CNN
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Staring down the barrel of an early exit, Thursday was about as bad as it could be for Justin Thomas at The Players Championship. Friday, by contrast, was just about the best in history.
After opening with an error-strewn six-over 78, the American went 16 shots better on Friday with a remarkable 10-under 62 to match the lowest 18-hole score ever seen in the PGA Tour’s flagship event at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
“I think crazy is an understatement. It’s wild,” Thomas told Sky Sports. “I’m really really proud of myself, to come out with the mentality and attitude is one thing but to put myself in the position I did.”
“I’m excited to just have a tee time tomorrow.”
A tournament-record 11 birdies – including six in a seven hole stretch from the 11th hole onward – saw the world No. 9 tee up at closing par-four 18th needing just a par or better to beat the course record set by compatriot Tom Hoge in 2023, only to subsequently make the first mistake of a near-perfect display.
Having found the right-hand rough with his opening drive, Thomas shanked a shot into the water – just as he had done en route to a triple bogey the previous day.
Now needing to get up and down from upwards of 50 feet to beat Hoge’s benchmark, frustration was etched across the 31-year-old’s face, but he responded with an effort befitting of his display. A stunning approach left him with a simple tap-in that completed a rise of 105 places from leagues outside the cut line to seven strokes off the lead at four-under par.
“That was one of the best rounds I’ve played, for sure,” Thomas told reporters on his return to the clubhouse.
“Mentally it was the biggest thing, I felt like I did an unbelievable job of just keeping my eyes forward, keeping my blinders on, not looking backwards or forwards, anything like that.”
‘I was not worried’
It’s evidence of 15-time PGA Tour winner Thomas getting back to the level that saw him rise to world No. 1 in 2018.
The two-time major champion has been candid about his struggles to maintain his best form in recent seasons, but three top-10 finishes already in 2025 have equipped him with the self-belief to rebound from a first round that he dubbed “the worst” of his career “in terms of drives and irons, statistically.”
Thomas lost 9.09 strokes ball-striking Thursday in the worst round of his career and the third worst of any golfer in 2025, golf data analyst Rick Gehman said in a post on X, before gaining 9.439 strokes compared to the field for his career-best round on Friday.
“I was not worried or upset [on Thursday],” Thomas said. “I was obviously upset about my score. The score sucked. It was absolutely terrible in every way, shape, or form. But it was a fluke. It was the worst driving and iron play I’ve had, I think, probably in a round in my career.
“In a year that I’ve been playing some pretty good golf, I would say throwing that out, it’s an understatement.”
And was the course record on his mind? No, insisted Thomas, quashing any notion that his fateful water-ball at the last had dampened his mood.
“I just wanted to make another birdie,” said Thomas, who tees off for his third round alongside fellow American Davis Riley at 11:45 a.m. ET (3:45 p.m. GMT) on Saturday.
“I very easily could have hit it where I wanted to, hit a really good pitch or chip and a really good putt and not gone in and made the same score. I’m in no way, shape or form letting that dwell on the great round I had today.”
Young stars Bhatia and Lee spring ahead
Best-placed to deny 2021 champion Thomas a second Players title are compatriot Akshay Bhatia and Australia’s Min Woo Lee, who share the lead heading into the weekend at 11-under par overall.
Bhatia and Lee, aged just 23 and 26 respectively, have matched each other stride for stride around TPC Sawgrass, each carding 67 and 66 to leapfrog first round co-leader J.J. Spaun by a single stroke.
After playing alongside two more of the PGA Tour’s most talented rising stars, 21-year-old Nick Dunlap and 22-year-old Tom Kim, Bhatia believes the future is bright.
“We had probably the youngest group in Players history with me, Nick and Tommy, so it’s pretty amazing how young golf is getting and how many young players there are,” Bhatia, chasing a third PGA Tour win, told reporters.
“It’s refreshing to see. I feel like we’re kind of the next generation of the Rorys (McIlroy) and Scotties (Scheffler) and obviously Tiger’s (Woods) way up there, but I think it’s really cool.”
Bhatia and Lee will be the last pairing to begin their third round on Saturday at 2:35 p.m. ET (6:35 p.m. GMT).
McIlroy and Morikawa impress but other big stars tumble
World No. 2 McIlroy sits well within striking distance of a second Players title after shooting 68 to move to nine-under par.
The Northern Irishman is level with American duo Alex Smalley and Collin Morikawa, the latter of whom shot 65 before firing back at several former pros who criticized his behaviour at last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Morikawa did not speak to the media after suffering a painful near-miss at Bay Hill, a decision he defended upon his return to the clubhouse on Friday.
“It might have been a little bit harsh that I don’t owe anyone, but I don’t owe anyone,” Morikawa told reporters. “I respect the fans. I’m very thankful for them. I’m grateful.”
World No. 1 Scheffler carded a second round 70 to move to five-under, comfortably clear of a cut line projected at one-under par before play was suspended due to darkness with a small number of players left to finish at 7:34 p.m. ET (11:34 p.m. GMT).
A number of big names fell well under that threshold, with Viktor Hovland, Brian Harman, Matt Fitzpatrick, Max Homa and Tony Finau all at four-under overall or worse.
Last year’s runner-up Wyndham Clark withdrew midway through his second round due to a neck injury.