At Fortinet, Justin Thomas seeking what he had

in

NAPA — Such a simple game, golf. A ball sitting there on the tee or the fairway that you keep hitting in the right direction. Until inexplicably it goes in the wrong direction. 

Like the career of Justin Thomas.

It isn’t baseball, where a pitcher keeps you off balance. Or football where an opponent may knock you off balance. 

But golf certainly can throw you off balance. Even if you’ve twice finished first in the PGA Championship, one of the majors, as Thomas has.

Now as the PGA Tour has its annual restart with the Fortinet Championship at Silverado, Thomas is looking for a personal restart. He had, well, a very bad year.

For a while, he was 71st on the money list. He missed the cut in three of the four majors. He had to sweat out being chosen as a captain’s pick — “like trying to call an ex-girlfriend” — for the Ryder Cup (He was selected).

You’re trying to figure out yourself while at the same time, others are trying to figure you out. And maybe at the same time they are worried it could happen to them.

But at age 29, Thomas, the son and grandson of golf pros, appears to have conquered his demons, if not specifically the cures to what ails him.

When the great Ben Hogan was asked by other players how to improve he had a terse answer: “It’s in the dirt.”

Meaning, just hit practice shot after practice shot, until there were divots from the repetitive digging into the grass and get turf. Thomas plans to continue his digging, literally and as a byproduct, emotionally until he’s content with signs of progress.

”Anytime you’re going forward,” said Thomas, “or moving forward — I don’t want to say moving on — but grow and get better I’m excited. I definitely am hard on myself but I kind of reminded some of the stuff Max Homa said.”

Homa, who’s going for a third consecutive Fortinet title pointed out he and the other golfers knew well Thomas was far too superior to languish so far down in the Tour rankings, even briefly.

Thomas has been both defending and explaining himself on social media, the outlet of choice for the 20 and 30 somethings. He has split with former putting coach John Graham. 

“Everything, fundamentally or mechanically, or on the putting green was as good as it could get. Basically what I told (Graham) is you can’t go out and make the putts for me. That’s something only I can do.” 

Whether he accomplishes the task might be evident at the Fortinet. Silverado’s greens can be difficult. 

“I’ve been practicing getting the ball in the hole,” said Thomas. “I don’t care how it looked. All that mattered was getting the ball in the hole.”  

And along with that getting his game out of the hole. As we’ve been told forever, in golf “it ain’t how it’s how many.”

A joke turns bad for Tiger and Thomas

PACIFIC PALISADES — So what was supposed to be a joke between a couple of guys named Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas drew more grimaces than laughter.

Then what was supposed to be an affirming round for Tiger — and the Genesis Invitational — turned into a string of missed putts if not a missed cut.

If you thought golf was unpredictable, how about humor?

We’re halfway through the Genesis, the last event before the PGA Tour leaves the West Coast, and the leaderboard has names such as Keith Mitchell, Collin Morikawa, Rory McIlroy, and Jon Rahm up high.

One of the names down low is Tiger’s, who in his first tournament since the British Open last July, seemingly will play all four rounds — the cut not being made until Saturday morning because Friday’s second round was unfinished.

That Woods, now 47 and still rehabbing after that serious car crash two years ago, almost certainly will be around a larger and more boisterous group of spectators. You should have heard the crowd Friday as Woods, finishing on nine at Riviera Country Club, bogeyed the final two holes.

The gasps were inescapable. As was the response to the frat-boy shenanigans Thursday involving Tiger and Justin Thomas. Maybe Tiger had been out of touch for so long that he forgot how much attention someone as famous as he generates over nothing. Or in this case, something.

Tiger and Thomas wondered among themselves whether Woods, away from golf, had lost his power. When his tee shot carried beyond Thomas; Tiger pulled out a Tampon and handed it to Thomas. 

As if you hit like a girl. As if girls, or women, can’t power the ball, which is nonsense. As members of the LPGA prove. 

Thomas, even more than Tiger, should be aware of how the smallest incident, intended or not, can become uncontrollable. Two years ago after a bad tee shot, Thomas berated himself with a phrase that was picked up by a TV microphone. He subsequently was dropped by two endorsing firms.    

Before he started his round Friday, Woods apologized.

“Yeah, it was supposed to be all fun and games and obviously it hasn't turned out that way,” he conceded. “If I offended anybody, it was not the case, it was just friends having fun. As I said, if I offended anybody in any way, shape or form, I'm sorry. It was not intended to be that way. It was just we play pranks on one another all the time and virally I think this did not come across that way, but between us it was — it's different.”

Different, also an appropriate word for his round, 2-under 69 on Thursday, a 3-over 74 on Friday.  

“I did not putt well today,” said Woods.

You might say his round was no laughing matter.

