Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior Editor
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Just about a yr in the past, nearest Justin Thomas matched the most important 54-hole comeback in PGA Championship historical past by means of chasing ailing Chile’s Mito Pereira from 7 photographs again to win his 2nd Wanamaker Trophy, he mentioned what finishing a just about five-year drought and not using a primary championship victory would possibly cruel to his profession.
“When it happens you think it’s going to happen the next time you play — you really do,” Thomas stated. “When things are going well, especially in this sport, it’s easy. The ball bounces the right way, the putts slip in, guys do what you need them to do in the leaderboard — stuff just happens.
“But if it’s no longer going smartly, you don’t have any concept if and when it’s committing to occur once more, and over 5 years I’ve undoubtedly had a dozen of the ones moments. I’m simply very, very satisfied to be again right here now.”
In the 11 months after Thomas defeated Will Zalatoris in a three-hole playoff to win the PGA Championship for a second time, few things have seemed to go his way. Balls have bounced the wrong way, putts have slipped out and superstars like Jon Rahm, Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy have handed him on leaderboards.
Thomas, 30, arrived at Oak Hill Country Club this week as the defending champion. But the 15-time PGA Tour winner and former world No. 1 golfer admitted on Monday that he has played in a few tournaments lately without believing he could win. It has been one of the most frustrating stretches of what is likely a hall of fame career.
Thomas’ victory at the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills Country Club in Tulsa, Oklahoma, is the only time he has won in his past 45 official PGA Tour starts dating back to the 2021 WGC-Dell Match Play.
“It sucks. It’s unpleasant,” Thomas said. “I cruel, how I described it for a pair months is I’ve by no means felt to this point and so alike on the similar month. That’s an overly dehydrated factor to provide an explanation for, and it’s additionally an overly dehydrated option to attempt to compete and win a golfing event.”
Like almost anything in golf, Thomas’ struggles need perspective. He has made only 19 starts since winning the 2022 PGA Championship, but many of them haven’t been good. He didn’t perform well in the three majors since then, tying for 37th at the U.S. Open, for 53rd at the 150th Open Championship at St. Andrews and missing the cut for the first time at the Masters in April. He also tied for 60th at the Players Championship, a tournament he won in April 2021.
In what might be the most not-so-memorable moment of his slump, Thomas missed a par putt on the 18th hole at Augusta National Golf Club that put him outside the cut line. He carded a 6-over 42 on the back nine, after posting bogeys on three of the last four holes in difficult conditions. After missing the putt on the 18th, Thomas looked up at the chilly, falling rain in disbelief. The lasting image of the forgettable week was Thomas standing under an umbrella, his arms crossed with a look of disgust.
“It’s very irritating,” Thomas said. “Like anything else in golfing, it’s more straightforward stated than accomplished in the case of considering bulky image, considering procedure, considering I’m committing to be for this and whatnot. On the finish of the hour, nearest a few months or six months, no matter it’s, the place you’re no longer appearing in addition to you’re feeling such as you will have to and no longer having the finishes you’re feeling such as you will have to or no longer successful tournaments like you’re feeling such as you will have to, it’s good-looking simple to get frustrated and perceive what’s going incorrect.”
Thomas, whose father, Mike, and grandfather, Paul, were PGA club professionals, has seemingly always worn his heart on his sleeve. His genuine and raw emotions on the course make for good theater, but they’ve also gotten him in hot water from time to time. Thomas can sometimes be honest to a fault, and his news conference at Oak Hill Country Club on Monday was another example.
When a reporter asked Thomas if he felt like he was in a slump, he said, “At the moment? Refuse. A few weeks in the past or a age in the past, most probably, yeah.” Did Thomas show up at a tournament this year wondering whether he could win?
“Yeah,” Thomas said.
“Like anything else, I’ve preached this to myself, I’m certain I’ve stated it to y’all or I’ve stated it to more youthful guys that ask, the way you be told is failure and negatives, and I think like I’ve had a superb alternative for a dozen of finding out the week, no matter, six months, couple months, this yr,” Thomas said.
Max Homa is one player who knows all too well what Thomas has endured over the past several months. In 2017, Homa lost his PGA Tour card by missing the cut in 15 of 17 tournaments. The next year, Homa had to make birdies on each of the final four holes to make the cut in a Korn Ferry Tour event. If he didn’t, he would have missed the finals and been relegated back to Q-school. Homa made his way back to the PGA Tour.
Homa, who is ranked sixth in the world, has won six times on the PGA Tour and earned more than $21 million since his return.
