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Golfweek’s JuliaKate E Culpepper discusses Ralph Lauren ending its endorsement deal with PGA Tour player Justin Thomas after his use of a homophobic slur at the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions.
Golfweek’s JuliaKate E Culpepper discusses Ralph Lauren ending its endorsement deal with PGA Tour player Justin Thomas after his use of a homophobic slur at the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions.
Golfweek’s Adam Schupak recaps the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions, where Harris English won his third PGA Tour title at the Plantation Course in Kapalua, Hawaii.
Golfweek’s Adam Schupak recaps the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions, where Harris English won his third PGA Tour title at the Plantation Course in Kapalua, Hawaii.
Justin Thomas was in the hunt on Sunday at the Sentry Tournament of Champions but admitted to being preoccupied by a mistake made Saturday.
Justin Thomas started the final round of his Sentry Tournament of Champions title defense four shots back of the lead but with his mind in an unusual place. Usually, the 13-time PGA Tour winner would be thinking of one thing and one thing only: how to win.
Instead, a mistake crowded his brain.
Thomas used a homophobic slur in the third round at Kapalua after he missed a short putt for par on the fourth hole. He has since spoken openly about his remorse at the word that escaped his mouth in a moment of frustration.
After Thomas finished a shot out of the playoff between Harris English and Joaquin Niemann on Sunday – one that English ultimately won – he spoke briefly with Golf Channel and further addressed his error.
Sentry TOC: Leaderboard | Photos | Money | Winner’s bag
“Obviously had a lot of other things on my mind last night,” Thomas said. “I mean, I apologized yesterday. I don’t need to explain myself. I clearly screwed up. I made a terrible, terrible judgment call. But I thought a lot last night that, we grow a lot as people over time. I wish that I could learn to grow a different way than the way that I chose to do it, but unfortunately it’s in the past and there’s nothing I can do about it now. And again, it definitely was a distraction out there today. But now I just get to take time going forward and try to become better because of it.”
Words aside, Thomas couldn’t be more pleased with the state of his golf, even if it didn’t produce a title in his first outing of 2021. Thomas, who closed with 66, was in the hunt much of Sunday, but missed key putts on Nos. 16 and 17 that ended up being the difference.
Before missing the par putt at No. 17, Thomas had been on a 27-hole bogey-free streak.
“I really, really stayed in the moment well, took it one shot at a time, just trying to make a lot of birdies. It got windy, it got harder, putted beautifully, drove it well, hit good irons.”
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A year ago, Thomas won this tournament at 14 under. To finish third at 24 under a year later speaks to the quality of golf at Kapalua this week.
Thomas won a total of three times in the 2019-20 season and had five other top-5 finishes. In addressing that body of work at the start of the week, he noted that he wanted more out of his weekends – particularly on Sundays.
From here, Thomas will chart new territory on the European Tour later this month when he plays the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
“It’s a good start and get a week off before going to Abu Dhabi, a place I’ve never been, so I’m excited for that,” he said.
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Justin Thomas was in the hunt on Sunday at the Sentry Tournament of Champions but admitted to being preoccupied by a mistake made Saturday.
Justin Thomas started the final round of his Sentry Tournament of Champions title defense four shots back of the lead but with his mind in an unusual place. Usually, the 13-time PGA Tour winner would be thinking of one thing and one thing only: how to win.
Instead, a mistake crowded his brain.
Thomas used a homophobic slur in the third round at Kapalua after he missed a short putt for par on the fourth hole. He has since spoken openly about his remorse at the word that escaped his mouth in a moment of frustration.
After Thomas finished a shot out of the playoff between Harris English and Joaquin Niemann on Sunday – one that English ultimately won – he spoke briefly with Golf Channel and further addressed his error.
Sentry TOC: Leaderboard | Photos | Money | Winner’s bag
“Obviously had a lot of other things on my mind last night,” Thomas said. “I mean, I apologized yesterday. I don’t need to explain myself. I clearly screwed up. I made a terrible, terrible judgment call. But I thought a lot last night that, we grow a lot as people over time. I wish that I could learn to grow a different way than the way that I chose to do it, but unfortunately it’s in the past and there’s nothing I can do about it now. And again, it definitely was a distraction out there today. But now I just get to take time going forward and try to become better because of it.”
