Darrell Moody: Spencer Levin hoping to break into winner’s circle at Montreux

It seemed like yesterday when I watched Spencer Levin shoot 65 to win the Northern California high school golf championship at Salinas Country Club.

He’s 31 now, but he looks the same as he did at 17 when he conquered the best of the best in Northern California. Not many people can say that about their looks, and no doubt he still gets carded when he buys alcohol.

A lot has changed in Levin’s life, and most of that change came in 2012, not long after he finished 31st on the PGA money list, his best season since making the PGA Tour in 2009.

In August 2012, his 28-year-old step-brother Blake Wiklund passed away, and then the following month Levin tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb. A smoker since his high school days, Levin also quit smoking in early September. A lot of changes to be sure.

Levin has persevered despite the personal setbacks, and has enjoyed a successful career. He has won more than $6 million.

Like many golfers, he’s had his share of ups and downs. He made the FedEx Cup playoffs three times, but has never won a PGA Tour title, though he did win a title in 2008 when he was on the Canadian PGA Tour.

Levin is at peace with his career, and at 31, he still is in his prime.

“I’m happy with what I’ve been able to accomplish,” Levin said after his Monday pro-am round at Montreux Golf & Country Club. “I’ve kept my card five years in a row now, and if you keep your card five straight years, you get a good retirement (benefit). That was cool (finding that out). Everybody will tell you that they could have done better or it could have been worse.”

After his 2012 injury, Levin was on a medical exemption and didn’t play in 2013. He had 28 events in 2014 to earn $595,483 or get enough FedEx Cup points. He played in only 20 events in 2014, earning $277,780 before cutting his season short, partially because of the injury. When the 2015 season started, Levin needed $317,703 or 123 FedEx Cup points to become exempt the rest of the season.

It took just three events to save his card. He tied for 21st at Frys.com, then tied for 10th in Las Vegas and tied for 56th at the OHL Classic in Mexico. He drained an 8-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to get enough points to stay exempt the rest of the season.

“That was nice,” Levin said. “It was the last event of the calendar year, and made for a nice (worry free) winter.”

When the season re-started in 2015, Levin went through a stretch where he missed the cut five times in six tries.

He bounced back nicely with a tie for 22nd at both the Byron Nelson and St. Jude Classic.

“I had a good chance to make it three straight (at Hartford), and I went double-bogey and bogey and went from 17th to 50th (actually 48th) or something like that,” he said. “Everybody is so bunched up now. You may have 20 guys on a number at the end of the week. It’s one chip here or one putt there. There are so many good players out there. It’s just a matter of putting four rounds together.”

That’s been tough to do in the last month for Levin. He’s in the hunt to get to the FedEx playoffs again (117th and 125 go), but he has missed his last two cuts.

Montreux has been a mixed bag for Levin. This is his fifth trip, and he’s made the cut twice and missed the cut twice.

“If you’re playing well, you’re playing well that is the way I feel,” Levin said. “You either execute the shot or you don’t that’s what I believe. If you are on you are on. I just don’t believe that certain courses fit your eye better than others.”

With that being said, Levin has always played well in Las Vegas, and had some success at Torrey Pines, and Phoenix. That first win, however, has avoided his clutches thus far.

Levin lost in a 2011 playoff to Johnson Wagner. In 2012, he shot an 8-under-par 63 to open up a six-shot lead going into the final round at the Waste Management Classic. However, a 4-over-par 75 on Sunday sent him to third place. Later that year, he led the Memorial after three rounds, but shot a final-round 75 to finish four strokes behind eventual winner Tiger Woods.

One stroke here and one stroke there. It’s a refrain heard over and over from golfers.

I didn’t sense a lack of confidence when I talked to Spencer on Monday, and that’s good. In golf, if you start to doubt yourself, you won’t play well. In fact, Levin was his usual jovial self, joking with his playing partners throughout the round.

His putting stroke looked pretty solid which is going to be a key for the Elk Grove, Calif., resident. Not a huge hitter off the tee, Levin has always relied on his short game for success.

The Reno stop has produced many first-time winners, and Levin is hoping to add his name to that list.