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Jordan Spieth remains calm – and in the Masters lead – thanks to a sixth-grade math teacher

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Three years ago, Jordan Spieth's caddie was a sixth-grade math teacher and a coach of his local high school girls golf team.

"Polar opposite of Jordan," Michael Greller said. "These girls would get crushed, and they're giggling about it."

You'd think caddying in front of the entire world at the Masters would have nothing to do with monitoring teens on muni courses and going to recess with little kids, but the worlds collided in a crucial moment here in Saturday's third round. Spieth had just flubbed a chip on the 17th hole, leading to a double bogey and trimming two shots off his chasm of a six-shot lead. Phil Mickelson and Justin Rose, having charged up the leaderboard to within shouting distance of Spieth, were already in the clubhouse.

Then Grellar made Augusta National his classroom.

"I more just listened," he said after the round. "After about a minute of him talking, it was time to step into the next shot."

Their conversation continued up the 18th fairway, after Spieth sprayed his approach on 18 to the right, with the 21-year-old Spieth still doing most of the talking as the pair walked to an extremely tricky pitch shot over a greenside bunker. Another lost shot would trim the lead to three. Another chili-dip would mean a long night of nerves and regret.

But there was Grellar again, quietly offering suggestions and hearing his player out. Spieth went with a flop shot and nailed it, sailing the ball high into the blue sky to within nine feet of the pin. He sank the putt to save par.

It was the key moment of the day and, if the 21-year-old wins this tournament, it will be a key moment in his life. Spieth is 16-under after 54 holes – a new Masters record and an unthinkable performance for someone in just his second go-around here.

And standing by his side is the ex-math teacher from Michigan who came to the Masters three years ago as a patron, drinking beers and following Rory McIlroy around the course. In 2011, Grellar looped for Spieth at the U.S. Junior Amateur near where he taught sixth grade in Washington State. They clicked; Spieth won.

They are an oddly perfect match. Spieth is fiery and sometimes emotional. Grellar is patient and calming – almost a little bit philosophical. He says getting through this tournament requires one to "allow a certain sense of grace." Spieth is ambitious, wanting to make every putt and nail every shot. Grellar understands it doesn't always happen that way. So Spieth's bout with imperfection on 17 created the ideal moment for Grellar to soothe his player.

Jordan Spieth takes a four-shot lead into the final round. (AP)
Jordan Spieth takes a four-shot lead into the final round. (AP)

Grellar was asked after the round what he misses least about teaching, and he named lesson plans and returning parent emails. In a way, though, he's still doing the same thing. Saturday's lesson plan was two morning meetings with Ben Crenshaw's longtime caddie, Carl Jackson. The two went over the entire course, shot by shot. "It was like looking at the NBA Finals with Michael Jordan," Greller said of Jackson, who looped for Crenshaw during both of his Masters victories.

The 68-year-old caddying legend offered some spiritual advice as well.

"Trust your instincts," Jackson told Grellar. "Take deep breaths. Understand things are not going to go smooth."

They didn't always go smooth on Saturday. Spieth wobbled between even par and 1-under on the front, then built his lead to 18-under after draining a 14-foot birdie putt on 16. Then he hooked his tee shot on 17 and the roof caved in a little.

But it didn't cave in a lot.

It's a little unsettling how settled Spieth is through all this. He roared out to a huge lead over the first two days, then on Saturday it seemed like the entire golf world was gaining on him. Tiger Woods went on a run. So did Rory McIlroy. So did Mickelson. Rose went from 6-under to 12-under to grab a spot with Spieth in the final group on Sunday.

Neither Spieth nor Grellar were bothered. They agreed not to look at the leaderboard all day, and they kept to it.

"He was able to let the emotion go," said Grellar. "Tiger, Phil, Rory, all making moves. We appreciate that. To be one of the best you want the other golfers to play their best."

That inner calm has assisted both player and caddie. So has the elementary school job. He visited his old school last year and it gave him even more perspective. "You realize golf, at the end of the day, is entertainment," Greller said.

And teaching, he found, is not too far removed from golf.

"A lot of it is sixth-grade math," Grellar said with a grin. "Percentages. It's kinda eerie how much it translates."

The prodigy and the teacher have a four-shot lead going into the final round of the Masters on Sunday. Their class will be attended by millions. And the lesson might just be history.