Words aside, Thomas couldn’t be more pleased with the state of his golf, even if it didn’t produce a title in his first outing of 2021. Thomas, who closed with 66, was in the hunt much of Sunday, but missed key putts on Nos. 16 and 17 that ended up being the difference.
Before missing the par putt at No. 17, Thomas had been on a 27-hole bogey-free streak.
“I really, really stayed in the moment well, took it one shot at a time, just trying to make a lot of birdies. It got windy, it got harder, putted beautifully, drove it well, hit good irons.”
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A year ago, Thomas won this tournament at 14 under. To finish third at 24 under a year later speaks to the quality of golf at Kapalua this week.
Thomas won a total of three times in the 2019-20 season and had five other top-5 finishes. In addressing that body of work at the start of the week, he noted that he wanted more out of his weekends – particularly on Sundays.
From here, Thomas will chart new territory on the European Tour later this month when he plays the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship.
“It’s a good start and get a week off before going to Abu Dhabi, a place I’ve never been, so I’m excited for that,” he said.
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Check out how much money each PGA Tour player won at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
It pays to play well on the PGA Tour, especially in a tournament that’s made for those who have won.
Harris English broke a winless drought that dates back to 2013 on Sunday night, defeating 22-year-old rising star Joaquin Niemann in a playoff to win the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the Plantation Course at Kapalua. The 31-year-old English – who will take home the $1.34 million top prize – last won on Tour in 2013 at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. He also won the FedEx St. Jude Classic earlier that year in June.
Check out how much money each player earned this week in Hawaii.
Sentry Tournament of Champions: Leaderboard | Winner’s bag
| Position | Player | Score | Earnings |
| 1 | Harris English | -25 | $1,340,000 |
| 2 | Joaquin Niemann | -25 | $782,000 |
| 3 | Justin Thomas | -24 | $490,000 |
| 4 | Ryan Palmer | -23 | $378,000 |
| T5 | Xander Schauffele | -21 | $280,500 |
| T5 | Sungjae Im | -21 | $280,500 |
| T7 | Bryson DeChambeau | -20 | $199,333 |
| T7 | Jon Rahm | -20 | $199,333 |
| T7 | Collin Morikawa | -20 | $199,333 |
| 10 | Daniel Berger | -19 | $172,000 |
| T11 | Dustin Johnson | -18 | $155,500 |
| T11 | Sergio Garcia | -18 | $155,500 |
| T13 | Lanto Griffin | -17 | $125,250 |
| T13 | Scottie Scheffler | -17 | $125,250 |
| T13 | Brendon Todd | -17 | $125,250 |
| T13 | Patrick Cantlay | -17 | $125,250 |
| T17 | Abraham Ancer | -16 | $92,000 |
| T17 | Sebastian Munoz | -16 | $92,000 |
| T17 | Martin Laird | -16 | $92,000 |
| T17 | Webb Simpson | -16 | $92,000 |
| T21 | Michael Thompson | -15 | $75,000 |
| T21 | Patrick Reed | -15 | $75,000 |
| T21 | Adam Scott | -15 | $75,000 |
| T24 | Kevin Kisner | -14 | $63,200 |
| T24 | Marc Leishman | -14 | $63,200 |
| T24 | Richy Werenski | -14 | $63,200 |
| T24 | Cameron Smith | -14 | $63,200 |
| T24 | Billy Horschel | -14 | $63,200 |
| T29 | Brian Gay | -13 | $55,000 |
| T29 | Nick Taylor | -13 | $55,000 |
| T31 | Tony Finau | -11 | $49,000 |
| T31 | Cameron Champ | -11 | $49,000 |
| T31 | Stewart Cink | -11 | $49,000 |
| T31 | Viktor Hovland | -11 | $49,000 |
| T35 | Hudson Swafford | -9 | $43,000 |
| T35 | Jason Kokrak | -9 | $43,000 |
| 37 | Carlos Ortiz | -7 | $41,000 |
| T38 | Andrew Landry | -5 | $39,000 |
| T38 | Robert Streb | -5 | $39,000 |
| T38 | Kevin Na | -5 | $39,000 |
| T41 | Hideki Matsuyama | -4 | $36,500 |
| T41 | Mackenzie Hughes | -4 | $36,500 |
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Harris English took the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the Plantation Course at Kapalua, edging Joaquin Niemann in a playoff on Sunday.
He needed an extra hole, but Harris English took the Sentry Tournament of Champions at the Plantation Course at Kapalua, edging Joaquin Niemann in a playoff on Sunday.
