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• Jordan Spieth aiming to knock Rory McIlroy off world No.1 spot
• “I’d like to be one of the best players ever,” said the 21-year-old
• Tees off with Jimmy Walker and James Hahn at the Valero Texas Open

JORDAN SPIETH

American prodigy Jordan Spieth has set his sights on Rory McIlroy’s spot as world No.1 and hopes two events in his home state of Texas can prepare him in the best possible way for the Masters.

The 21-year-old grabbed his second career win on the PGA Tour at the Valspar Championship two weeks ago, becoming only the fourth player since 1940 to win twice on tour before the age of 22, and spoke of his desire to catch McIlroy at the top of the world rankings.

Speaking ahead of the Valero Texas Open, Jordan Spieth said: “Yeah, I’d like to at some point be the No.1 ranked player in the world, that’s the pinnacle of golf. I’d like to win at least one major championship, try to get one before we look forward from there.

“Ultimately, I’d like to be one of the best players to ever play the game” – Jordan Spieth

“But ultimately, I’d like to be one of the best players to ever play the game. I don’t think that’s a conceited statement, I think it’s just something that I’ve always wanted to be since I was a kid and I’m really lucky that I have a chance to do it.”

Jordan Spieth finished runner-up with Jonas Blixt to Bubba Watson at the Masters last year and has played four rounds at Augusta since last year, visiting in December and again before the WGC-Cadillac Championship at Doral.

The Masters - Final Round

And after being part of the final group last year, Spieth revealed he lacked patience on the Sunday but took a lot of positives from the experience.

He said: “I just got a little ahead of myself and I say that because I just lacked a little bit of patience of looking at the round as a marathon, especially the back nine on Sunday.

“There’s so many things that can happen and I think I was trying to race in with pars, instead of really sitting back, enjoying it and understanding that there are people going to make birdies in front of you.

“That’s something I’ve learned since last year and it’s something we’ve worked on and it worked really well in Tampa. Now it’s just about finding my game, playing the course the right way to get in contention, and trying that patience out.”

World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship - Round Three

Jordan Spieth will be making his fourth appearance at the Valero Texas Open, with tenth his previous best finish last year, and is excited to be returning to a tournament he is clearly very fond of.

He said: “As a native Texan I always like playing these events. This event, in particular, gave me an exemption when I was in college. And then when I was on tour, when I had just earned status I was going to receive an exemption, whether or not I had at that point.

“So it’s a tournament that has helped launch my career and one that is close to my heart. So I like being back here.”

Spieth tees off at 12.50pm local time (5.50pm UK time) alongside FedExCup leader Jimmy Walker and Northern Trust Open winner James Hahn.

Jordan Spieth on challenging Rory :: Your thoughts

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