The Jordan Spieth experience isn’t reserved for Thursday through Sunday; it’s a 24/7 thing, and it just so happened to be caught on video during his Monday practice round ahead of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills.
Spieth, a three-time major champion, has unintentionally built a personal brand along with the expectation that, if there is a bizarre situation to be had on a golf course, chances are he’s going to be the main character. His ability to not only find never-before-seen spots on golf courses, but to get out of them on a ridiculously consistent basis, is unparalleled.
During a practice session at Shinnecock on Monday, Spieth wasn’t playing escape artist, but he still managed to create a very nerve-wracking moment, which isn’t the easiest thing to do while practicing.
Standing in the fairway with what appeared to be just a wedge in hand, Spieth hit what seemed to be a typical approach shot into the green. While reading the numbers from the launch monitor sitting beside him, he suddenly tensed up before saying, “Oh God, Jesus” while making it abundantly clear he almost hit a person up by the green.
“That almost smoked him in the head” isn’t necessarily a normal sentence that comes out of the mouth of a professional golfer in the middle of a practice round, but again, this is Jordan Spieth we’re talking about.
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While Spieth clearly felt uneasy about the shot he had just hit, the near catastrophe can’t all be blamed on him.
If you notice at the start of the clip, Spieth asks his longtime caddie, Michael Greller, “Are we good, or not?” to which Greller gives him the green light, explaining that the man in question is on the back edge of the green.
After Spieth launched his wedge shot toward the green, it seemed as if the man just so happened to walk directly in the path of the golf ball, obviously something nobody could have seen coming.
Spieth, in typical fashion, is one of the most interesting players in the U.S. Open field this week. He hasn’t won on the PGA Tour since April 2022, but has put together a consistent resume so far in 2026 with nine Top 25 finishes in 15 starts. Naturally, his last start on Tour was a missed cut at The Memorial in early June.
Spieth missed the cut at Shinnecock during the 2018 U.S. Open, but managed his first Top 25 finish since 2021 in the major a year ago.
