By Mark Wilson
August 16, 2015

“Heir Jordan” has been used too many times. It’s big on social media, web headlines and newspapers. Everything from the Nigeria News to bird golf dot com has used it in columns and blogs.

At first, I thought I came up with it.

Nope; turns out there are smarter and faster headline writers than myself.

BUT!… No one has used “Hare Jordan.”

Auburn University alum and fans know their football stadium is named “Jordan Hare Stadium.” There’s a dude on LinkedIn named “Jordan Hare.” He’s a financial analyst in NYC. There may be others, but I didn’t see them.

Still— that isn’t “Hare Jordan.”

I hereby proclaim that I am the FIRST to compare PGA touring professional Jordan Spieth… to a LARGE RABBIT.

A HA! Used as a verb? “Hare” also means “to run with great speed.”

If THAT doesn’t describe the now 22-year old golfer from Dallas, Texas I don’t know what does. He has run with great speed to the top of the mountain of golfers who make a living on the tour.

Ok, fine. I’m taking a bit of sporting license. Sue me.

As I type this, the final round of the 2015 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits along the Kohler, Wisconsin banks of Lake Michigan has yet to be played. I have zero idea who might win this sucker.

Jason Day was leading after 54 holes. He is the quintessential bridesmaid in major golf events the past few years.

NINE times Day has finished top-10 in a major since the start of 2010. He’s finished second three times and third once. On five different occasions between The Masters, US Open and Open Championship, I thought Day was going to win.

Instead, he leaves with a nice fat check and getting close to replacing Sergio Garcia as the best player “not to win a major.”

He might be there already.

Unless he won the PGA today in Wisconsin.

The reason I write this before the final round is because… I don’t care. I don’t want to be affected by the final 18 holes of play.

Spieth begins the last day in America’s Dairyland just two shots back of Day. He’s 13-under par after his brilliant 65 on Saturday. His round included six birdies on the back nine; coming home in 30.

Amazing.

After winning The Masters and US Open, Spieth nearly made the playoff at St. Andrews. Zach Johnson ended up winning the British in Scotland but everyone knew he escaped having to handle Jordan in a four hole aggregate meeting.

Sorry Zach, I got news for ya. You would have LOST to Spieth if the kid had made it in.

It means today in Kohler, “Hare Spieth” would be hop, hop, hopping towards the Grand Slam of Golf.

Alas, Spieth did not beat Johnson and all he is trying to do is win three of the four majors in 2015.

He turned 22 July 27th.

So, today he could shoot a 94 and I don’t give a hoot. He could put every one of his golf balls into Lake Michigan and it doesn’t matter to me. He could toss all his clubs into the drink, a la John Daly, and I would NOT be affected.

He could curse children on the course, rip Wisconsin’s cheese products, call Milwaukee boring and light a Packers’ jersey on fire and still… I would bow to the new golf king.

ANYONE can write a piece on Spieth if he wins the PGA today. That’s easy schmeezy Mr. Peasy.

No matter what happens at “The Whistle” on this Sunday, Spieth is golf’s future.

It’s not Rory McIlroy.

McIlroy simply doesn’t play enough PGA events to be king. He may be number one in the world (with Spieth breathing down his neck) but Jordan has surpassed him in short order.

We ALL know it isn’t Tiger Woods anymore.

How sad was it to see Woods paddling around the links course trying to find his ball in every nook and cranny Whistling Straits has to offer?

Not just sad… pathetic.

Tiger will be 40 in December and he’s playing like he’s 80. Ten years to go before he can join the senior Champions Tour and he’ll spend that decade trying to figure out why it went south SO fast.

After all, Woods won FIVE tournaments as recently as 2013.

None last year and not even close this year.

His last major win came in 2008.

Tiger who?

On Friday, watching the second round of play it dawned on me that I was all intent on seeing if Woods would make the cut. I sat there like an idiot with a cold drink tuned into TNT’s broadcast all serious about it.

Something hit me and I jumped and screamed to no one in particular, “WHO CARES?”

I mean really… who gives a crud anymore?

Call me when Tiger is ready to contend again. If I wanted to see a guy try to make the CUT, I’ll watch my golf namesake Mark Wilson. He’s won five times on Tour and is from Wisconsin.

Careful Jordan about ripping cheese land cuz Wilson might brain ya.

Of course I joke about Spieth ripping ANYTHING. He is so nice that he’s too good to be true. That might change as he ages but I doubt it.

