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FORT WORTH, Texas – Jordan Spieth measures his progress in weeks, insisting that strides have been made on his swing, and that he’s now entering the precision stage of what seems like an inevitable return to winning golf. The rest of us seem to be measuring his progress in days – specifically the last eight. Last week, there were the four rounds he put together at the PGA Championship, resulting in a tie for third. It was his first top-10 finish of the PGA TOUR season, albeit still six shots behind winner Brooks Koepka. And on Thursday, there was the 5-under 65 in the first round of the Charles Schwab Challenge, placing him just a stroke off Tony Finau’s lead at Colonial. Related: Leaderboard | Spieth by the numbers | Finau uses claw grip en route to 64 Afterward, Spieth was asked if the last five rounds could be defined as “significantâ€� progress. Yet from his perspective, the uptick in performance has been brewing for much longer. “Probably the same as the previous four or five weeks before … since I’ve been really working on the right things and have the right moves for it, whether it’s the full swing or the putting,â€� Spieth said. “It’s just once you’re doing the right thing, repetition gets it closer and closer and gets you more precise.â€� That’s not to say Thursday’s round was a display of total precision. He hit just half of his fairways, and was 11 of 18 in greens in regulation. Trying to force a low hook with a wedge from the fairway at the par-4 18th (his ninth hole of the day), Spieth found Crampton’s Lake left of the green on the way to a double bogey. But thanks to a hot putter – he made 153 feet worth of putts – and a chip-in birdie from 73 feet at the par-3 13th, Spieth made the most of his round. Given how well he was putting Thursday, Spieth was second-guessing his decision with the approach shot at 18. “Considering I was 50 percent from 15 feet [putting], I may as well just keep giving myself 15 feet,â€� Spieth said. “If it’s any other pin, I probably birdie the hole, and I just tried to get cute with that one.â€� Spieth knows there is still work to be done tee-to-green. Six of his seven misses off the tee Thursday were left. That was in response – and perhaps an overcorrection — to his misses right that have plagued him this season. The fact he was hitting it where he wanted to hit it, though, is another sign of improvement. “I still had some scar tissue on shots today where I’ve had some foul balls to the right this year where that’s been my miss,â€� Spieth said. “… I played away from that shot because of the potential of what’s been there this year. “So, say, last week I probably trusted it 75 percent. Probably trusted it 90 percent today. Just trying to continue to when you trust it, pull off the shot. You know the feel and you know that the old ball is kind of out the window.â€� A year ago, Spieth finished T-32 at Colonial – a surprising result given his previous results in this tournament, including a win in 2016 sandwiched between a pair of T-2s. In retrospect, last year’s finish was an indication his game was out of sorts. Until last week at Bethpage Black, his only top-10 finish in the last 12 months was a T-9 at the Open Championship. It’s been a long, sometimes frustrating, climb back. While Spieth hasn’t been relying strictly on results to measure his progress, he realizes that’s what the rest of us have to go on. “Score-wise, it’s not necessary for me to feel good,â€� he said. “It’s more just I knew once I started to get the club back out in front of me, that the golf would start to be fun again – and it certainly is.â€� Professional golf, of course, is more fun when winning is involved. No one would be surprised if Spieth ends his two-year drought this week on a course that fits his game – especially if his hot putter continues to mask his work-in-progress swing. “Certainly could use hitting a few more fairways and a few more greens around Colonial the rest of this week,â€� he said. “But the putter blade is sharp.â€� He hopes the rest of his game will follow.

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The competition seems to be in high spirits heading into the 2022 Presidents Cup. Here are the best parts of the tournament thus far.

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Harris English … Those who survive the gut check of qualifying for the FedExCup Playoffs with timely success at the Wyndham Championship – as he did with a T11 to open the 2018 Playoffs as the 124-seed – present as intriguing storylines as soon as the next season commences. The 29-year-old has responded admirably to his latest lease on PGA TOUR playing privileges. He’s 7-for-7 in 2018-19, albeit with only one top-35 finish. It’s a stark departure from the disappointment of last season when he missed 20 of 31 cuts, and he’s in position to perform well again. He’s perfect in six appearances at Torrey Pines with three top 15s, including playoff loss in 2015. Last year’s T8 is his best finish in a non-additional event in his last 63 starts overall. He also comes having beaten par in his last 12 rounds, his longest such streak since he connected 20 in a row to bridge the holiday break of the 2013-14 season. J.J. Spaun … Can’t forget about this guy, especially in the event nearest his college stomping grounds at San Diego State University. The comfortable climes have been kind as he’s gone T9-T23 in his pair of appearances since debuting as a PGA TOUR rookie in 2017. He arrives this week having survived 12 straight cuts since August. Four went for a top-15 finish, two of which a T3. Although he scales to just five feet, nine inches, the 28-year-old holds his own off the tee while setting the standard in terms of precision tee to green. When considering a locale for his putter to catch fire, there’s no place like home. Rory Sabbatini … The 42-year-old born in South Africa made news recently for becoming a citizen of Slovakia. However, he’s made noise throughout his career at Torrey Pines. In 13 appearances since 2002, he’s rattled off two top fives among seven top 25s, including a T14 in 2017. En route to last year’s T20, he led the field in fairways hit and co-led in par-4 scoring. Ranked inside the top 25 in par-5 scoring in each of the last two completed seasons. Sam Burns … Casual fans are likely to remember him bettering Tiger Woods, 68-70, in the final round of The Honda Classic last year – going bogey-free no less – to finish T8. Heck, hardcore fans will recall that rare opportunity and execution as well, but they’ll also understand that it was anything but fluky. Although he doesn’t qualify as a rookie by definition this season, the 22-year-old is a first-time PGA TOUR member as a Web.com Tour graduate. He ranked third in the all-around on the developmental circuit in 2018 and led in putts per GIR, putting: birdies-or-better percentage and par-3 scoring. He’s fresh off a T18 at the Desert Classic where he finished T2 in fewest putts (100) and T3 in one-putt percentage. With length to give off the tee and supreme confidence with the flat stick, it’s not out of the realm of consideration that he’ll be smiling once again with Woods nearby at Torrey Pines. Adam Svensson … The PGA TOUR rookie from Canada made a wave with an opening 61 at Waialae Country Club two weeks ago. He didn’t sustain the ride to finish T43, but he regrouped for a career-best T18 at the Desert Classic. Like numerous entrants in the Farmers field every year, he has experience on the South Course at Torrey Pines via the Junior World Championships. In fact, among his numerous appearances was a victory in the boys 15-17 division in 2010. Other notables in that field included Xander Schauffele (T21), Beau Hossler (T27), Brandon Stone (T27), Gavin Green (T31), recent Mauritius Open champ Kurt Kitayama (58th) and Bryson DeChambeau (MC). Experience never hurts, but positive experience isn’t universal. While he hasn’t flashed it enough this season to prove it, Svensson profiles as an above-average putter. NOTE: Sleeper is a relative term, so Rob uses unofficial criteria to determine who qualifies. Each of the following usually is determined to be ineligible for this weekly staple: Winners of the tournament on the current host course; winners in the same season; recent major champions; top 50 in the Official World Golf Ranking; recent participants of team competitions.

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