Different Strokes: Distinctive reward for Jordan Spieth

It’s not green. It used to be red. And Jordan Spieth’s reward for winning the RBC Heritage Classic at Hilton Head, apart from the payday of €1.35 million, came in the form of a distinctive tartan jacket.

The idea behind the traditional Scottish tartan clothing was inspired by one of the tournament organisers discovering a famed golf print of William Innes, dating back to 1790, when he was captain of the Society of Golfers at Blackheath in Scotland in which he is playing in a tartan jacket.

So it was that a suggestion to present the winner of the tournament was followed up with a search to find a suitable tartan design. The tournament organisers decided to use the Royal Stewart tartan as the base, removing the yellow line from that design to create their own. It’s official name is Heritage Plaid, if you fancy ordering one of your own!

Sullivan Tributes

Paul McGinley and Pádraig Harrington - who experienced first-hand the brilliance of Wattie Sullivan, as a coach - were among those to pay tributes the long-time club professional at Grange Golf Club on his passing at the age of 94.

McGinley, who played out of Grange, wrote: “So sad to hear of the passing of thee great Wattie Sullivan - he was such a joy to be around as pro in my formative years at Grange, always so supportive. He leaves a great legacy through his sayings, my favourite ‘keep the head down and the heart up’.”

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Although Harrington’s amateur days were spent at Stackstown, he too took on board words of wisdom from Sullivan: “So sad to hear of the passing of Wattie. Like all great teachers he was a great sports psychologist before his time. I still have his sayings ringing around my head. He was a really nice player too.”

Word of Mouth

“It felt cool, as if I was in the ocean” - Hyo Joo Kim after being doused with water and champagne by friends and family members after her win in the LPGA Lotte Championship in Hawaii. The South Korean closed with a 71 for a total of 11-under-par 277 to finish two strokes clear of Japan’s Hinako Shibuno for her fifth career win on the LPGA Tour.

By the Numbers: 5

Jordan Spieth became just the fifth player - joining Byron Nelson, Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy - to win 13 (or more) tournaments on the PGA Tour including three Majors before the age of 29 (since 1940).

On this day: 19th April 1981

Lee Trevino rebounded from a missed cut at the Masters the previous week to close with a 69 for total of 15-under-par 273 to win the Tournament of Champions, claiming a two stroke winning margin over Ray Floyd at a rain-soaked La Costa resort.

The win gave Trevino a first ever success in California and his 26th career win on the PGA Tour. Tex Mex - at 41 - was the oldest player in the 29 man field and earned a $54,000 payday for Trevino, who previously had finished runner-up no fewer than four times in the tournament confined to winners from the previous season on the circuit.

The decisive play of the homeward run came on the 13th, where Floyd drove into trouble and ran up a bogey, while Trevino hit an 8-iron approach to five feet and sank the birdie putt. “That was the difference,” said Trevino, “we were both playing good and, when you’re both playing good, you just can’t afford to give up two shots.”

In the Bag

Jordan Spieth

RBC Heritage

Driver: Titleist TSi3 (10 degrees)

3-wood: Titleist TS2 (15 degrees)

Hybrid: Titleist 818 H2 (21 degrees)

Irons: Titleist T100 (4-9)

Wedges: Vokey Design SM9 (46, 52, 56 and 60 degrees)

Putter: Scotty Cameron 009 tour prototype

Ball: Titleist Pro V1x

Twitter Twaddle

"I thought this would be the greatest par of my life . . . I was assessed a 2 stroke penalty for 'standing astride' my intended line of play during this shot. The rules of golf remain undefeated" - Dylan Fritelli having a snarky cut at the rules after being assessed a penalty for standing under and batting the ball, which was lodged in a tree, by using his driver. His improvisation fell foul of the rules.

"Congratulations to @Titleist brand ambassador and longtime Putter Studio friend @JordanSpieth who surged up the leaderboard Sunday and prevailed in an all-Titleist playoff to win the @RBC_Heritage. Jordan trusted his 009 Prototype for his 13th win" - Scotty Cameron, who must have missed the part where Spieth claimed to have won the tournament "without a putter" given his poor performance on the greens.

"I made attempts to play through this injury at three recent events, including the Masters, but this is typically an injury that requires surgical treatment. Through continued discomfort from the fracture, it has caused me to alter my grip and swing, resulting in my inability to compete at golf's highest level. This has not been easy physical and mentally for me" - Bryson DeChambeau revealing he'd undergone successful left wrist surgery, which is likely to see him miss next month's US PGA Championship.

Know the Rules

Q

On the first hole of a strokeplay competition, a player uses his distance measuring device before he hits his second shot and then again before his third shot. The device had the ability to make an adjustment for slope and this was turned on. What is the ruling?

A

A player may get information on distance or direction from a distance measuring device. However, such a device must not be used to measure elevation changes. As the player used the device on two separate occasions, he would be disqualified (Rule 4.3).