Jordan Spieth set for Cognizant Classic in The Palm Beaches debut, eyes spot at Bay Hill via Aon Swing 5

Spieth didn’t compete at the Mexico Open and will need a high finish (likely in the top five) at the Cognizant to move inside the Aon Swing 5 for the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

The good news for Spieth: he’s exempt into this season’s four majors and THE PLAYERS Championship, where he’ll have ample opportunity to test his game against the strongest fields. But he’ll need high finishes in the coming weeks to earn his spot at the remaining Signature Events – the Arnold Palmer Invitational is followed by the RBC Heritage, Truist Championship, the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday and the Travelers Championship on the 2025 Signature Event slate.

Spieth will draw upon past memories in his return to PGA National, albeit from nearly two decades ago. He competed at the 2009 AJGA Polo Golf Junior Classic as a 16-year-old, advancing to the semifinals before falling to Cory Whitsett, 2 and 1. Those memories aren’t as sharp in 2025, understandably, so he planned to spend ample time strategizing and learning the green complexes in his early-week preparation. He also chatted with his coach Cameron McCormick last week, who opined that PGA National set up nicely for Spieth’s game.

“He goes, ‘I think it’s a great fit,’” Spieth relayed Tuesday. “You’ve got to drive the ball, obviously, precise, but tough golf courses in the wind on Bermuda, that’s kind of what I grew up on. He thought it was a really good fit, so it all came together in 12 hours, essentially.

“I was like, well, it’s still under 32 (degrees) at home, and it was just a weird cold spell, and South Florida sounds nice.”

Spieth finished a pedestrian T69 of 78 players at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, and he missed the cut at The Genesis Invitational with rounds of 76-74. In between, though, he finished T4 at the WM Phoenix Open, contending into the final round before eventual winner Thomas Detry pulled away on the back nine. Spieth took away plenty of positives from that week, though, feeling that his comeback from injury had progressed ahead of schedule. He ranked second that week in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green, and he gained nearly four strokes on the greens to rank No. 13 in Strokes Gained: Putting, doing so with a new putter in the bag for the first time in roughly seven years.