Justin Thomas: Game going 'in right direction' despite missed cut

Field Level Media|published: Wed 20th March, 23:04 2024

Justin Thomas plays his shot from the 16th tee during the first round of The Players Championship PGA golf tournament Thursday, March 14, 2024 at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. credits: Corey Perrine/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK

Justin Thomas missed the cut at two of his past three events, but the two-time major champion remains optimistic about his game heading into the Valspar Championship this week in Palm Harbor, Fla.

Thomas, 30, started the season well, finishing among the top 12 in his first three events, including a tie for third at the American Express in La Quinta, Calif. Then he failed to make the cut at the Genesis Invitational, tied for 12th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and missed the cut again at the Players Championship last week.

"My game, it's continuing ... to go in the right direction," Thomas said Tuesday ahead of the Valspar at Innisbrook Resort's Copperhead Course. "Obviously, missed cut last week was far from what I was looking for, but I'm not really looking too much into it.

"It was just one of those weeks where I had a couple putts here and there, just really one or two bad swings each day, that took away from, I feel like, a majority of really good golf throughout the entire round. But it's also just kind of a funky place. You can get some weird bounces and breaks and lies and whatnot, and it just was one of those years. So, yeah, I had a weekend of no golf because of it."

Thomas has struggled with the putter this year, as he sits 149th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained putting.

"I think this early in the year it can be pretty skewed, I would say," Thomas said. "Also, my first two events of the season were events where Shot Link isn't even there, just due to the different golf courses. So I had my first in Palm Springs and Torrey Pines, I didn't putt great on Sunday or Saturday, whatever it was, but, so I have five pretty good rounds that were completely taken out of stats.

"I think the majority of the time stats can be helpful, but I'm starting to realize that they can just be a little skewed here and there, especially this early in the season."

He still can do better on the greens, Thomas acknowledged.

"At the end of the day, I would love to and know that I need to make more putts, but I feel like I'm seeing things going the right way and just want that hole to start looking like a bucket one of these days," said Thomas, who tied for 10th at the Valspar Championship last year.

—Field Level Media