The FedEx playoffs got off to a strange start Thursday at Liberty National with something like a Scottish Open breaking out.
Challenging winds whipped across the course located across the river from Manhattan and two superstars in the world of golf came up big as world No. 1 Jon Rahm and No. 5 Justin Thomas handled the conditions to the point where they made it almost look easy. Finishing late in the afternoon, Thomas, playing in the group ahead of Rahm, birdied 16, 17 and 18 to post eight-under par 63. It was a birdie-matching battle as Rahm birdied 15, 16 and 17 then lined up a birdie putt from just inside 17 feet at 18 for a course-record tying 62. His bid missed and he equaled J.T.’s extraordinary round.
“It was very good, obviously it was very windy. I was really committed to every shot. It was nice to shoot that score in conditions like that,” Thomas said after his round. He also confirmed that he had gone back to his old Scotty Cameron putter, the one he calls “baby.” He had it tucked away for too long and at a junior outing at home a week ago, some of the youngsters asked him when he was going to put it back in the bag. Mission accomplished as Thomas found himself with one of his best putting rounds of the season.
Rahm was nothing short of spectacular with no bogeys on his card. “I was honestly thinking there will be some rust to get rid of, and there was a little bit. It’s even hard to say because those first five holes or six holes, even though I was two-under par, it was very close to being a very different story. That chip-in on three (for birdie), if it doesn’t hit the hole, I’m looking for a 40-footer for par. Made a great up and down on four and five..
“I guess that’s why you practice the short game because that is three holes I stole a couple shots and got really full of confidence, hit a couple of good putts, and just took off running,” Rahm added. Rahm, like Thomas, acknowledged the difficulty from the winds, that gusted up to 25 miles per hour all afternoon. “It’s extremely difficult. The fact that me and Justin shot a low score like that, it shows it’s possible, but we both played really, really good golf. I’m assuming he did as well. I felt like I played great. If it ever looked easy, it is, again, due to ball striking. I can put it in the fairway. From the fairway, you can be aggressive. You can hit it as low as you want into the wind, and that ball is going to stop on the green. I think that’s, again, the advantage of using the wind to your advantage.”
Rahm and Thomas were two shots clear of Harold Varner III, who finished earlier in the day with a five-under par 67, putting him solo third.
There were big names who struggled mightily. world No. 2 Collin Morikawa, the FedEx points leader coming into the playoffs, shot a three-over par 74 and put himself in danger of missing the 36-hole cut.
World No. 2 Dustin Johnson cracked his driver on the practice tee and didn’t have another to put in his bag. He played with a pair of three-woods and could only manage to finish with a one-under par 70 that had him tied for 34th.
Bryson DeChambeau had the strangest scorecard of anyone in the field and set a weird playoff mark. He played his round in even par 71 and had only two pars on his scorecard. He had nine birdies, five bogeys, two double-bogeys and the pair of pars.
It was that kind of day at Liberty National. It set a different tone, of sorts. These playoffs could be different from just about anything that’s been seen over the past few seasons.
Friday Update: Jon Rahm got it to one-under at the turn and was the solo leader at nine-under when he made the turn. He played the back nine first. Justin Thomas wasn’t as fortunate. His driver was wild and after four bogeys over that back nine, his first of the day, he dropped all the way back to five-under with nine to play.
Patrick Reed Withdraws, Cites Ankle Injury:
There were supposed to be 125 players at Liberty National on Thursday. There were only 124.
Patrick Reed, who withdrew last week from the Wyndham Championship, withdrew from the Northern Trust, citing an ankle injury.
You can bet Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker will be paying close attention to this.
