Jordan Spieth caps off great year with fantastic FedEX Cup victory

What a year for 22-year-old Jordan Spieth! Bursting onto the scene at the US Masters in Augusta, he led from start to finish, gradually increasing his lead round after round, setting records along the way.

Following this, there was talk of a clean sweep of the Majors for 2015. While his momentum carried into the US Open, it wasn’t as straightforward on a Links course, as Spieth came from behind to win by one shot.

At St Andrews in The Open, it was a different story. Always there or thereabouts, he left it too late to make a move, however, his top five finish was still exceptional and he demonstrated other qualities. Humble to a fault, Spieth was the first to congratulate compatriot Zach Johnson after he won.

While the possibility of winning all four Majors in one year had slipped away, he could still make it three on American soil at the US PGA Championship, though in the end it wasn’t to be, as Australian Jason Day held off Spieth’s challenge.

It came down the FedEx Cup consisting of four tournaments, where those who had accumulated enough points on the PGA Tour over the season would get to compete, with the field gradually being whittled down over the four events.

With The Barclays, the Deutsche Bank Championship and the BMW Championship played, only the Tour Championship remained as Sweden’s Henrik Stenson took an early first round lead, with Spieth a couple of strokes behind.

Eventually finishing on nine-under-par, he held off New Zealand’s Danny Lee, England’s Justin Rose and Stenson to win by four shots at East Lake, claiming a cheque for £977k plus a £6.5m bonus for winning the end-of-season play-off championship. It takes his winnings for this year to more than £14m.

“This is one I cannot wait to celebrate,” Spieth said after the win. “This is incredible. This is an event we approached like a major championship. I didn’t have a great play-off, but I put a lot into this week. Mentally, I stayed in it. And boy, that putter sure paid off.”

Spieth has no doubt earned his break and will return to defend his US Masters crown next year, which he is 7/1 with Coral to retain.