Spieth provided the thrills and gets the valuable lessons

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IRVING, Texas -- The word "surreal" has not been a regular part of the Spieth family vocabulary. But this week, that's the most appropriate way to describe the thrill ride that 16-year-old Jordan Spieth gave the HP Byron Nelson Championship.

"We've used the word 'surreal' about three times as much as we had cumulatively up until now," said Spieth's dad Shawn as he waited for his son to get out of the scorer's trailer following his 2-over 72 that left him in a tie for 16th.

Certainly the amount of attention that Jordan Spieth brought to this week's event at the Four Seasons Resort course went beyond the wildest expectations of anyone associated with the event.

By becoming the sixth-youngest player to make the cut at a PGA TOUR event, Spieth became the story of the week, and golf fans in the area took notice. Spieth and playing partner Corey Pavin, the U.S. Ryder Cup captain, had the largest gallery of the day.

The size of the crowd was, dare we say, Tigeresque.

"I was walking to the fourth hole and it looked like there was a thousand people following him," said eventual champion Jason Day, who was playing alongside Blake Adams. "I turned to Blake and said, "There are more people following that young amateur than us.'"

Day, in fact, was glad to fly under the radar while the spotlight shined on the high school junior from Dallas.

As for Spieth, it was a week unlike any other. The key will be to learn from all the pros he played with and benefit from the experience.

"I definitely loved being able to learn from the guys I was playing with, and just on and off the course, seeing how they were approaching their pre-round routine and stuff," Spieth said. "That was pretty neat to get that kind of experience."

Shawn Spieth knows once all the dust settles, once Jordan and the family get to reflect on what happens, that the reigning U.S. Junior Amateur gained some valuable lessons playing with Blake Adams, David Lutterus, Tom Pernice Jr. and Pavin this week.

"He'll look back and learn from playing with the guys he played with this week," Shawn said. "Everybody he played with played at a slower pace, real calm -- he knows he has to channel his energy that way to continue to get better and better."

In fact, Jordan said that was one of the issues in Sunday's round. After shooting three rounds in the 60s, he struggled out of the gate Sunday, failing to get the quick start he needed to get the crowd revved up.

With bogeys at the second and third holes, Spieth dropped to 4 under and eliminated any outside chance he had to contend. He bounced back with birdies later in the front nine, but rode a rollercoaster on the back side with two birdies, two bogeys and a double bogey.

"It's all business out there," Jordan said. "They (TOUR pros) remain neutral. They know that they can't get too excited or too down on themselves. I did today. I got way too down on myself early, and then I got way too excited at some point in the round, too. It messed me up a little bit."

Still, the Spieth family will never forget the outpouring of support for Jordan, with people following his every move. They even broke out in a chant late in Jordan's round.

"It's been great for our family," said mother Chris Spieth. "Just a great experience."