He’s the “All- American Boy.” Got the game, the smile, the rap— the whole shebang.

And in 2015, he’s got the money.

If he remains in second, or wins the PGA, he is going to hit the $10 million dollar mark in earnings for this season and we’re still only in August with the FedEx playoff to go.

By comparison, I’m pretty sure that Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer COMBINED didn’t make $10 mil for their legendary CAREERS.

Yes, pro golf has changed and Woods was the one who changed it in the late 90’s with his emergence. Purses rose like they had never before in golf history.

Face it, Tiger’s greatness will always be his and his only. As it should be. This is golf; individual sport with no team reference save for the Ryder or President’s Cup efforts.

But what I mean by that is— certainly we all thought that when Woods was dominant, more African American athletes would try and duplicate his success.

With ZERO others hacking it out on courses from California to Florida, it’s obvious Woods didn’t influence even ONE more African American player to join him in the 2000’s.

Heck, there were more BEFORE Tiger.

The late Calvin Peete and Charlie Sifford, Lee Elder, Jim Dent, Walt Morgan, and Jim Thorpe were PGA Tour regulars prior to Woods inclusion.

As far as I know, its ONLY Woods since Tiger joined on two decades ago.

Spieth has no such charge.

Nobody expects Jordan to lead more young white golfers to tee boxes all over the land. Those kids are already there. Spieth is allowed to be young and just play golf. There is no weight of the world on his shoulders like Tiger had back in the mid-90’s.

After turning professional in 2012, Spieth grabbed his first win at the 2013 John Deere Classic in Illinois. In 2014, he didn’t win on Tour but he did snare a victory in Australia.

In March of this year, he won the Valspar Championship one month before his remarkable Masters triumph. Two months later, he won the US Open and three weeks after that, he won the Deere for a second time.

All before he hit 22 on the birthday list.

Barring an injury or catastrophe, it will be Spieth that we start counting down to Nicklaus’ record 18 major victories; not Woods anymore. He’s still 16 away from tying.

Unless of course, he won the PGA today.

If he did? Great. He’ll be 15 away.

If not? No big deal. The 2016 Masters is a scant eight months away. He’ll try and wrap up ’15 with the FedEx title, take some time off and work on his game which we already know has Augusta National chops.

The ’16 US Open will be at Oakmont, site of Johnny Miller’s famous 63. The British will be at Royal Troon and the PGA at Baltusrol in New Jersey.

All those courses are “Speith winnable.”

Daly can throw clubs, Woods can try to make cuts… watching Spieth go for “W’s” will be much more interesting.

Through the last 24 months or so, Spieth hasn’t showed many flaws. He handles defeat with grace and class, does interviews like a veteran and signs all the autographs his growing fan list can handle.

Golf wise, he’s got every shot in the bag. His short game is insanely good and his putting is freakishly fantastic.

See? Too good to be true.

In fact, if he has one flaw it is his… and I hate bringing this up… uh, his… hair.

Spieth is going bald.

At 22, that would be pretty dramatic for a young man. Jordan has already joked about it on numerous occasions. It’s been a source of wonder for the Twitter/Instagram world.

Each time he takes off his cap, it looks like a little more hair has been left in shower stalls from Houston to Seattle.

Go ahead; make fun of him and his noggin. He’s laughing all the way to the bank.

Come to think of it, maybe a better headline for this would have been a no-brainer.

“HAIR JORDAN.” Or, even “LACK OF HAIR JORDAN.”

It could be all gone by his 23rd birthday next July.

Doubt it will affect his golf game. Nothing seems too. He’s a cool customer out there week after week.

I’ll watch that PGA finale today. The final round of major golf for this year. It means autumn and winter are closing in.

Personally, I’d like to see Jason Day get off the schneid. Beaudesert, Queensland Australia will party like it’s 2009.

Day went to bed knowing that Spieth is right there next to him on the board. They’ll partner in the final round and it should be fun to view. Could be the finest round of the golf of the season coming up.

But, doesn’t matter to me. Spieth is king now.

Win, lose, toss clubs… does not make an ounce of difference to me.

He is NO flash in the pan. The Dallas dude is going to be doing this for a long, long time.

In a way it’s too bad because if Jordan Spieth were to fade away like many have before him, I can see the headline now and it’s a good one.

“Hair today, gone tomorrow.”

Guess we’ll just have to keep that one under our hats.