Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler have arrived at Pinehurst No, 2 to begin their U.S. Open preparation early, after missing the cut at this week’s Memorial Tournament at Muirfield Village.
Spieth and Fowler will both have been keen to find some form ahead of the third major championship of the year, but it was not to be, after the pair saw their week cut short at the Memorial. Keen to bounce back, Spieth and Fowler have wasted no time in getting back out on the golf course though.
As a result the United States Ryder Cup teammates were spotted playing Pinehurst over the weekend having made the trip to the North Carolina in the wake of missing the 36-hole cut line in Dublin, Ohio.
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Fowler in particular will be looking for a change in form after finishing dead-last at the halfway point at the Memorial. His start to the Signature Event was less than ideal, after the six-time PGA Tour winner carded a frustrating four-over-par 76 in Thursday’s opening round.
Things got even worse for Fowler 24 hours later though. He followed his opening 76 with a dismal 10-over 82 in Friday’s second round, with the American racking up three double bogeys and six bogeys across his second 18 holes, to miss the weekend cut-line by some way.
Spieth meanwhile was just one shot away from playing Saturday and Sunday, ending his opening 36 holes at five-over. The former world No. 1 will be keen to re-find the form that has made him a three-time major champion this week, with the chance to add major No. 4 at Pinehurst.
Spieth was crowned champion of his national Open back in 2015, winning the title at Chambers Bay just two months after clinching the green jacket at the Masters. The last time the U.S. Open headed to Pinehurst, a fresh-faced Spieth was making just his second start as a pro in the event back in 2014.
It proved to be a solid week for the 2015 champion who finished in a tie for 17th, 13 shots behind runaway champion Martin Kaymer. Fowler was also in the field in North Carolina that week, and put in one of his career-best major performances by finishing in a tie for second.
The 35-year-old finished the tournament at one-under-par alongside fellow runner-up Erik Compton, Fowler’s best effort at the U.S. Open to date. If he is to replicate a similar performance next week, Fowler will be relying on a change in fortune, having failed to break into the top-10 in any event so far in 2024.
