KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. – Jordan Spieth knows he likely shot himself out of the PGA Championship with his misbehaving putter during the first two rounds, but he battled hard for no other reason than he’s a fighter. Spieth was 5 under and bogey free on Saturday until his lone hiccup at the treacherous par-3 17th. In calmer conditions on Saturday, he signed for a 4-under 68 and landed at even-par 216 for 54 holes.
“I hate being over par at a golf course. I mean, it’s like my biggest pet peeve regardless of when it is in the tournament and I just hate seeing an over-par score next to my name,” he said. “So, it’s nice to be tied with the course with a chance to beat it tomorrow.”
Spieth struggled with his putter for the first two rounds at the Ocean Course at Kiawah Island Resort. He lost nearly two strokes on the green on Thursday and more than two and half on Friday, when he needed 34 putts in his round of 75. But he sank a 32-foot birdie putt on the third hole of his third round and suddenly the cup no longer looked to be the size of a thimble. He took just 23 putts and gained nearly a stroke and a half on the field on the greens Saturday.
“It’s just a stroke thing. I know exactly what it is,” Spieth explained. “I’m just trying to trust it on the course, and it’s difficult. It’s a move just like any kind of swing move where it needs some repetition and it needs trust and it needs a couple results, and all of a sudden I’m pouring it in.
“It’s…
