Justin Thomas Sets Course Record At TPC Sawgrass With Historic 16-Shot Turnaround
Justin Thomas made history at The Players Championship with an extraordinary 16-shot turnaround between his first and second rounds at TPC Sawgrass.
After struggling to a 78 in round one, Thomas responded with a tournament-record 62 on Friday that included 11 birdies, climbing 105 places up the leaderboard.
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Key Statistics:
- Lost 9.09 strokes ball-striking on Thursday (worst round of his career)
- Gained +9.4 shots on the field Friday (best round from 892 played)
- Has carded more PGA Tour rounds of 62 or lower (13) than any player in last 40 years
- Shot 31 on the front nine with birdies at 1,2,5,7,9
- Made birdie at signature 17th "island" hole
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Despite the remarkable comeback, Thomas sits seven shots behind co-leaders Min Woo Lee and Akshay Bhatia at the halfway stage. His only blemish came at the difficult 18th, where he found the water but salvaged a bogey to close with a 62.
Thomas, a two-time PGA Champion who shot 59 at the 2017 Sony Open, said afterward: "I felt like I did an unbelievable job of just staying focused and keeping my blinders on." He added, "I should have a lot of faith in my game because I can do stuff like today."
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