Justin Thomas produced an explosive back-nine display at the Hero World Challenge and sits second after the first 18 holes at Albany.
A level front nine that included a bogey on the par-five third hole was a disappointing start for the two-time major winner. However, Thomas went on to make seven birdies, including four in a row between holes 14-18.
Thomas has worked hard on his game behind the scenes and has been looking to add a little more speed, particularly with the driver. Thomas has shortened his swing, and the adjustments are clearly paying off.
Justin Thomas discusses new driver at Hero World Challenge
Since the Hero World Challenge isn’t a PGA Tour event, Thomas has revealed that he is testing out a new driver in the Bahamas this week.
“I have messed with a longer driver this off-season, and I put it in play today because there was not much wind; I felt like it was a good opportunity. I can lose it at home, but putting it into competition is different. It didn’t go very well on the front,t but they weren’t terrible drives,” he said.
Thomas then disclosed what he had said to his caddie, Matt Minister, midway through his opening round.
“I said that to Rev, walking up nine. They almost felt like pretty good swings; I was just barely starting left of my window and going left, whereas I like my ball falling right,” Thomas added.
“Just with the club being a bit longer, I have to get the club out in front of me and get on top of it a bit more, and I drove the hell out of it on the back nine.
“I want to be able to have that because I think there are some courses where it’s a huge advantage. This isn’t necessarily one. Some of those tee shots I hit into the sandy area and desert area; those aren’t bad tee shots in a lot of places. If it’s just in rough, I am going to be able to get around the green, versus on three, I am up against a bush.”
Justin Thomas’ first-round driving stats at Hero World Challenge
It was an excellent first round for Thomas, with pretty much all aspects of his game looking sharp. The American gained over a stroke off the tee and 2.2 when approaching the greens.
Unfortunately, as has often been the case with Thomas, his putter let him down, and he lost 1.15 shots on the field while on the greens.
| Justin Thomas strokes gained – Hero World Challenge R1 | Strokes gained |
| Off the tee | 1.108 |
| Around the green | 0.89 |
| Approach to green | 2.201 |
| Putting | -1.15 |
| Total | 3.05 |
Thomas’ speed work put him among the bigger hitters on day one. He averaged 320 yards off the tee, the fifth-best in the field. Furthermore, the American’s longest drive was 334 yards.
Despite the added distance, Thomas appeared to have control over his driver and registered a 76% accuracy rate.
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