Justin Thomas stood on the 18th tee at TPC Sawgrass with a chance at history.
If he could make a par, he would set a new course record with an 11-under 61. But since Thomas made a mess of this challenging hole the day before, he felt extra pressure. On Thursday, Thomas tugged his tee shot into the water that extends down the entire 18th hole. He made a triple bogey, a big reason why he posted a 6-over 68 on day one.
So, on Friday, Thomas pulled out his nifty 5-wood and aimed way right, hoping to flight a draw back into the right side of the fairway. But his tee shot did not turn back as much as he wanted to, setting in the rough behind the trees. Then, Thomas made a costly mistake, as the 18th bit him again. His punch shot scuttled through the 18th fairway and ended up in the water.
Yet, true to his resilient self, Thomas took a drop and stuck his 50-yard approach to a foot away. He tapped in for bogey, settled for a 10-under 62, which matched the course record set by Tom Hoge in 2023. Funny enough, Thomas played alongside Hoge that day. But Hoge only made 10 birdies then and Thomas holed 11 par-breakers on Friday, which set a Players Championship record.
The two-time PGA Championship winner made five birdies on the front nine to go out with a 5-under 31. He then holed four straight on the 11th, 12th, 13th, and 14th holes to soar up the leaderboard and threaten the course record. A birdie on the par-5 16th got him to 10-under for the day, which set the stage for plenty of drama on the famous island green.
On the 17th, Thomas stuck a gap wedge to 18 feet right of the pin. He now faced a quick, delicate side-winder — a putt with almost three feet of break. Thomas barely touched it, and his ball rolled ever so slightly toward the cup, the precise spot where Tiger Woods holed his ‘Better than most’ putt in 2001. Like Woods then, Thomas’ putt was indeed “better than most” as his ball fell into the bottom of the cup on its last revolution. It was his 11th birdie of the round and set the stage for a dramatic finish, but once again, the water got the best of Thomas for a second straight day.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Follow him on X @jack_milko.