After PGA, Thomas elated, Tiger sore

in ,

On a Sunday to remember, a young man who had referred to himself as an underachiever came from seven shots behind to win a major golf tournament.

His golfing future seems secure.

On a Saturday to forget, a not-so-young man who often had expressed confidence in himself was hurting physically and mentally and withdrew from this one.

His golfing future seemed questionable.

Justin Thomas at last accomplished what he had set out to do, and in such a momentous way, meeting expectations and becoming one of the game’s elite with a victory in the 104th PGA Championship at Southern Hills in Tulsa.

That was some 24 hours after the player recognized as the finest of the era, Tiger Woods, proved all too human in attempting to repeat his surprising post-accident success of the Masters.

Aching and frustrated, Woods shot a 9-over 79 Saturday, subsequently dropping out of a major as a pro for the first time in his career.

“Well, I’m sore,” he said in explanation. Which might have been predictable. Not that very much is with Woods from this moment.

Tiger always told us he never entered an event unless he thought he could win — and of course he did win so frequently, 82 times, including the 15 majors.

One of those was the PGA at Southern Hills back in 2007, when Woods was healthy enough and younger. Now he is 46 and, after the March 2021 car accident that nearly cost him his right leg, is in need of continuing treatment.

Not many believed Woods would play the Masters in April. He not only played, he made the cut. A couple days after the first round, even he was unsure about making the PGA.

Again he made the cut in a major, but his game became a problem after his body became a problem.

After his 4-over 74 on day one, there was a brief return to the Tiger of the past, a 1-under 59. Then the weather turned nasty.

In the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma, the wind “comes sweeping down the plain.” In the PGA, it swept over fairways and greens, chilling and challenging.

Woods wasn’t the only one affected — Thomas shot 74 Saturday, and 67 in each the other three rounds in regulation — but Woods was the only one who had been undergoing daily therapy.

All of a sudden, that romp (plod?) to a win in the 100-degree heat of the 2007 PGA (the tournament was held in August that year) was impossibly distant.

He alluded to himself Friday after the round as “Humpty Dumpty,” his team of doctors and therapists rebuilding him each night. Yet ever the strong-willed individual, he refused to blame his play Saturday on finishing late Friday and having no time to recover.

“It’s not bad,” he had insisted. “I just didn’t play well. I didn’t hit the ball very well and didn’t get off to the start I needed. I thought I hit a good tee shot down 2 and ended up in the water and never got any momentum. I didn’t hit many good shots and consequently ended up with a pretty high score.”

His playing partner, Shaun Norris of South Africa, said of Tiger, “You feel so so sorry for him having to go through this. He’s swinging nicely. I think he’ll be back.”

Maybe not for the U.S. Open in June at The Country Club outside Boston but probably for the British Open at St. Andrews in July.

Thomas will be at every major. He’s a two-time PGA champ. Maybe not Tiger Woods, but not bad for a former underachiever.

Justin Thomas: Good words, great shots

in ,

TULSA, Okla. — One minute Justin Thomas is knocking himself: “I’ve performed very poorly in the majors.” The next, he’s knocking concession prices at the current major, the PGA Championship.

And then, he’s knocking down the flagsticks at the PGA Championship.

He’s exactly what golf needs, someone just enough out of control with his comments but for the most part in full control of his shots.

The self-criticism was made to Canadian journalist Mike Hall in April. The gripe was about the cost of beer at Southern Hills Country Club — $18 for a can of Michelob.

“Yeah, very pleased,” said Thomas of his play on Friday. “I played really, really well today. The conditions were obviously very difficult. I stayed very patient, tried to get in my own little world and get in a zone and just tried to execute each shot the best I could . . . and am glad to have a good round to show for it.”

That’s the sort of happy talk the people promoting the sport and dispensing clubs and balls like to hear and read.

But it’s not the stuff that captures attention. Bad news sells, and as you may have noticed from the candid observations from Thomas, other than his brilliant two rounds, the news was bad.

The only things that have have that spoiled Thomas’ career were expectations, his and ours.

Thomas, 27, has been blessed and cursed. He is the son and grandson of teaching pros. He also is a longtime pal of Jordan Spieth.

Jordan has his own troubles, but they exist because he doesn’t win everything, and never mind the Masters., U.S. Open and British Open.

That both Thomas and Spieth are outspoken is a joy for the media. Someone who finds little joy in the game described golf as nothing more than hitting a ball with a stick, all alone (other than galleries) in a meadow.

Other than for the purists — “Did you see how he opened his stance?” — controversy is as necessary as competition. Unless someone shoots 59. Even non-golfers would appreciate that — or is named Tiger Woods.

So Thomas’ words about himself, underachieving, or about the price of concessions at Southern Hills are not unworthy. No failing. No ripoffs.

