LOS ANGELES — Justin Thomas arrived at the Los Angeles Country Club this week “100 percent confident” he could win the 123rd US Open.
Instead, Thomas took 11 over 81 in the second round on Friday and missed the cut. With a total of 36 par-14 holes of 154, he is tied for 153rd among the 156 players in the field.
“Yeah, it’s definitely the lowest I’ve ever felt,” Thomas said Friday. “It’s beautiful shooting results, frankly, humiliating and embarrassing like that. On a golf course, I really liked it. I thought it was very well set up.”
Thomas said he was not injured. When a reporter asked if the problem was mental or a technical defect in his swing, he replied, “It’s part of everything.”
“It’s a funny game, man,” said Thomas. “You know, it can leave you speechless, for both good and bad, and now it’s sadly bad. But, you know, it’s what it is. Once I’m able to think and figure out what I can learn and get better at that, you know, it’ll be over.” It’s fine. But it’s bad now.”
It’s been a lost season so far for Thomas, a 15-time winner on the PGA Tour. He has two top 10 finishes in 14 starts. He faltered in each of the biggest events, tying for 60th at the Players Championship, missing a loss at the Masters, tying for 65th at the PGA Championship as the defending champion and then missing the cut on Friday.
In the first three majors of the season, Thomas was the 30 total. The main final, The Open, is scheduled for July 20-23 at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake, England.
“I’ll find out,” said Thomas. “I’ve got another major left. I’m going to win the British Open, and nobody even remembers that I missed a billion cut here. I just have to try to find a way to improve and learn from this. If I can, I don’t have to look at this week as a complete failure.”
Ireland’s Shane Lowry, who played Thomas in the first two rounds of the US Open, said he was too good not to turn things around too soon.
“GT is one of the best players in the world,” Lowry said. “Obviously, he’s had a bad couple of weeks, but that’s golf. It’s not easy. If it were easy, everybody would be doing it. Look, he obviously hasn’t played great the last couple of days, but he’s already won two majors and he’s still young.” . He will be fine. “