Spieth compares him and Greller to Phil and Bones

MCKINNEY, Texas — Jordan Spieth said before the AT&T Byron Nelson that he wants desperately to bring his best to TPC Craig Ranch. The tournament gave him an exemption when he was in high school at Dallas Jesuit. He plays it every spring. It seems that everyone in a golf shirt or sun dress roots for him. “It’s obviously the one that’s starred on the calendar,” Spieth said Tuesday afternoon. He delivered Friday. He shot a 7-under 65 in innocent conditions on a golf course that surprised him with a smattering of forward tees and beckoning hole positions. He and fellow Dallas resident Scottie Scheffler — both of them former All-Americans at the University of Texas — played early with defending champion K.H. Lee. Their gallery grew as the morning wore on, and by the time they played their last hole the fans were chanting their names, declaring their love (one man literally shouted, “I love you Jordan!) and singing the Texas fight song. Scheffler shot 67-68 to start the weekend at minus 9. Spieth finished at 12 under, which typically would put a player in good position for Saturday. But not this year. Sebastian Munoz shot a course-record 60 on Thursday. The leaderboard a day later displayed an array of low scores. The wind, often a menace in Texas, barely huffed. “I think I said ahead of time I thought that it would show a little more teeth than last year and I couldn’t have been more wrong,” Spieth said. “I mean, a 60 yesterday and a lot of (minus) 8s and 7s all over the board. A lot of tees are up. It was very surprising. “And then I think they were looking at the weekend as a lot less wind,” he continued, “and so they used more of the easier pins the first two days because I can only name one or two pins on this golf course that were not the easiest two locations that are on the greens.” The numbers bore that out. The average score from the morning wave was 68.7. Players at minus 4 risk missing the cut. There was a 62 from Ryan Palmer. David Skinns shot a 63. All of this before the last group began play. Spieth surmised he was in “a good position,” then added: “But who’s to say that 20-under’s not leading at the end of this day? So I could be way back.”

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The final round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions takes place today from the Plantation Course at Kapalua. Here’s everything you need to know to follow the action. Round 4 leaderboard Round 4 tee times HOW TO FOLLOW Television: Thursday-Friday, 6 p.m.-10 p.m. ET (Golf Channel). Saturday, 4 p.m.-6 p.m. (NBC), 6 p.m.-8 p.m. (Golf Channel). Sunday, 6 p.m.-10 p.m. (Golf Channel) Radio: Thursday-Friday, 4 p.m.-10 p.m. ET. Saturday, 3 p.m.-8 p.m. ET. Sunday, 5 p.m.- 10 p.m. ET (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio). NOTABLE TEE TIMES (ALL TIMES EASTERN) Jon Rahm, Collin Morikawa 5 p.m. (No. 1 tee) Gary Woodland, Kevin Kisner 5:10 p.m. (No. 1 tee) Xander Schauffele, Justin Thomas 5:20 p.m. (No. 1 tee) MUST READS Schauffele turns from hunter to hunted Schauffele leads by one at Kapalua Refinement brings tougher test at Kapalua Power Rankings Expert Picks The First Look: News and notes Sign-up and play Fantasy Golf CALL OF THE DAY

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PGATOUR.COM: This year marks the sixth year of the Morgan Stanley Eagles for Impact Challenge – can you tell us a little more about this initiative and First Tee, your new charitable partner? Alice Milligan: Morgan Stanley has a longstanding commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion and providing the next generation of diverse youth with the tools they need to succeed. When we became a Proud Partner of THE PLAYERS, we developed the Eagles for Impact Challenge which has allowed us to celebrate great golf shots while giving back. Inspired by Morgan Stanley’s Institute for Inclusion – which was launched in June of 2020 to accelerate an integrated diversity, equity and inclusion strategy driving change within our firm and beyond – we have focused our Eagles for Impact initiative on increasing representation through access and education. The Eagles for Impact initiative now lives within our broader campaign platform, Everyone Deserves a Shot. The campaign strategy is centered on the idea that a more inclusive and representative society starts with increasing education opportunities and opening doors for the next generation. This year, we have teamed up with First Tee, a youth development organization that shares our goal of growing access to the game. PGATOUR.COM: Given the new focus of Eagles for Impact, can you share details about the program and how your donations will support First Tee’s mission? Alice Milligan: For every eagle made throughout the tournament, Morgan Stanley will donate to First Tee to help support the recruitment, development and retention of diverse coaches. These dollars will directly support First Tee in providing continued training for diverse coaches so all participants can see and learn from representative role models. Coaches are the backbone of First Tee programming – they help create character-building experiences to prepare kids for any challenges they may face, and First Tee continues to make it a priority for their coaches to represent all current and future participants. To date, Morgan Stanley has donated over $1.2 million through the Eagles for Impact program. We’re looking forward to counting eagles again this year to further our impact. PGATOUR.COM: Are there any on-site events this year that you’re particularly excited about? Alice Milligan: Yes, Morgan Stanley will host a special event at THE PLAYERS on Tuesday, March 8th with First Tee. During the event, we will host 20 young women from First Tee-North Florida, where they’ll have the opportunity to hear from a variety of industry experts on their career journeys, walk the TPC Sawgrass course and view the practice rounds. Their final stop will be at the Morgan Stanley Eagles for Impact venue, where they’ll be the first to play three special putting greens they helped us design for fans to enjoy during the tournament and pick up exclusive Morgan Stanley swag. PGATOUR.COM: Can you tell us a little more about the firm’s broader efforts in the diversity and inclusion space? Alice Milligan: Commit to diversity and inclusion is the firm’s fifth core value – it is a key area of focus for our employees and our clients. Most recently, Morgan Stanley announced the Institute for Inclusion’s Equity in Education and Career Consortium. In collaboration with partner organizations, this initiative will support high school and college students to achieve stronger career and financial outcomes. Funded by an initial commitment of $20 million, EECC helps address systemic inequities in education and career outcomes for young adults from low-to-moderate income backgrounds with a focus on ethnically diverse students. Other key initiatives include the HBCU Scholars Program, which provides 60 four-year full ride scholarships at Howard Harvard, Morehouse College and Spelman College, over a 5-year period. In 2021, the Firm announced the first cohort of 12 students selected for the scholarship at each school and we’ll be announcing our second cohort this summer. Finally, The JumpStart Initiative, which was created in partnership with LEAD (Lead, Education and Development), a non-profit that works with high-potential youth from diverse backgrounds, develop their professional knowledge, find mentors and gain access to educational resources that might otherwise be out of reach.

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