Jordan Spieth opened the first round of 2026 with six birdies at Waialae Country Club, and spoke about the optimism he felt for the year ahead and how he’s enjoying himself more on the course these days.
The 32-year-old Texas native rejected the idea of a time machine when asked his age just moments after shooting 2-under 68 to sit tied for 41st, six off the lead at Waialae Country Club.
“If you’re not being present and you’re not enjoying the fact that you’re living out your dream, and if it feels like a job hard work, and I tell you it has and it really shouldn’t. There is just no need,” Spieth said in a post-round interview when asked if he wished he could go back 10 years.
“I feel really good right now,” he added. “There are certainly days where I wake up and I’m like, I didn’t like — 10 years ago didn’t quite feel that way. They say once you hit 40 or so that changes quite a bit, too, and every 10 years from there.”
Spieth is looking to avenge a 2023 missed cut at the Sony Open. He skipped the event the past two seasons.
“It’s fun to be healthy and fun to be knowing I’m working on the right things and fun to be out here competing,” the three-time major-winner said. “I hit some cool shots today; I hit some shots I want back.”
Two of the shots that Spieth would like to have back included a pair of bogeys on Nos. 13 and 15, brining his total to four on the round.
“I’ve been working hard on trying get to a position where I can be very dialed in outwardly and it doesn’t have to be perfect,” said Spieth, who won his 13th and most recent Tour event in 2022. “If I can inch my way that way and start to see some shots that I didn’t have the last couple years, then I’m going to gain confidence and it’s going to get better day in and day out.”