Hilton Head Island, South Carolina – Justin Thomas has another hurdle to prove that his game is back where he feels he belongs, and he cleared the game on Sunday at the RCMP legacy, winning the longest putt.
Thomas walked to Port Town’s 18th green in the playoffs with Andrew Novak, and Thomas told filler player Caddy Joe Greiner that he never won any length putt on the last hole. He is only 20 feet.
The putter was so pure that Thomas put the putter down before the ball disappeared into the Cup, winning a joyous celebration at the end of nearly three years.
“That’s cool,” he said. “That’s as fun as I thought.”
Thomas opened the 25-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole in dry, fast conditions on the route requiring precision and closed with 68 below 3.
Perhaps the most tense moment was in the scoring trailer as Thomas watched Novak stand on an 8-foot putt to victory. The birdie putt stayed, Novak (made his own bird of big and small on the 16th), and 68 people joined Thomas with 267 and under 17.
In the playoffs, Novak missed from within 35 feet, laying the foundation for Thomas. He felt pure joy as he looked around one side of the crowded stands, the voice on the other side sounding on the other side, his family cheering him up behind the 18th green.
“I didn’t realize how much I miss winning,” Thomas said on the 18th green next to his wife Jill and 5-month-old daughter Molly.
His previous victory was the PGA title on the South Hill in May 2022. His game slipped. He missed the FedEx Cup playoffs for the first time in 2023, and he was excluded from the Presidents Cup team a year ago.
His game is back – he beats the top ten again – and just wins are needed to confirm his place among the elite.
“I think it’s the last thing if I want to,” Thomas said. “It’s hard to say because obviously the career is already long and there are so many things up and down, and there are so many things going on that you never know what your career means until it’s over.
“For me at least, I feel like this is the last thing my own happiness needs to do.”
Novak finished second in Bermuda last fall. His Torrey Pines at the Farmers Insurance Open are there. He mixed up at the Valero Open, Texas. It seemed to be the moment when he broke through until Thomas refused to be rejected.
“I’m not as frustrated as I thought,” Novak said. “I feel like I’ve done a lot of good things. I’m so proud of putting myself in this position when I really feel that it’s not so good to not swing this week.
“I thought I was more comfortable in stretching than I used to. Justin just went out and won. There was nothing you could do about it.”
Thomas won the 16th time on the PGA Tour and advanced to sixth place in the world. He also made the top six in the Ryder Cup standings.
Thomas and Novak evacuated the game from the middle of a tight ranking list – a little draw as they joined 54-hole leaders Si Woo Kim and Maverick McNealy.
Daniel Berger led the way with 65 shots with McNeilly (70), Mackenzie Hughes (67) and Brian Harman (69).
Defending champion Scottie Scheffler even briefly attended the show. He fired four shots in the back and even shot eight shots on eight holes. But he ran three birdies in the four holes of the turn and pulled them into two holes.
When Scheffler shot a high-risk shot, the Hawks needed a legitimate chance. This found water, resulting in double bogey. He still shot 70 and tied for eighth, with his third consecutive top ten.
“I think I’m really close,” Schefler said. “I think I did a great job this week, just some important shots I didn’t shoot. Apart from that, it was a pretty stable week.”
Thomas won the game with his birdies in the playoffs. When he made five consecutive putts on the fourth hole, he saved the chance at the end of the first nine – in the fourth hole – par 8 feet, birdie at 7 feet, five at 7 feet, pole 8 feet, and within 15 feet of birdie No. 8, he picked up the trees in the tree with 7 iron and gave himself a chance.
Novak was in trouble with trees, fought, got some good bounces in the forest of 11 and got excellent standards from sandy lies.
In the world rankings, he’s high enough in the global rankings – in the top 35 – he should be the lockdown at the U.S. Open and now needs to stay in the top 50 in the Open next month.