What’s wrong with Thomas’ game?  At the moment, nothing. Asked if perhaps he put too much pressure on himself to succeed, he said, “I don't know. It's golf, so it's pretty hard sometimes.

“I mean, I like this golf course. I feel like I'm playing well. We're halfway through so it's still a long way from home, but I'm very, very pleased with where everything is at and the frame of mind and state of mind that I'm in.”

State of mind would apply to everything, everywhere. When things go well, you’re delighted. When they don’t, you tell people you should be doing better.

“You can't force things, so I'm not sure,” he said. “I've never played this golf course in competitive rounds other than these last two days, so I'm probably not the best person to ask.

“It was long enough ago that I don't necessarily remember watching to know what happened (at the PGA in 2007). I know Tiger won here, and that guy was pretty good with the lead, so I think he's kind of an outlier.”

That’s an interesting term from any golfer, underachiever or not.

Mickelson: From Ryder Cup pond to 6 straight birdies at the Safeway

in ,

By Art Spander

NAPA, Calif. — So it’s back to the PGA Tour, the Safeway Open, where golf once again is a game of strokes and not words. And America’s failure in the Ryder Cup remains in that other wine country, France.

What surfaced again at the Safeway was Phil Mickelson’s game — or at least the most important part, putting.

Phil’s last shot at the Ryder Cup, six days ago, plunked into a pond and gave Europe the winning points. But Thursday, in the first round of the first tournament of the 2018-19 season, the Safeway at Silverado Country Club, Philly Mick birdied six straight holes, 9 through 14, and shot a 7-under 65.

He was two behind rookie Sepp Straka, who is making his first Tour start and shot a spectacular 63, one back of Chase Wright.

Mickelson, reminding us he’s 48 and not quite able to handle monster courses with narrow fairways and high, thick rough, as he encountered during the Ryder Cup at Le Golf National near Paris, was asked about the apparent bickering among American Ryder Cuppers.

Patrick Reed’s wife whined that he was blindsided by, presumably, U.S. captain Jim Furyk, when Reed was separated as a playing partner from Jordan Spieth, with whom he formed a winning pairing in the 2016 Cup.

Then, wham, another anonymous golfer said Reed was full of spit, or something, and the U.S. players were very much involved in the pairing decisions.

If that weren’t enough, then came a report that two of America’s literal big men, the 6-footers Dustin Johnson and Brooks Koepka — who together have won the last three U.S. Opens — had a punch-out. Fiction, Koepka insisted.

“I don’t know what to say,” Mickelson responded, “because I didn’t see any of that stuff happen. I only saw one of the best weeks and team unities that we’ve had in a long time.”

There’s an adage that you can learn more about a person in a single round of golf than in a month of dialogue. What we seemingly learned about some of the members of the U.S. team is they didn’t so much need a captain as a nursemaid.

“Well, we got outplayed,” a candid Mickelson said Thursday, discussing the result of his 12th Ryder Cup. “I thought we had a great week in the sense we worked really well together as a team in deciphering some things and over the course of 20 years we’re looking at this as a big-picture thing.

“We were 2-8 the last 20 years (the Ryder Cup is biennial). Our goal is take the wins and losses and build on them. We’re having the opportunity to build something special, and so we’ll be judged on how we do the next 20 years. Our goal is to go 8-2, but after losing this time that might not be possible.”

Anything’s possible in golf. Mickelson flew 11 hours to his San Diego-area home from France on Monday, rested, came north to Napa on Wednesday, hit the ball poorly in warm-ups Thursday and shot 34-30.

“I hit it terrible,” Mickelson said, “one of the worst warm-ups of the year. I was hitting the fence on the range. To the left, not straight ahead. But I’ve been putting well, like I can putt. The big thing is making the short ones. Don’t let the good round fool you.”

The real question is: were we fooled by the tales of disaffection among the U.S. Ryder Cuppers? Or is it that the Euros care more about winning the Cup, while the Americans care about winning the majors?

Fred Couples has done both, his major the 1992 Masters. He is 59 and playing the Champions Tour, but as a spectator attraction — Fred always has been one of the more popular golfers — he is entered in the Safeway, where Thursday he shot a 1-over 73.

“I wish they would just leave it alone,” Couples said about the Ryder Cup complaining. “We got smoked, give it a rest. You go down as a team. … Why did they (Europe) win? They played better. They’re not better friends or attached more. They just flat beat us.”

Fortunately, Justin Thomas, the son and grandson of pros, and the 2017 PGA Champion, had the proper approach after playing in his first Ryder Cup. “To the fans and people of France,” Thomas tweeted, “y’all were amazing. So loud, supportive and classy to both the Europeans and US team. They are what makes the @rydercup so special…”

Thanks, Justin.

