Justin Thomas explains what the PGA Tour can do with the greens to make things so much more difficult for golfers

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Justin Thomas is firmly in contention at The American Express after shooting 64 at the Nicklaus Tournament Course in La Quinta.

Two under through 12 holes, the two-time major champion was struggling to mount a serious challenge. But six consecutive birdies saw Thomas shoot a back-nine 30 and fly up the leaderboard.

The 31-year-old is now 13-under for the tournament and three shots back of a two-way tie for the lead. With Scottie Scheffler injured and Xander Schauffele absent, there’s a golden chance for Thomas to land his first win since the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills.

Justin Thomas makes claim about PGA Tour greens

The Tournament Course was extremely receptive during the second round, and low scoring was a formality. The Stadium Course, however, provided a sterner test.

Thomas will play the Pete Dye-designed layout on Saturday and anticipates a tougher challenge, particularly with firmer greens.

“It’s still the same plan as trying to make as many birdies as possible. You have to be more precise, and you have to be a little smarter,” Thomas said.

“When greens are firm, you can’t get away with those short sides, you can’t get away with maybe taking on some risks that you don’t get away with. I mean, that’s the biggest difference for us, if you give us soft greens, it’s pretty hard for to us make bogeys, because we’re good at hitting our numbers, and we have good short games, so there’s really no defense to it.

“But when greens are firm, you have to golf your ball a little bit. Doesn’t matter if it’s short, a lot of par-5s, whatever you want to call it, you still have to be able to hit your numbers and control your spin and distance, so that will kind of be the plan tomorrow.”

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Justin Thomas predicts ‘different animal’ on day three of The American Express

With La Quinta Country Club and Tournament Course already ticked off, Thomas will be looking to remain in contention ahead of Sunday’s final round at PGA West.

“The Stadium’s definitely a different animal; it’s firmer, it’s always a harder course in general before the green renovation, so I’m still going to be trying to make a lot of birdies, but it’s just going to be a little bit more picking my spots as opposed to see the pin, hit pin like the first two days,” Thomas added.

The par-five 16th on the Stadium Course is home to the largest bunker on the PGA Tour – Rookie William Mouw made a 13 on the hole during the second round.

Charley Hoffman currently leads The American Express alongside Rico Hoey. Jason Day, Rickie Fowler and Patrick Cantlay are also well-placed heading into the weekend. Sony Open champion Nick Taylor is alongside Thomas at 13 under.