DUBLIN, Ohio – Justin Thomas is starting to get a better handle on dealing with the emerald puzzle that is Jack Nicklaus’s Muirfield Village Golf Club.
Ahead of this week’s Workday Charity Open, the world No. 5 said he was intent to end his Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde ways here, seeing as he’s missed the cut three times while also finishing in ties for fourth, eighth in 37th in six starts during the Memorial. With the club agreeing to host both the Workday and Memorial in back-to-back weeks, Thomas knew he’d get two cracks to get a better understanding about what he has to do to get the upper hand.
Looks like he just needed two rounds.
Thomas turned in a bogey-free, 6-under-par 66 Friday to move to 10 under and three shots behind leader Collin Morikawa through 36 holes. In addition to his rounds of 68-66, further proof he’s solving the Muirfield riddle in the number of bogeys he’s made in two rounds. That would be zero.
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“It says a lot about where my game is at,” Thomas said of his bogeyless stretch. “It would say a lot more if I had it after two more rounds with no bogeys. I just think I’m understanding and learning to pick my spots on certain holes.
“A hole like 10 today, hit a really good drive, it just went in the first cut, and because I was in the first cut, I wasn’t able to be aggressive to that pin. Although if I was in the fairway it’s an opportunity to try to hit it close; with an iron in my hand I feel comfortable. But not knowing how it’s going to come out, I have to try to hit it to somewhere on the green and make a 4.
“So it’s little things like that that I think I’m doing well this week.”
But the winner of 12 PGA Tour titles – including the 2017 PGA Championship – knows the course is still a bear. That’s why he wasn’t sweating the leaderboard that showed him nine shots behind before he started his second round.
“I know how this place is,” he said. “It’s the same every year. It’s right in front of you. It’s gettable. It’s usually not playing this difficult in terms of the wind. But it’s quite a bit softer just with a bit of rain. You’ve got to control your ball. I controlled it well. You could do some damage.
“And then if you miss the fairways and aren’t hitting it very well, then it’s tough. Nothing is hidden out here. It’s all right in front of you; you just have to go out and get it. I knew we had three days left, now it’s two days left, so there’s no reason to try to set a certain goal. Just try to make as many birdies as we can.”
And dial back the aggression when needed.
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