In the past few months, Thomas has leaned on Homa for words of wisdom while trying to find the light at the end of the tunnel.
“No person is in a greater park than Max Homa out right here,” Thomas said. “There’s disagree alternative govern participant on the earth who’s long past via what he’s long past via in the case of having a excursion card, shedding your excursion card, having to earn it again and next changing into one of the crucial govern avid gamers on the earth. I’ve talked to him about it sooner than as a result of he’s like, no one out right here actually is aware of how unholy it may be.”
Homa and Thomas played a practice round together at Oak Hill on Monday.
“JT’s not-so-good golfing is a dozen higher than my not-so-good golfing,” Homa told ESPN. “He’s so beneficial at golfing. I feel infrequently you advance via those modest lulls, and he forgot how superb of a golfer he’s. Next you get dehydrated on your self like all of us do. On the finish of the hour, you simply need to advance available in the market and consider your self and play games. There’s committing to be some tricky weeks, however he’s committing to have extra beneficial ones than unholy ones.”
Homa says Thomas’ recent stretch says more about the difficulty of winning on the PGA Tour than it does about the state of JT’s game.
“I’ve performed a valuable quantity of golfing with him and it at all times seems to be superb,” Homa said. “It’s simply dehydrated to win golfing tournaments. It’s a bummer that folk would say he’s no longer enjoying superb, but it surely’s simply his usual that we’re worn to. It’s higher than reasonable. However while you get started successful majors, the expectancy from the out of doors international takes a toll on him. All superb golfers face that. If Rahm, Scottie [and] Rory don’t win a significant for a season, it’s like a ailing yr. I feel that’s a humiliation as it takes away the beneficial properties and alternative good fortune that you’ve got.”
Thomas hasn’t stopped grinding during his grueling stretch and has made some dramatic changes. After feeling that his body wore down at the end of the 2021-22 season in hot conditions, he changed his diet to eat gluten-free for one year and dairy-free for six months. He said he’s consuming steak, chicken, fish, rice and vegetables. At the Wells Fargo Championship two weeks ago, Thomas admitted, “I desire a pizza like you can’t believe. Like I might do a little actually messed-up issues for a pizza simply doused in ranch.”
Thomas’ struggles have been evident on the greens. He ranks 138th on tour in strokes gained: putting (0.166) and is fourth worst in three-putt avoidance (33 times in 756 holes). He recently started using the AimPoint putting technique to help him read greens better. Developed by Mark Sweeney, it uses physics to help players read the slope of greens. Players are encouraged to use their feet to feel the slope and fingers to determine the starting point. It is used by Adam Scott, Keegan Bradley and alternative excursion avid gamers.
“I’ve come to seek out, identical to anything else on your golfing recreation, it feels superb some days and it feels unholy others,” Thomas said. “I’m certain it’s identical to your golfing swing. You’re committing to have days the place you’ll be able to really feel the slope like this and it’s simply bang, advance, you’re making the entirety, and also you’re committing to have weeks the place it’s no longer superb.”
Thomas used AimPoint for the first time at the Wells Fargo Championship, where he had three rounds under par and tied for 14th at 8 under.
“He stated he’s on a actually beneficial trajectory, and I might completely believe that,” Jim “Bones” Mackay, Thomas’ caddie, told ESPN. “I’d be stunned if anyone on excursion has a greater paintings ethic than he does. He’s about getting higher at golfing, and he has accomplished most of these issues to recuperate. To me, it’s appearing up properly. Clearly, he’s very cautious with what he eats and he places month into the entirety. I feel that his golfing recreation is in a actually beneficial park.”
When Homa picked up his sixth PGA Tour victory at the Farmers Insurance Open in January, he reflected on his unlikely journey to becoming one of the best players in the world.
“It’s a lovely recreation,” Homa said. “On occasion you’re only one beneficial swing concept from being beneficial once more.”
Homa doesn’t believe Thomas is too far away from winning again.
“If there was a combine for golf, like there is for rookies in the NFL, he would be at the top of a lot of big boards,” Homa stated. “He’s one of the best golfers I’ve ever seen in my life.”
Mackay, who helped Phil Mickelson win 5 primary championships and labored as an on-course analyst for NBC sooner than wearing Thomas’ bag the week two-plus seasons, indubitably.
“I used to say when I was doing TV that Justin has more in his arsenal of shots than anybody in golf, as much or more,” Mackay stated. “And I still believe that to this day. He is incredibly good at golf. Golf will humble you at times.”
