Rory McIlroy leads plaudits for Jordan Spieth ahead of PGA Championship

By Keith Jackson

As Jordan Spieth bids to become the youngest player to complete a career Grand Slam of majors at this week's PGA Championship, his rivals at Quail Hollow have been unanimous in their admiration of the 24-year-old.

So what have the field been saying about Spieth? Here's a selection of the best quotes in the build-up to the final major of the year:

Rory McIlroy

"Starting at the Travelers and holing that bunker shot to win, and then he does what he does at The Open - he pulls himself out of another hole. He has got that knack, he has got this resilience where he gets himself in positions in tournaments where you don't think he can come back from and he does. It's awfully impressive.

"Resilience, mentally tough, strong, whatever you want to call it, that's his biggest asset. Being able to forget about a bad shot and move to the next one, that is his greatest weapon."

Dustin Johnson

"If he happens to win this one, then he'd have a career Grand Slam. Obviously that's a great feat, especially being as young as he is. It seems like whenever he needs to make long putts, he makes them. You just can't teach that."

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Adam Scott

"Jordan is one of the best iron players for sure. If you look at the technical aspects of his swing, I think Jim Furyk might have the squarest clubface through impact with the ball and then Jordan would be next. And when he putts well, that is a nice little combo."

Phil Mickelson

"He has that intangible of when he doesn't have his best stuff, like on the back nine at Hartford, to still find a way to win. You can't really identify and say it's this or it's that, it's just that indescribable trait that he has to find a way to get it done, finding the will to win.

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"He showed it again at The Open and he continues to show it. When you get him near the lead, he's extremely tough to beat because he just finds a way to gut it out."

Ernie Els

"He's a special guy, and he's won some events really showing some grit. The US Open he won, he got a bit fortunate with what happened to DJ on the 18th green. But the way he won the Masters, and at The Open a couple of weeks ago, it's just special stuff - the guy finds a way of getting it done.

"He's not the longest hitter out there and he's not the most accurate, but he's got an overall game that he's really comfortable with. He's not trying to get more length out of the tee ball, but he's playing his game and grinding it out. That's a great way to win golf tournaments."

Jimmy Walker

"The Open was phenomenal. We had to leave for the airport right about when he sent that one over by the driving range and had to take that drop. It seemed like the wheels were falling off, but he's the kind of guy that it seems like when he gets behind a little bit, that's when he really starts to shine.

"It was incredible. He made the bogey there and then he starts dropping long-range putts, and that's what he does. It's phenomenal, he's young and he's got three majors. He's a great player."

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