PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – Jordan Spieth is leaving TPC Sawgrass early, but the 2015 FedExCup Champion is encouraged after claiming his putting woes are over. Spieth hasn’t had a top 10 on the PGA TOUR since he lost the 54-hole lead at The Open Championship last July to finish tied for ninth. He finished last season ranked 123rd on TOUR in Strokes Gained: Putting and coming into THE PLAYERS Championship this season he sat 114th. It came after he was entrenched inside the top 20 on TOUR between 2014 and 2016, a period where he won seven PGA TOUR events including two majors and a FedExCup and had a stint as the world’s best player. On Friday a 3-under 69 needed just 24 putts and gained almost five strokes on the field average at TPC Sawgrass. It left him speaking boldly. “Putting’s back. It’s very close to being top of the world again,â€� Spieth said despite his one over total seeing him set for a missed cut. “I know exactly how to get there, which is good news. “I’ve been very patient with the way I’ve wanted to work on it and I knew that at some point soon it was going to start to come around and I’ve had some really solid rounds.â€� But Spieth’s woes haven’t been confined to the greens. In fact his swing remains an issue as he’s been tinkering with it for months. He hit just 12 of 28 fairways over the opening two rounds and 21 of 36 greens in regulation. “As far as the full swing goes, it’s just going to require more repetitions,â€� Spieth said. “It was really good on the range, didn’t really miss a shot, but the same mistakes I was making earlier in the year, I was making on the golf course and I probably had one out of every two shots was good with the long clubs. “Unfortunately you get out here and you need nine out of 10 to be good … I made 11 birdies this week and missed the cut after two rounds. “I owe that almost all to tee to green, ball striking. But it’s a visual thing, it’s just a matter of how I’m looking at the club. The face looks closed to me and I’m just trying to get to where I’m able to set up clean and then I’ll be able to hit more consistent shots.â€�
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