 

Los Angeles Times: Justin Thomas wins his first major by claiming victory at the PGA Championship

in ,

By Art Spander
Los Angeles Times

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was inevitable that Justin Thomas would win a major golf championship. His talent had been apparent since he was in grammar school. Sooner or later he would win a big one like his pal Jordan Spieth.

Sooner arrived on a humid Sunday at the 99th PGA Championship, when player after player, five in all, held or shared the lead until there was the 24-year-old Thomas holding it for good.

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2017, Los Angeles Times

‘Errant’ Hills gets what it needed, a 63 by Justin Thomas

in ,

By Art Spander

ERIN, Wis. — They were calling it “Errant” Hills, saying it was the most forgettable course in U.S. Open history. But that changed on an historic Saturday, changed when a kid who’s been touted as one of the next greats went out and shot the lowest score in relation to par in the 117 years that the championship of American golf has been held.

If you didn’t know the name Justin Thomas, didn’t know he was destined to what was done on a warm, humid afternoon in the pastureland of Wisconsin, shoot a 9-under-par 63, well, you do now.

That’s been a magic score in majors, 63, since Johnny Miller, the kid from San Francisco, shot it the final round at Oakmont near Pittsburgh to win the 1973 Open. Since then, there have been numerous 63s, including one by Phil Mickelson last year in the British Open.

But none was at a par-72 course, like Erin Hills. Until Saturday.

“It was an awesome day,” said Thomas. ”I’m not sure when it’s going to sink in or when I’m going to realize what I did. I know one thing. If it happened (Sunday) and the result is what I want it to be, then I’d probably have a different feeling.”

Then he’d be a U.S. Open champion like his longtime pal and rival, Jordan Spieth.

But until Sunday it’s just a score to place in the record books, a score that verifies what sort of talent a 24-year-old who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs only 145 pounds can offer.

All that 63 was worth on the leaderboard was as part of a cumulative 11-under-par 73-69-63—205, tying Thomas for second with Brooks Koepka and Tommy Fleetwood, after Fleetwood double-bogied 18. Brian Harman holds the lead by a shot at 12-under 204.

Thomas had an eagle three on the 637-yard 18th, reaching the green in two and then holing the putt. “I was just trying to take advantage of the opportunities I had,” said Thomas.

More accurately, the opportunities he created.

The grandson and son of tour pros, Thomas, who grew up in Louisville, was a star before his teens. He once won two junior tournaments in a single day. At 16, he played in the Greensboro Tour event and shot 65.

“I was completely unconscious,” Thomas told Mark Whicker in 2015. “But I remembered how it motivated me. I was sitting in the players’ dining room and looking at all the food they get. They were making us omelets, and I was grabbing candy and ice cream. It was the coolest experience ever.”

That statement is up for amendment.

“I don’t know what I’m going to feel tonight,” he said. “I know I’m not going to sleep in. I’m going to be nervous, but it will be a good nervous.”

On Saturday, Thomas was saying how proud he was of his home town and the state of Kentucky, but he played his college golf at Alabama, helping the Crimson Tide win an NCAA title.

He has four PGA Tour wins, two in Malaysia in the CIMB and two in Hawaii. His friends, including Spieth, chide him, saying he’s never won on the American mainland.

“I mean, it would be special,” he said of this possibility. “It would be special, because it’s the U.S. Open, not because it’s on the mainland. I mean that’s kind of funny to me.”

The way Thomas plays golf is not at all funny, it’s exciting. At the Sony Open in January, he became the seventh player overall and the youngest to shoot a sub-60 round, a 59. Yes, he won.

Whether he wins this Open won’t be determined for another 18 holes, but obviously he’s in a great position after a great round. Then again, so are many others, including last year’s PGA champ, Patrick Reed, a star of the U.S. Ryder Cup team last year, and at 10-under the first-round leader, Rickie Fowler.

“As long as it’s a good tournament,” said Thomas, “I don’t think the USGA cares what the score is. They want a good tournament and an action-packed leaderboard. I mean, to be selfish I hope it isn’t, and I have a day like (Saturday).

“But you don’t know what’s going to happen. That’s the thing.”

Someone could even go out and shoot 63 like Justin Thomas.

Global Golf Post: Thomas Already Has Big-Time Game

in ,

By Art Spander
Global Golf Post

PACIFIC PALISADES, CALIFORNIA — This is Hogan's place, actually "Hogan's Alley," a label that stands as surely as does the statue of Ben adjacent to the practice green at Riviera Country Club.

History counts here. History and reputations. Justin Thomas seems destined to create both. "Justin Thomas," said Graham DeLaet, "is part of the future of golf."

Read the full story here.

Copyright 2015 Global Golf Post