English came into the final round atop the leaderboard, but made the turn at an even 36 and fell out of the lead. He didn’t go away, however, using a stretch of birdies on the back to press Niemann, who had passed him.
English, who hadn’t won on Tour since 2013 at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba, lipped out a birdie putt on No. 16 that would have pushed him back into a tie for the lead with Niemann. He made par on 17, meaning he needed a birdie on the final hole to force a playoff or an eagle to win outright.
After a booming drive, English used the Hawaiian breeze to his advantage, shaping a shot to inside 10 feet, but then missed the putt, forcing a playoff.
He didn’t make the same mistake twice, however, draining a birdie in the playoff to capture the crown after Niemann missed the green and made par.
Niemann posted six birdies on the front nine and three more on the back in finishing the day with a 63 to post a four-day total of 25 under.
Niemann seemed unfazed by challenges, as he has in most events to start the new season. The Chilean product had five top-25 finishes in six full-field events to start the 2020-21 season, and continued with the hot hand in Maui. His only victory on Tour came at the now-defunct A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier back in 2019.
Sentry TOC: Leaderboard | Photos
Justin Thomas also shook off controversy to hang tough on Sunday. Thomas made news by uttering a homophobic slur during the third round that was picked up by hot microphones on the Golf Channel’s broadcast.
But Thomas was focused on Sunday, playing solid golf to maneuver his way near the top. He missed a short birdie putt on No. 16, however, and finished two strokes back, barely failing to win for the third time in this event. He captured the crown in 2017 and 2020.
Xander Schauffele finished at 21 under while Bryson DeChambeau used a six-foot eagle putt on the final hole to fire his best round of the week, a 66, and finish at 20 under. He said after the round that he was happy with his performance, but it didn’t accomplish what he set out to do.
“I wouldn’t say fully satisfied. I was coming here to win,” DeChambeau said. “… But I learned a lot about my game, my speed and what I have to do to keep it in the fairway and to make sure I give myself some opportunities.”
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Harris English hasn’t won in 7 years and Ryan Palmer hasn’t won in 10 years in a solo event but those streaks may end soon.
Harris English held a two-stroke leader entering the third round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions, fired a 7-under 66 at the Plantation Course and guess what? He needed to sink a 9-foot par putt at the last hole just to maintain a share of the 54-hole lead with Ryan Palmer, who shot the low round of the day. But English said he expected Saturday’s birdie barrage and is right where he wants to be.
“This is one of my first leads I’ve had going into a Saturday in a while, I think, and I knew I had to keep the foot on the pedal,” he said. “The wind was not up today, I knew the scores were going to be low and I knew I had to come out and execute and play well.”
Neither English, 31, and Palmer, 44, managed to win last season and are only in the traditional winners-only event because of a special exemption afforded to the top 30 on the final FedEx Cup Playoff standings as a result of several tournaments being canceled due to the global pandemic.
Sentry TOC: Leaderboard | Photos | Tee times, TV info
English has only recorded one bogey in his first 54 holes this week, and continued his dominance of the par 5s at Kapalua, making two more birdies to improve to 11 under for the week. But it was a hard-working par at 18 that kept him in a tie for the lead with Palmer. English misfired from 272 yards with a 4-iron, pulling his ball into the penalty area and was fortunate that a marshal was able to find his ball.
“I don’t like the lottery much, but pretty lucky there,” he said.
Palmer, who began the tournament 3 over after his first four holes, has been on a tear ever since. He birdied six of the last seven holes to shoot 9-under 64. After the round, he was absolved of a potential rules violation.
“Everything was on point today,” Palmer said. “Drove it well, iron play was there, like I want it to, short game was right there as well. I had a lot of great up-and-downs. And then the putting is feeling so good. I went to a line with my alignment on the greens and I’m getting over putts now and when James, James and I both agree that the line’s there, now it’s a matter of just letting go and hitting it. It’s some of the best putting I’m doing right now and the most confident.”
