Jordan Spieth’s game is trending upward. But Friday’s round left him frustrated. Unhappy with one key aspect of his game, the former World No. 1 explained his frustration at the second round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson.

“It was putting today. I’ve been driving the ball the best of my life, and I drove it horribly today, like really badly. But putting was — to go to your actual question, putting was the best. I felt fluid with it. I felt like I — in what I’ve been trying to do, I’ve been trying to put it all together. I know what needs to happen, but putting it all together into a fluid stroke and then being able to be outwardly focused has been the goal,” the American professional said when asked about the best facet of his game.

“I felt like last night I did a really good job out here of that being the goal, find that, and then carry it into this morning and then trust it on the course.”

This balance—strong putting, weak driving—is what carried him Friday at TPC Craig Ranch. Despite the 2024 wrist surgery, Spieth ranks 36th in distance (310.7 yards) but 82nd in accuracy (58.19%). His driving accuracy, just 50%, was even worse in today’s round, despite jumping to T4 in a field of 146 professionals.

His putter told a different story. He shot 9-under 62, bogey-free. The best of the lot came on the 17th green, where he made a 22-foot birdie putt. In fact, he made six consecutive birdies on holes 1-6. With that, he tied his longest consecutive birdie streak, which he previously achieved at the 2020 RBC Heritage, holes 16-3 (wrapping around).

At the 2026 Masters, Spieth’s driving was better than in prior top-five finishes—yet putting still frustrated him. “Yeah, just back to putting,” he said about what he would do after the final round of the event.

This change has happened recently, though. Previously, he was skeptical of both his driving and putting skills. In May 2025, Spieth credited improved driving to clubs and tech—an unintended benefit.

He has been even more analytical about his putting. In 2023, Golf.com reported Spieth had developed a bad putting tendency and was working with McCormick to fix it.

Despite Friday’s driving woes, Spieth’s overall arc is upward.

The 13-time PGA Tour winner hasn’t won since the 2022 RBC Heritage. His performances throughout these years have been mediocre at best. In 2022-2023, he missed the cut in 6 of 22 starts. And then he followed that with five missed cuts in 2023-24. His wrist injury made it even worse.

But after the surgery, he played some good golf. Things started improving in 2025, but it was never the same for the major winner. This year, he has no top-10 finishes in 13 starts. But that could change at the 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson, thanks to his bogey-free second round.

This change in his game and mentality stemmed from one key decision he made.

Jordan Spieth wouldn’t compensate anymore

After the 9-under 62 round, Jordan Spieth told the media that he was finally feeling as well as he had in nine years. But it was not just physically. Apart from that, he pointed out that he had been trying to rebuild his mechanics for a long time now. And today, he thought he got it back together.

The reason he could build it back was that he decided not to compensate. While it is exciting to think of a shot and take a chance to make a birdie, it all comes down to pulling off the shot accurately. Most of the time, that does not work. So, during the last off-season, he thought that instead of compensating, he should focus on becoming more consistent.

That thought process is not paying off, as he is slowly becoming more consistent. If he continues to do so, it won’t be long before fans can see the veteran Jordan Spieth back. But he would have to do both driving and putting correctly at the same time for that to happen.