For golfers who just played in big-money major tournaments, how much do the Olympics matter?

AUGUSTA, Ga. - Justin Thomas vividly remembers his first round at Augusta National. He recalls what else was happening in his golfing life, that he was a freshman at Alabama, and that he played with Jeff Knox, the best golfer amongst Augusta National members. Rounding out the foursome: Thomas’ Alabama teammates Lee Knox (Jeff's son) and Bobby Wyatt. "It was straight after I think our first event in Puerto Rico, and we were so excited," said Thomas, who shot a second-round 69 to reach 9 under par, tied atop the Masters leaderboard with Dustin Johnson (70), Abraham Ancer (67) and Cameron Smith (68). "... It felt like a tournament round you’re getting ready for, you’re nervous on the first tee. We had a great day." RELATED: Leaderboard | Nine things to know: Augusta National Golf Club Johnson (world No. 1) and Thomas (world No. 3) will never be mistaken for one another, even if their first names are separated by only one letter. But they have this in common: Each has one major to his name, and each initially struggled to find his A game for the Masters. That's not uncommon; learning the nuances of the course is a rite of passage for almost everyone not named Fuzzy Zoeller, who remains the only first-timer to win (1979). "I think it’s taken me a little bit to get over, not - I guess maybe the fear of Augusta National," said Thomas, whose T12 finish last year was the first he'd begun to play to his potential. "... I kind of go back to that (first) round, like, dude, remember you made six birdies when you were a freshman in college. I would hope you’d be able to handle it your fifth appearance now." While this weekend will present a different kind of nerves for Thomas, there may be similarities to his first time here. It was February 2012 - not far from November on the golf calendar - and it was wet and scoreable, and Thomas really, really wanted to play well. In the end he threw in some mistakes with his six birdies and shot even. He was low man in the group and was especially excited to beat Knox, whom he calls Mr. Jeff, because "he tears this place up." Still, that first flush of success didn't immediately translate once he'd earned a coveted Masters invite. He scheduled practice rounds with players like Tiger Woods and Fred Couples, soaking up as much knowledge as possible, but finished T39 as a rookie in 2016, then T22 and T17 the next two years. He was improving, but not exactly by leaps and bounds. Today, Thomas says he just needed to learn where to miss, where to be aggressive, and that he didn't need to do anything superhuman. He also had to shed that fear factor. His Ryder and Presidents Cup teammate Johnson got off to an even slower start here. He was T30 in his rookie year in 2009, then got worse with a pair of T38s in 2010 and 2011. Not until Johnson committed to a new level of precision with his wedges, and improved his putting, did he begin to figure out how to play what is often referred to as a second-shot course. Today, the world No. 1, expects to contend for the green jacket. His T2 finish last year, one behind Tiger Woods, was one of four top-10 finishes in the last five years. He might have had another top-10 in 2017 but slipped on some stairs and hurt himself, leading to a WD. Many experts had pegged Johnson as the clear pre-tournament favorite that year. He had just won three times on TOUR, including two WGCs, and climbed to No. 1 in the world. In that respect what's happening this week, or what could happen, has been a long time coming. As with the roughly half the field that didn't finish the first round Thursday, Johnson began his Friday early, with a 4:05 wakeup call. Then it was straight back out to the back nine. He hasn't been great on the greens, with 32 putts in the second round, and bogeyed the par-5 15th. But otherwise, he said, he's been mostly pleased, especially with his two 2s at the testy 12th hole. "It’s been a long day," he said, when asked to name his best shot so far this week. "I mean, both the shots I hit on 12 today, I like. I made birdie both times. So I take that any day of the week." Now the top two Americans in the world have a chance to take a quantum career leap even if it's taken a little extra perseverance to get here. They'll take that any day of the week, too.

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PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – That three-hole stretch late on PGA National’s back nine earned the nickname “The Bear Trap� by intimidating even the world’s best players. Justin Thomas conquered it to earn a spot in the final group at The Honda Classic. He birdied the back nine’s two water-lined par-3s, Nos. 15 and 17, to shoot 65. He’s one shot behind 54-hole leader Luke List, a 33-year-old who’s seeking his first PGA TOUR win. Thomas is nearly a decade younger, but already owns seven victories and is the reigning FedExCup champion. Thomas’ 65 matched Alex Noren for the low round of the week. “To play the Bear trap in 2 under was stealing, I felt like,� said Thomas, who hit 6-iron on both holes before making birdie putts of approximately 15 feet. There were only four birdies on No. 15 Saturday and only 11 birdies on the 17th. Thomas, who’s No. 9 in the FedExCup, could take over the lead with a win. He already owns one win this season, at the CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES. That’s not the only reason he’s hoping for a victory. Winning at the notoriously-tough PGA National would be a point of pride. “Half of my wins, or a decent amount of my wins, have been on easier golf courses, so it would be cool to get it done at a place like this,� he said. The par-70 Champion Course has played to a 72.2 scoring average this week, which would rank it as the toughest this season if the scoring holds. There’s only 10 players under par after 54 holes. List is one shot ahead of Thomas and Webb Simpson, while Tommy Fleetwood and List’s former roommate, Jamie Lovemark, are two shots back.   SHOT OF THE DAY  NOTABLES Rory McIlroy salvaged a 73 after being 6 over on his first eight holes. McIlroy won here in 2012 and was in a playoff in 2014, but this was his eighth consecutive over-par round at PGA National. He’s 22 over in those eight rounds. Tiger Woods hit a season-high nine fairways and 13 greens en route to his first sub-70 round of the season. Woods, who’s even par, trails List by seven shots. On Saturday’s first 11 holes, he hit 10 approach shots within 25 feet of the hole. “It could have been even lower,� Woods said. His Sunday playing partner will be Sam Burns, a 21-year-old Web.com Tour player. Burns turned pro last year after his sophomore season at LSU. He was the 2017 Nicklaus Award winner as the top player in college golf. Click here for more on his round. Webb Simpson will start the final round one shot off the lead as he seeks his first victory since 2013. Last season, Simpson qualified for the TOUR Championship for the first time in four years. He shot a bogey-free 66 on Saturday, making birdies on 3, 8, 9 and 13. Alex Noren matched Thomas for the low round of the tournament with a 65 on Saturday. Noren, who lost a playoff to Jason Day at the Farmers Insurance Open, will start the final round within three shots of the lead after making eagle on 18. Noren’s 65 was a 10-shot improvement over his second round. CALL OF THE DAY QUOTABLES My responsibility tomorrow is to go out there and put something in the red and post a numberI don’t want to watch myself. SUPERLATIVES Low round – Thomas and Noren both fired 65 on Saturday. Those are the lowest rounds this week. Hardest hole – The 479-yard, par-4 sixth hole played to a 4.46 scoring average Saturday. There were only two birdies. Easiest hole – The 556-yard, par-5 18th played to a 4.7 scoring average. Noren made one of three eagles on the hole. There were 24 birdies, as well.

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