A few breaks, a lot of talent at the Masters (+ video)

By the back nine Thursday at Augusta National, Billy Horschel got tired of congratulating Jordan Spieth.

“He said, ‘I need a tape recorder that just says, ‘Nice hole, Jordan,’ on each tee box,’” Spieth said.

Eighteen “nice holes” into the 2015 Masters, Spieth, the 21-year-old Texan who is ranked No. 4 in the world, has a three-shot lead thanks to an 8-under 64. He was one shot off the course record and one shot off the best round in major championship history.

“It’s round one. It’s just a lot of good breaks and good putting and chipping and short game day for me. There’s 54 holes left and anything happens in a major,” Spieth said after becoming the youngest first round leader in Masters history. “I need to play some really, really good golf, and I need to hit my driver and I need to hit my irons better than I did today to have a chance to win this week. I’m not planning on looking at scoreboards at this point.”

It was the first nine-birdie round of Spieth’s career and came on the back of 11 one putts.

“It was one of those days the breaks were all going my way,” he said. “I’m going to need to strike the ball better to hold the lead.”

Spieth is three in front of 45-year-old Ernie Els, Jason Day, Charley Hoffman and Justin Rose. Els played his first Masters the year after Spieth was born.

“That’s quite a nice story line,” Els said. “You just cannot see (Spieth) not win many, many majors. He is the most balanced kid I have seen, and there are some really great kids out there. Jordan has got that tenacity to him, and he’s the nicest kid in the world.”

Spieth, who two years ago became the first teenager to win a PGA Tour event since 1931, birdied Nos. 2, 4, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14 and 18. His only blemish was a bogey on the par-5 15th. He tied for second last year in his only other Masters appearance.

“This place is the most special place in golf, and it’s my favorite place in the world,” he said.

Charleston’s Russell Henley (4-under) and Greenville’s Bill Haas (3-under) both are on the front page of the leader board. The conventional wisdom is the Masters can’t be won on the first day but can be lost. Among the players who did not lose it: Dustin Johnson (2-under), Phil Mickelson (2-under), Bubba Watson (1-under) and Rory McIlroy (1-under). Among the players who might have: Tiger Woods (1-over).

“I’m only nine back, and we have a long way to go,” Woods said. “We don’t know what the Masters is going to do, what they’re going to do with the greens or the golf course.”

Horschel took note of the good breaks Spieth got, specifically in Amen Corner.

“Then,” Horschel said, “on number 13, he blocks his drive and it hits – he called bank shot off the tree there, I guess – afterwards, obviously – back in the fairway and I said, ‘Hey, dude, I mean, it’s Jordan’s Corner, it’s no more Amen Corner.’ I mean, he had a couple (breaks) today. But, listen, he still played a heck of a round of golf.”

This story was originally published April 9, 2015 at 11:19 PM with the headline "A few breaks, a lot of talent at the Masters (+ video)."