The third round of the Valspar Championship is underway on Saturday. Jordan Spieth used criticism as fuel during the second round to shoot a 68 and avoid missing the cut for the second time this PGA Tour season. However, he sits at one-over par and will face an uphill battle to reach the leaders at five-under.
After the first round of the Valspar, a golf fan on Instagram told Spieth his wedge game was "total garbage," to which the No. 1 golfer in the world responded, "Couldn't be further from the truth troll. Go do research before hating."
The 22-year-old regrets even giving that "troll" any attention, but it's safe to say that he was unfazed by the criticism after his second round performance.
"You'll probably never see me do that again because obviously it was seen and known and -- just really frustrating,'' Spieth said. "There's really not a point. I should never respond to any of that, just let it go and by the time the next tournament rolls around no one even remembers it anyways."
He's off to another good start today (-1 through eight holes), but he trails leaders Will Mackenzie (-5) and Steve Stricker (-5), as well as Daniel Berger (-4), Graham DeLaet (-4) and Bill Haas (-4). Spieth is tied for 42nd right now and will need a strong 27-hole finish to climb back atop the leaderboard.
He won the Valspar last year, but a couple of fellow young PGA Tour pros could steal the show this time around. Berger, 22, is one of them after shooting under par in his first two rounds. Justin Thomas, 22, is another thanks to a score of 67 in the second round. Berger is tied for third and Thomas is tied for sixth heading into Saturday's round.
A number of players have already teed off today, but there are still many more to go. MacKenzie and Stricker will be the last ones to hit the course when they go out together at 1:45 p.m. ET.
Check out today's tee times here and the live stream for the event here.
