Justin Thomas finally got back to winning ways on the PGA Tour as he held off Andrew Novak in a playoff to win the RBC Heritage and he’s now been left with a huge call to make going forward.
Thomas managed to make a birdie in the playoff to halt any hopes Novak had of taking it to a second playoff hole.
For the American – who has high hopes of being in the Ryder Cup – a win in a signature event will go a long way to helping and crucially, relieves the tension of carrying that losing streak.
Thomas spoke of Rory McIlroy doing similar at The Masters last week but while McIlroy has a steady and consistent team to work with going forward, Thomas has thrown a spanner in the works by having Joe Greiner on the bag the last few weeks.
Greiner parted ways with Max Homa a few weeks ago and has helped Thomas to a T36 at Augusta and now a win at Harbour Town, with Thomas’ regular caddie Matt Minister out injured.
Now though, despite the win, Thomas is left with the toughest of tough decisions as to what direction he goes next.
Justin Thomas facing huge caddie decision after winning the RBC Heritage
While this might be a weekend to celebrate for Justin Thomas, deep down, there’ll be a nagging feeling that he knows a huge call is coming.
Clearly, he and Greiner have clicked in some way as a duo and winning $3.6m – of which Greiner will likely take 10% of – is a big deal.
Greiner, of course, is probably more than aware that the gig with Thomas could be temporary and if was to finish now, he’s earned more than he has all year in just two events.
For Thomas though, the bigger question is does he stick with long-time partner Minister, or does he make the toughest of phone calls and explain that he’s sticking with Greiner?
There will be pros and cons to both selections. But for now, given how well Thomas played at Harbour Town, there’s an argument to suggest Greiner is the man.
Thomas and Greiner relationship obvious on course
The partnership between a caddie and a player can be huge and over the years we’ve seen some big calls between some of the best around.
Steve Williams famously caddied for Tiger Woods in his prime, while we saw Harry Diamond help Rory McIlroy win last week at Augusta.
Thomas also mentioned Greiner in his post-round interviews, as he gave an insight into how they’d worked together to get it over the line.
“It is so hard to force the issue on a course like this. It is so firm and so fast. It was so fun to play. I am really proud of myself today, how patient I was, and I just plotted my way around. I said to Joe coming up 18, I have never made a putt to win a tournament before of length. A bit fortunate to have a lot of tap ins but I have never made a putt. It was pretty cool. It was as fun as I thought it would be!“
Clearly, Thomas and Greiner are working well and it’s little conversations like this that keep the flow in a player’s game.
Whatever the decision from Thomas is, he’ll no doubt feel bad towards one or the other.
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