The Masters patrons are generally very appreciative of their champions, but they seemed especially jubilant this time around. Young Jordan Spieth had struck a chord with them. The youngsters in the crowd liked how he high-fived them and gave them souvenir balls to take home. The adults warmed to his appreciation for family and friends and his demeanour on the course. Spieth spoke with confidence before putting on the Green Jacket. There were to be no Bubba-like tears for the Texan. He was comfortable in his surroundings. His conduct was fitting of his performance on the course, Spieth exuded class this week. At 21 years of age, he becomes the second youngest player in Masters history, he ties the tournament score record and he won it wire-to-wire. Fans who follow golf week-to-week had already known of Spieth’s talent. Now the world knows what a star he has become.

Spieth’s major talent this week was one most commonly attached to experienced campaigners – strategy. Fears had grown that Augusta had become a long-hitters course. Spieth, who is a moderately long hitter, demonstrated otherwise. He had the perfect plan for dissembling Augusta National and he executed it flawlessly. He always left himself in the right position – his capacity to leave himself uphill putts was unmatched – and when in that position, his putting was magic. Few players will look as strong as Spieth did on the greens of Augusta for many years to come.

Youthful exuberance would turn out to be another trump card for Spieth. It must be said that this edition of the Masters lacked bite, with thirty-two competitors under-par as opposed to seven last year. In that way, it was not unlike the 2011 US Open in that the setup was atypical. Then, another fearless young prodigy – Rory McIlroy – broke scoring records in receptive conditions. The older players were caught off-guard, and McIlroy was out of sight before they could truly attack the course. This year at the Masters, Spieth raced to eight-under on Thursday and reached fourteen-under on Friday. These totals were incomprehensible for the veterans of the field whose experience would have told them that three to five-under would put them in prime position going into the weekend. Spieth essentially won the tournament on the first two days. Indeed, McIlroy actually outscored Spieth over the final three days. To win, Spieth simply had to maintain his level for the remainder of the tournament.

That is certainly easier said than done, especially in the game of golf. Golf is not adverse to a monumental collapse, sometimes even an unlucky bounce can set a player completely off-track. The list of leaders who have failed to close a tournament out in golf is endless and will continue to grow long after this win. Nevertheless, the chasing pack kept funnelling the memories of Greg Norman’s collapse from a six-shot lead in 1996 as inspiration. To Spieth’s credit, he never gave them an inch. He remained composed and when he inevitably made mistakes, he followed them up with birdies. Experienced campaigners Justin Rose and Phil Mickelson were ready to capitalise on a meltdown but it never happened and that is a testament to Spieth’s mental strength.

The most exciting part of Spieth’s win is for what lies in the future. There is no doubt that he is now a genuine rival to McIlroy. At 21 and 25 years old, Spieth and McIlroy lead the next generation of golf. Their differing playing styles mark them out as potentially great rivals. Spieth showed that he is a machine with the putter; the putter can often be McIlroy’s Achilles Heel. McIlroy is possibly the best driver of the ball in the game; Spieth is shorter than many of his young compatriots. Spieth is a great strategist; McIlroy, while getting better at this aspect of the game, was much less composed than Spieth at this age. McIlroy has a beautifully free-flowing swing; Spieth’s lacks the awe factor but is similarly effective. Spieth is American; McIlroy is European, which should make for great Ryder Cup matches. With this win, Spieth moves to number two in the Official World Golf Rankings to establish their rivalry even further. There is no doubt this week’s winner will set his sights on the number one ranking and McIlroy’s finish this week, 68-66, showed that he will not want to relinquish that crown without a fight.