Top 30 Players to Watch in 2019: No. 5 Justin Thomas

OVERVIEW Justin Thomas spent the off-season testing new Titleist equipment; following Alabama football; tweeting about Tiger-versus-Phil; and looking forward to his new role as co-executive producer, with Rickie Fowler, of Golf Channel’s next installment of the college golf documentary Driven. When it’s time to lace up his spikes, though, you get the sense he’ll be ready. Thomas, 25, is coming off a season in which he won three times and made a deep run in the FedExCup Playoffs as he tried to become the first player to successfully defend his FedExCup title since its inception in 2007. He might have done it, too, but for a minor injury. Thomas “tweakedâ€� (his word) his right wrist on the 13th hole of the final round of the BMW Championship; taped it; worked only on his short game in the off-week; and could manage only a T7 at the TOUR Championship, leaving him 7th in the final FedExCup standings. Still, it was a strong effort; apart from week one of the season, he never dropped below ninth. “Anytime you win three times in a season, it’s still a pretty good season,â€� Thomas said at the CIMB Classic in October, when he finished T5 to kick off the 2018-19 season. “Obviously not winning a major was a big difference and not winning the FedExCup, but I played plenty well enough last year to win the same amount of times.â€� If there was a tournament he let slip through his fingers, it was the World Golf Championship-Mexico Championship, where he bogeyed the 172-yard 17th to lose to Phil Mickelson. – By Cameron Morfit Click here to see who else made the Top 30 list. BY THE NUMBERS FEDEXCUP UPDATE Current 2018-19 position: 63rd Playoff appearances: 4 TOUR Championship appearances: 3 Best FedExCup result: Won the FedExCup in the 2016-17 season SHOTLINK FUN FACT Justin Thomas ranked third last season in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green, outperforming the PGA TOUR field by +0.880 strokes per round. INSIDER INSIGHTS PGATOUR.COM’s Insiders offer their expert views on what to expect from Justin Thomas in 2019. TOUR INSIDER: Thomas is an exceptionally good iron player; his challenge now will be to elevate the other parts of his game from very good to great in order to match his iron play. His other challenge will be to reconfigure his goals after winning his first major (2017 PGA Championship), first WGC (WGC-Bridgestone Invitational) and first Presidents Cup over the last two seasons. The guess here is he’ll come up with something. — By Cameron Morfit FANTASY INSIDER: A year ago in this space (when he sat No. 1 fresh off winning the FedExCup), I advised caution in weekly formats due to his tendency to hit and miss more often than his peers. Not long thereafter, he cited himself that he wanted to eliminate the inconsistency. It sounded good in theory and gamers are all for improvement no matter the talent, but it’s still cringe-worthy because it can be like fixing what’s not broken. JT is a winner, pure and simple, but there are times when he’s just not feelin’ it, so be prepared to roll with those punches. He still warrants consideration to go first overall in draft leagues. — By Rob Bolton EQUIPMENT INSIDER: Thomas doesn’t tinker too much, but he was quick to switch into a new Titleist TS3 driver (9.5 degrees, with a Mitsubishi Diamana BF 60TX shaft) and a new Titleist TS3 fairway wood (Mitsubishi Tensei CK Blue 80TX shaft). The rest of his bag includes a 718 AP2 4-iron, 718 MB irons (5-9), his familiar Vokey SM5 (56 degrees) and SM6 wedges (48, 52 and 60 degrees) wedges, and the Scotty Cameron Circle T X5 putter he’s been playing since 2017. With a bag full of Titleist clubs, he also uses Titleist’s Pro V1x golf ball. Anytime Thomas decides to make a switch in 2019, whether it’s clubs, shafts or golf ball, it will be news. — By Andrew Tursky STYLE INSIDER: JT continues to hit all the right fashion notes. He excels at balancing the traditions of the game with classic threads and custom old school brogues with new school designs and fits. Look for Thomas to remain one of the best dressed players in the game in 2019. — By Greg Monteforte

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