Hilton Head Island, South Carolina – Justin Thomas had another hurdle to prove he was back where he felt it belonged.
Thomas, who was walking to Harbortown’s 18th green in the playoffs with Andrew Novak, said he never made a length putt to win in the final hole to fill out a caddie Joe Greiner. He was 20 feet outside.
The putt was so pure that Thomas dropped the putter before the ball disappeared into the cup, causing pure joy, finishing nearly three years without winning.
“It was pretty cool,” he said. “It was just as fun as I thought it was.”
Thomas played bogey-free in dry, fast conditions on courses that demanded accuracy, making a 25-foot birdie putt on hole 16, closing at 3-under 68.
Maybe the most tense moment came in the scoring trailer, seeing Novak stand on an 8-foot putt for victory. The birdie putt was far apart, and Novak, who made his own big birdie on the 16th, had a 68 to join him at 17 under 267.
In the playoffs, Novac missed within 35 feet and set the stage on Thomas. He looked around the packed grandstand on one side, the other Cariborg rang, and he felt pure joy as his family cheered him behind No. 18 Green.
“I didn’t realize I missed the victory,” Thomas was standing on the 18th green, next to his wife Jill and five-month-old daughter Molly.
His previous victory was the PGA Championship at Southern Hills in May 2022. His match slipped, missing the FedEx Cup playoffs for the first time in 2023, leaving the President’s Cup team a year ago.
His game returned in orderly fashion – he cracked the top ten again – and only needed a victory to make sure his game was back among the elite.
“If that’s the case, I think it would have been missing in the end,” Thomas said. “It’s hard to say, obviously your career is very long, there’s a lot of ups and downs and a lot of stuff going on, so you don’t know what point of your career until it’s over.
“I felt that for me, at least, it was the last thing I needed to do for my happiness.”
Novak was runner-up in Bermuda last fall. He was at Torrey Pines at the open Farmers Insurance. He was in the mix at Valero Texas Open. And this seemed like a breakthrough moment until Thomas refused to be rejected.
“I’m not as frustrated as I thought I would,” Novak said. “I feel like I’ve done a lot of good things, and when I really feel like I haven’t done that great this week, I’m pretty proud to put myself in that position.
“I thought I was a little more comfortable than I had in the past, Justin went outside and won, and I really can.
Thomas won his 16th PGA Tour and ranked sixth in the world. He also moved to the top six in the Ryder Cup standings.
Thomas and Novak pulled away from the tight leaderboard in the middle of the round. At one point it’s a four-way tie, as 54 hole leaders Si Woo Kim and Maverick McNealy joined in.
Daniel Berger closed at 65, finishing third with McNerry (70), McKenzie Hughes (67) and Brian Herman (69).
Defending champion Scotty Schaeffler even entered the act. He began making four shots and went through eight holes. However, he ran through three birdies on a four-hole stretch around the turn and pulled within two.
Schaeffler was running through the hole when he took on a risky shot that required the Eagle to get a legitimate chance. It found water, leading to double bogeys. He still shot 70 and tied it to his third straight top 10, eighth, while fighting in the final time.
“I think I’m really close,” Schaeffler said. “I feel like I’ve done a lot of good stuff this week, just a few of the important shots I didn’t quit. Other than that, it was a pretty solid week.”
Thomas won the tournament with a birdie in the playoffs. He saved a chance towards the edge of the front nine when he made five straight putts starting from the fourth hole. With 8 feet on par, 7 feet on birdies, 7 feet on par, and 15 feet on par for birdies on number 8, he took the trees with seven irons to give himself a chance.
Novak caused trouble with the trees and fought.
He moves high enough in the world rankings – inside the top 35 – he should be the US open lock and now he needs to stay in the top 50 next month for the British Open.
