Justin Thomas made headlines on Friday as he established a two-shot lead at the RBC Heritage in Harbour Town, marking his first 36-hole lead in over four years. Thomas continued to show his mettle, throwing up a 2-under 69 to lead the performance pack. He demonstrated his poise on the back nine with two must-make birdies.
This is a big moment for Thomas. He’s been trying to fight his way back ever since that glorious week last May when he claimed the 2022 PGA Championship title at Southern Hills. He has battled since that triumph, still seeking his next competitive golf win for more than a year. Even as he feels the weight of the tournament field, the 54-year-old is careful not to talk about his now-tournament winless streak.
On the par-3 13th hole, Thomas showed his touch with a wedge, dropping the ball perfectly onto the front of a green that runs off in all directions. He then holed a 15-foot par-saving putt to add to his cushion at the top of the leaderboard. He followed it up with a phenomenal 3-wood approach to the par-5 15th hole. This amazing approach left him just a two-putt away from birdie, despite a nasty tree attempting to intervene.
“I fought pretty hard today and hung in there well to be four back on the weekend,” said Scottie Scheffler, who is among those chasing Thomas.
The round finished with nine pars for Thomas, but he certainly had a much brighter outlook by day’s end. That was a serious concern, but like a lot of great players, he believed in his game and said you gotta trust your process. “That’s really been my key this week is I’m just trying to really trust my game and commit to what I’m doing,” he stated.
In recent weeks, Thomas has faced adjustments as he works with fill-in caddie Joe Greiner while his regular caddie, Matt Minister, recovers from a back injury. All of this change has pushed him to grow and thrive, getting comfortable in new and strange situations.
“The majority of it has just been pressing and trying too hard,” Thomas reflected on his recent struggles. Further to his credit, he accepted that the questions regarding his multi-race winless streak have disappeared. This change gives him the freedom to play with more joy and less burden of analyzing previous games.
“Something I feel like I did so well there for a couple of years is I just let tournaments come to me and I just trusted my ability,” he added, indicating his desire to return to that mindset.
As Thomas attempts to defend his top seed position into the weekend, it’ll be all or nothing. His current form bodes well. He is hell-bent on pulling off his first comeback victory since 2022.
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