$30M Payout to Make Jordan Spieth’s Woes Go From Bad to Worse; Here’s Why

Jordan Spieth is set to pocket $30 million in player equity on the Tour, thanks to Strategic Sports Group’s involvement, reports indicate. The 13-time PGA Tour winner will become the third-highest earner behind Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy. But the $30 million can become a bigger headache for the former Masters champion.

And, to top that Spieth has no dearth of lingering problems. A niggling injury, off-course duties, and on-course trials and tribulations have made the year hellish for the 30-year-old.

Spieth has courted controversy at most important moment in his career

The last time Jordan Spieth won on Tour, Scottie Scheffler was the newest Masters champion. Two years later, Scheffler has ten titles under his belt, six of which have come since Spieth’s 2022 RBC Heritage triumph. Spieth has yet to lift silverware. Naturally, when the reports came out that $30 million would head to Dallas but not to Scheffler’s home, fans were enraged.

Comments like “Clearly not about talent anymore. All about popularity” and “Where’s my man, Scotty?” were frequent. That’s just now, when there is no confirmation of the money he is going to receive. The noise will increase, and rebel voices will arguably be louder once there is any confirmation of the same.

Interestingly, Rory McIlroy’s grand slam chances in April have somewhat taken the spotlight away from Jordan Spieth. But the 13-time PGA Tour winner is another golfer standing one major away from completing the career grand slam. Spieth will hunt for the Wanamaker trophy to complete his CV, which already includes the other three majors.

However, his wrist injury has returned to haunt him. It’s a ‘come-and-go’ thing, the 30-year-old said recently. What Jordan Spieth needs is a long rest, something he doesn’t plan to get. His schedule doesn’t include a few weeks off, and that’s certainly having an impact on his game. With one eye on the offseason to figure things out, the Texas star’s chances of completing a career slam look slim. On top of that, he has other duties to attend to as a player director of the PGA Tour, when the Tour and PIF are at a crucial juncture in their $3 billion merger negotiation.

Jordan Spieth is juggling multiple duties

Spieth replaced McIlroy on the PGA Tour policy board in November. Since then, the Tour has roped in Strategic Sports Group and devised a new for-profit entity, PGA Tour Enterprises. Spieth, along with five other player directors, traveled to the Bahamas for a meeting with Yasir Al-Ruamayyan days before teeing up at the Valspar Championship. The Dallas resident has missed the cut three times in his last five appearances, including at the Masters.

Ironically, Rory McIlory resigned from the policy board because it impacted his on-course job. It makes an interesting case for Spieth to reconsider his position. But first, the 13-time PGA Tour winner needs to take care of his long-time injury. As he heads into another major season with a turbulent form, the players equity will also put Spieth in front of a lot of questions that don’t have any straight answers.