, Spieth has been the focus of all because of his short time at University of Texas.

Sean Martin at PGATour.com does a nice job recounting what Spieth's Austin days meant to his development into world No. 1 status.

The lessons Spieth learned during his only full season in Austin are typical of a teenager living away from home for the first time. He began to learn some of the skills that are so important now that he’s the world No. 1.

“It taught (me), more than anything, time management on and off the golf course. You’re now on your own,” he says. “I had to learn how to be disciplined and work hard in everything I did. That’s what I love to do. I’m a passionate person, … so whether it’s in the classroom or it’s on the course, it kind of opened me up to learn how to do it my way.”

His major, communications, and abundant attention from the school’s Longhorn Network helped him hone the media skills that have contributed to his popularity as a professional. And the golf team’s competitive roster gave him constant competition that helped him improve.

After his win, Spieth kindly came into the media center and revealed that he approaches all match play as if he's two down, even when he's four up. I thought it was a pretty interesting way to approach matches. And who is to argue with someone who has an incredible match play record. As I noted for GolfDigest.com.