Thomas puts woes behind him to win Players Championship
Justin Thomas found the right time for a nearperfect performance to put a rough start to the year behind him, rallying from three shots behind to close with a 4underpar 68 and win the Players Championship by one shot in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., on Sunday.
With his victory, Thomas became the fourth player to win a major, the Players Championship, the FedEx Cup and a World Golf Championship.
Thomas needed to be sharp to outlast Lee Westwood, a runnerup for the second straight week. Westwood birdied the final hole for a 72.
For Thomas, the year began with him uttering a barely audible antigay slur under his breath after he missed a putt. That led to one corporate sponsor dropping him and another giving him a public reprimand. The one time before Sunday that he had a chance to win, he learned his grandfather died before the final round of the Phoenix Open.
Thomas was shaken until Sunday at the TPC Sawgrass, where he took on every shot and delivered a gem.
“I fought so hard today,” Thomas said. “It’s probably one of the best rounds of my life teetogreen. I’ve seen some crazy stuff happen on TV in the past, and I’m glad to be on this side of it.”
Thomas went birdiebirdieeaglebirdie around the turn, and put away Westwood for good with two lag putts from 50 feet: one for birdie on the par5 16th to take the lead, another on the islandgreen 17th for a par.
Thomas closed with a twoputt for par on No. 18 for victory No. 14 of his PGA Tour career. He finished at 14under 274 and earned $2.7 million.
Westwood picked up $1.635 million for his efforts after pocketing $1.04 million a week earlier.
“What do I take from the two weeks? Just a lot of pride,” said Westwood, 47. “I ground it out today, gave myself a chance, I suppose, at the end. … You know, these are worldclass fields. These are young guys that I’m giving 20, 25 years to most of them and I’m still contending. I’m enjoying it. It’s a thrill to be out here and still playing well.”
Bryson DeChambeau, coming off a win at Bay Hill the previous weekend, shot 71 and tied for third with Brian Harman, who had a 69 and played the final 12 holes without a bogey.
European Tour: Antoine Rozner holed a 60foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 2under 69 and a oneshot victory in the Qatar Masters in Doha, moving him high enough in the world ranking to qualify for the World Golf Championships match play event in Austin, Texas, next week.
Rozner was tied for the lead with Guido Migliozzi, who had closed with a 65 at Education City Golf Club, when his approach in the 18th left him far enough away that his best hope appeared to be two putts for par and a playoff. Instead, he made the doublebreaking putt for his second European Tour victory in 29 events.
Rozner finished at 8under 276 to win $250,000.