Anything you can do …@RyanPalmerPGA & @CollinMorikawa pin-seeking from 310+ yards. 😳#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/g5Jnfv6AnN
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 10, 2021
Palmer, in his 18th season on Tour, is seeking his fifth Tour title and his first individual title since the 2010 Sony Open in Hawaii. (He teamed with Jon Rahm to win the 2019 Zurich Classic of New Orleans.) English hasn’t won since 2013. (He did win the QBE Shootout, an unofficial team event with Matt Kuchar last month.) English hit rock bottom in 2018-19, failing to record a top-10 finish and plummeting to No. 369 in the world. But since committing to working with Sea Island teaching pro Justin Parsons, he has racked up 10 top 10s, including four top 4s and entered the week ranked No. 29 in the world. All that’s been missing is a victory.
Defending champion Justin Thomas is tied for fifth after a rollercoaster round of 68, and trails by four strokes as he attempts to defend his title. After the round, he apologized for making a homophobic slur.
Hot on the heels of the leaders is Collin Morikawa, who shot his second straight 65 to improve to 20 under and trail by one stroke. The 23-year-old Morikawa, who has family that lived in Hawaii, has been no stranger to the winner’s circle and is seeking his fourth win in just his 38th career start. What his game plan for Sunday’s shootout?
“Make a lot of birdies,” he said. “That’s what it’s going to come down to, who is going to make the most amount of birdies tomorrow, because guys are just shooting low.”
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Ryan Palmer is tied atop the leaderboard after 54 holes but not without a rules controversy.
As Ryan Palmer approached scoring with a smile of satisfaction on his face, he was greeted by PGA Tour rules official John Mutch, who wasn’t there to congratulate Palmer on his scintillating third-round 9-under 64 and share of the 54-hole lead at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.
Mutch was there to talk about a possible rule’s violation.
“I saw Mutch with the book out and I thought, ‘What’s this about?’ I started going through the round in my mind. And then when he said, We have a situation on 9, and I immediately was, like, ‘Let’s see, I hit a good 3-wood, fluffed a chip, told (caddie) James I hit the wrong club, and then went to where I was ended up chipping again, I still had no idea,” Palmer said.
The moment in question happened at the par-5 ninth hole, where Palmer was just short of the green in two before flubbing his pitch shot. As the ball began rolling back towards him, Palmer walked towards the ball and kicked a divot before his ball came to a stop. Mutch spoke with Palmer to discuss a possible violation of Rule 11-3: “While a ball is in motion, you must not deliberately alter physical conditions or lift or move a loose impediment or movable obstruction to affect where the ball might come to rest.”
Sentry TOC: Leaderboard | Photos | Tee times, TV info
After a discussion with Palmer, who went on to make a par on the hole, Mutch determined that there was no intent and so Palmer’s 64 stands.
“He showed me the video and I said, ‘What am I looking at?’ We had to watch it twice to understand what he was talking about and discuss that I kicked a divot but the ball stopped 5 feet away from me,” Palmer said. “There was no intention of me trying to help my ball because there was no way my ball was even close to where I was at. I was just discussing with James, I hit the wrong wedge on the chip shot, in disgust, and then when I got there, I just kind of did the old kick the divot, pissed-off motion and the ball stopped five feet away from me.”
Palmer said that Collin Morikawa watched the video too, and he agreed that there was violation. But Justin Leonard, a 12-time PGA Tour winner and an analyst for the Golf Channel this week in the 18th-hole tower, didn’t exactly jump to Palmer’s defense in what clearly is a gray area that the USGA allowed in the Rules of Golf during its last revisions when it allowed for “intent.”
“It could be construed either way,” he said. “You have to take Ryan Palmer for his word.”
Palmer enters Sunday’s final round tied with Harris English at 21-under 201. Palmer will be seeking his fifth PGA Tour victory and first individual title since winning the 2010 Sony Open of Hawaii.
Check out final-round tee times, pairings and TV info for the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
The PGA Tour is back in action this week and has kicked off the 2021 calendar year in paradise.
Play wraps Sunday at Kapalua’s Plantation Course with the final round of the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions. Harris English and Ryan Palmer share the 54-hole lead at 21 under. English shot 7-under 66 Saturday while Palmer finished the day 9-under 64.
Collin Morikawa carded a third-round 65 to sit one shot back at 20 under. Daniel Berger is in fourth at 18 under, followed by Sungjae Im and Justin Thomas at 17 under. Billy Horschel, Patrick Cantlay and Joaquin Niemann are T-7 at 16 under. Six players including Dustin Johnson are T-10 at 14 under.
Check out the tee times and TV info for Sunday’s round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
All times are listed in Eastern Standard Time.
Sentry Tournament of Champions: Leaderboard | Photos
| Tee time | Players |
| 12:30 p.m. | Hideki Matsuyama, Andrew Landry |
| 12:40 p.m. | Hudson Swafford, Mackenzie Hughes |
| 12:50 p.m. |
Carlos Ortiz, Robert Streb
|
| 1 p.m. | Kevin Kisner, Abraham Ancer |
| 1:10 p.m. | Marc Leishman, Tony Finau |
| 1:20 p.m. | Brian Gay, Cameron Champ |
| 1:30 p.m. | Kevin Na, Richy Werenski |
| 1:40 p.m. | Sebastián Muñoz, Lanto Griffin |
| 1:50 p.m. | Patrick Reed, Michael Thompson |
| 2 p.m. | Nick Taylor, Jason Kokrak |
| 2:10 p.m. | Stewart Cink, Adam Scott |
| 2:20 p.m. | Bryson DeChambeau, Scottie Scheffler |
| 2:30 p.m. | Martin Laird, Webb Simpson |
| 2:40 p.m. | Xander Schauffele, Cameron Smith |
| 2:50 p.m. | Dustin Johnson, Brendon Todd |
| 3 p.m. | Viktor Hovland, Jon Rahm |
| 3:10 p.m. | Joaquin Niemann, Sergio Garcia |
| 3:20 p.m. | Billy Horschel, Patrick Cantlay |
| 3:30 p.m. | Sunjae Im, Justin Thomas |
| 3:40 p.m. | Collin Morikawa, Daniel Berger |
| 3:50 p.m. | Ryan Palmer, Harris English |
NBC: 4-6 p.m.
Golf Channel (watch for free on fuboTV): 6-8 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 3-8 p.m.
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Check out third-round tee times, pairings and TV information for the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions.
The PGA Tour is back in action this week and kicks off the 2021 calendar year in paradise.
A 42-player field loaded with winners tees it up on Saturday at Kapalua’s Plantation Course for the third round of the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions. Harris English leads through 36 holes at 14 under after carding 6-under 67. Two shots back, Daniel Berger, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas and Ryan Palmer sit T-2 at 12 under. Berger and Morikawa both shot 65s Friday.
Xander Schauffele, Brandon Todd. Sungjae Im and Patrick Reed are T-6 at 11 under. World No. 1 Dustin Johnson and World No. 2 Jon Rahm are among seven players T-10 at 10 under.
Check out the tee times and TV info for Saturday’s round of the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
All times are listed in Eastern Standard Time.
Sentry Tournament of Champions: Leaderboard | Photos
| Tee time | Players |
| 2:25 p.m. | Hideki Matsuyama, Mackenzie Hughes |
| 2:35 p.m. | Tony Finau, Hudson Swafford |
| 2:45 p.m. |
Kevin Kisner, Andrew Landry
|
| 2:55 p.m. | Michael Thompson, Abraham Ancer |
| 3:05 p.m. | Cameron Smith, Sebastián Muñoz |
| 3:15 p.m. | Stewart Cink, Robert Streb |
| 3:25 p.m. | Adam Scott, Cameron Champ |
| 3:35 p.m. | Kevin Na, Lanto Griffin |
| 3:45 p.m. | Sergio Garcia, Nick Taylor |
| 3:55 p.m. | Martin Laird, Richy Werenski |
| 4:05 p.m. | Marc Leishman, Viktor Hovland |
| 4:15 p.m. | Brian Gay, Webb Simpson |
| 4:25 p.m. | Billy Horschel, Jason Kokrak |
| 4:35 p.m. | Carlos Ortiz, Patrick Cantlay |
| 4:45 p.m. | Joaquin Niemann, Bryson DeChambeau |
| 4:55 p.m. | Scottie Scheffler, Jon Rahm |
| 5:05 p.m. | Dustin Johnson, Patrick Reed |
| 5:15 p.m. | Brendon Todd, Sungjae Im |
| 5:25 p.m. | Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele |
| 5:35 p.m. | Ryan Palmer, Colin Morikawa |
| 5:45 p.m. | Harris English, Daniel Berger |
Golf Channel on fuboTV (watch for free): 6-10 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 5-10:30 p.m.
NBC: 4-6 p.m.
Golf Channel on fuboTV (watch for free): 6-8 p.m.
PGA Tour Radio on SiriusXM: 5-10 p.m.
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