When the PGA Tour returns to action in a bit over a week from now, Justin Thomas will be in Hawaii to defend his title at the Tournament of Champions.
J.T. played for the first time at Kapalua in 2016 and didn’t fare that well — he tied for 21st.
”I remember being really excited, but I didn’t take it as seriously as I should have,” Thomas said. ”I was excited for a freebie, pocket money, points, not going there to win the tournament. I think my golf showed that.”
Since then, Thomas has won twice and finished third in his last four appearances at Kapalua.
When he played for the first time, Thomas was fresh off his inaugural PGA Tour win in Malaysia, and it was a big deal to walk out to the range and try to put the faces with the tournaments they won the year before.
This year the field will look very different than it has in the past. The “winners only” requirement has been waived by the PGA Tour because of the pandemic-shortened season.
This year’s field will have some of the winners from 2020 (not all are showing up) and anyone who qualified for the Tour Championship. With that waiver in place, there could be as many 15 players who didn’t win the previous year, and two players – Scottie Scheffler and Abraham Ancer – who have never won.
Biggest winner from 2020, Dustin Johnson, won’t be in the field, he’s taking some extended time off after his victory at The Masters last month.
