BLAINE, Minn. — The expression on Justin Thomas’ face was telling.
He stood on the 18th tee box at TPC Twin Cities on Friday morning, mumbling to himself after his tee shot on the par 5 drifted too far right and into the water. He looked dejected. Defeated. Deflated.
He dropped a ball in the fairway and fired away at the green. Instantly, his body language told the story. Splash. His third shot also came up short in the water.
Thomas started the second round at the 3M Open sitting at 2 under par. That’s where he finished after an even-par 71 on Friday that definitely didn’t lack excitement. Thomas showed flashes of the player everyone knows he’s capable of being, including four birdies in his last five holes. But he also had poorly-timed mistakes that led to him missing his fifth cut in the last seven starts, like his double bogey on the par-5 18th.
With two weeks left in the PGA Tour’s regular season, Thomas came to Minneapolis hoping not only to make a FedEx Cup Playoffs push, but also to earn a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. Now, he heads home early again to prepare for next week’s Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, North Carolina, with seemingly one final shot to accomplish both of those tasks.
Thomas didn’t speak with media after his round, but his facial expression walking into the clubhouse told the story.
After his double bogey on the 18th, his ninth hole in the second round, Thomas bounced back with a birdie on the par-4 first. However, a poor tee shot on the par-3 fourth led to another double bogey, putting Thomas at 1 over. He needed four birdies to make the weekend and had only five holes to do so.
He got one on the fifth, hitting his approach shot to four feet. Another came on the par-5 sixth after reaching the green in two. Then on the par-4 seventh, he hit his approach from the rough to three feet and sank another putt. Three straight birdies, one more needed to make the cut.
On the eighth tee, a par 3, his approach sailed into rough, leaving a tricky pitch to a back right pin. His second shot didn’t leave the thick stuff, coming to rest just short of the fridge and a hill that would’ve sent his ball tumbling toward the hole. Instead, he chipped again and knocked in a bogey putt.
Then on the ninth, his final hole, his drive found the right rough, and he hit his approach to 30 feet. Thomas proceeded to drill the putt for birdie.
The two-time major winner went on an incredible run with four birdies in his final five holes, but two doubles and a poorly-timed bogey on his penultimate hole led to his demise.
Thomas said coming into the week he was trying to have more fun. He feels as if he is doing everything the right way, and the results just aren’t coming.
Before the 3M Open, he was projected to be 75th in the FedEx Cup standings. Now, he’s projected 79th.
Next week, Thomas will tee it up at Sedgefield Country Club with one final chance to earn his way into the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Additionally, he’s running out of chances to show U.S. captain Zach Johnson he deserves a spot on the Ryder Cup team.
In his PGA Tour career, Thomas has never missed out on the FedEx Cup Playoffs and only once, his rookie season, has he not teed it up at East Lake. Both of those streaks are in major jeopardy.
