Jordan Spieth takes important step toward US Open exemption with good finish at the Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Jordan Spieth didn't exactly light up Augusta National on Sunday. His closing round of 4-under 68 included holing a bunker shot from behind the par-5 13th green for eagle, and making a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole. By the end of the round, that led to a tie for 12th. It was his best finish in a major in three years, dating to a tie for fourth in the 2023 Masters. And it came at a good time. Spieth ended last year at No. 80 in the world and has been hovering outside the the top 60 for the last month. Now he hits an important stretch concluding with the PGA Championship, after which the top 60 are exempt into the U.S. Open. Spieth's 10-year exemption from winning at Chambers Bay ran out last year. He is not yet exempt into the U.S. Open, and while past champions typically get at least one special exemption, age 32 is awfully young to be asking for one. He is playing at the RBC Heritage this week. Still to come are a pair of signature events before the PGA Championship at Aronimink outside Philadelphia. That tie for 12th at the Masters moves him up from No. 61 to No. 52. It can be more difficult to move up than to move down in that area of the rankings. Adam Scott also helped himself with a 70-70 weekend to tie for 24th, only moving two spots, but the Australian is now at No. 51. The U.S. Open is the only major for which Scott is not currently eligible, and getting to Shinnecock Hills would make it 100 consecutive majors for Scott. Would he be in line for a special exemption if he needed to ask for one? The USGA has a history of special exemptions for those who never won a U.S. Open, such as Ben Crenshaw, Nick Price and Phil Mickelson. Mickelson didn't need one in 2021 after winning the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island, but it counts as him accepting one.

The busy and lucrative stretch of golf on the PGA Tour

Players would have seen this coming last summer when the PGA Tour released the 2026 schedule, but now it's here and it is busy. The Masters was the start of a six-week run that ends with the PGA Championship and has three signature events in the four weeks in between. The total prize fund is in the neighborhood of $100 million, although by now the top players should be used to $20 million purses. The RBC Heritage is this week, followed by the team event at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Two more signature events, at Doral and Quail Hollow, lead into the second major of the year. Whew. “It's tough. I mean, it's not how I would prefer to draw it up, I would say,” Justin Thomas said Tuesday. "Majors are kind of what guys will generally build their schedule off of, what they need to do to prepare for a major. It's also how your legacy in the game is remembered for a lot of people. “Going to very difficult courses into a major I don’t think is probably how it would be drawn up for a lot of guys,” he said. Thomas also said it's something the Futures Competition Committee will consider as it tries to revamp the PGA Tour model.

Team USA for the Curtis Cup takes shape

The eight-player American team for the Curtis Cup is now halfway completed. Texas Longhorns junior Farah O’Keefe and 17-year-old Asterisk Talley have been added to the team through their world amateur ranking. Three players were chosen off the ranking on Monday. Kiara Romero is No. 1, but she already had secured her spot on the team by winning the Mark H. McCormack medal last year as the top female amateur. O’Keefe is No. 4 and the next highest-ranked American. Megha Ganne would have been next in line at No. 7, but the U.S. Women’s Amateur champion is turning pro before the June 12-14 matches at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles. Her spot goes to Talley. The Curtis Cup selection committee also chose Auburn junior Anna Davis. The selection committee will pick the final four players after the NCAA regionals this spring.

Cameron Young is on some kind of heater

Finally breaking through for his first victory last summer at the Wyndham Championship and then starring for the Americans in the Ryder Cup was sure to set up Cameron Young for a big year. The native New Yorker has been delivering over the last two months. Young tied for seventh at Riviera in the Genesis Championship. He contended at Bay Hill before tying for third in the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Young captured The Players Championship with his clutch drive on the 18th to beat Matt Fitzpatrick. He tied for third last week at the Masters after holding a two-shot lead on the front nine. During that four-tournament stretch, Young has risen from No. 22 to No. 3 in the world. He has taken over the top spot in the FedEx Cup. And he has earned $6.783 million in the last four starts.

The rally worth remembering

The difference between getting into the PGA Tour postseason last year was five points. It's an example that points matter, and why it's worth remembering Brian Harman at the Masters. Harman had a rough start at Augusta National and was 10-over par through the fourth hole of the second round, headed for a weekend off. But then the former British Open champion ran off four straight birdies, and seven for the round, to shoot 69 and make the cut on the number. He shot 67 in the third round. He closed with a 73 and tied for 33rd. That was worth 35 FedEx Cup points, an amount that might come in handy later this year.

Divots

The Senior PGA Championship features the debut of 2016 British Open champion Henrik Stenson, who turned 50 on April 5. Stenson was relegated out of LIV Golf last fall after four years. ... Michelle Wie West is taking advantage of maternity leave to play in one more U.S. Women's Open this year at Riviera. She also is playing the Mizuho Americas Open on a sponsor exemption on May 7-10. Wie West is the tournament host in the event that pairs LPGA players with elite juniors. ... Gary Woodland will have Tim Tucker on his bag at the RBC Heritage. His regular caddie, Brennan Little, qualified for the Senior PGA Championship. ... Matt Fitzpatrick and his brother Alex, who plays on the European tour, will be teammates in the Zurich Classic of New Orleans next week.

Stat of the week

Six of the 10 players in the last five groups at the Masters failed to break par. Their combined scoring average was 73.1.

Final word

“I’m not putting a number on it, but I certainly don’t want to stop here.” — Masters champion Rory McIlroy after winning his sixth major. \\\_ AP golf: