Spieth ends up 6 shots behind for a different reason at Sony

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Justin Thomas hopes his winner’s check doesn’t take too big of a hit, but he just couldn’t help himself. Thomas used an expletive to emphasize his excitement after winning The Honda Classic on the first playoff hole. He admitted afterward that he’d hoped the cameras missed his celebratory remarks “Let’s go. (Expletive) yeah, baby,� he said after holing his 3-footer for the win. He just got caught up in the moment after a hard-fought victory on one of the PGA TOUR’s toughest tests. “Please don’t fine me very much, PGA TOUR,� he sheepishly pleaded in his post-tournament press conference. “That’s not something I wanted to get on TV. It just was an emotional win and I was happy to get it done.� Thomas continued his incredible play with his second win of the season. The reigning FedExCup champion now leads this season’s standings. He’s won seven of his past 31 PGA TOUR starts (23 percent). Increased consistency was his goal after last season’s five-win campaign. He seems to be on the right track, finishing no worse than T22 in seven starts this season. He believes he’s playing even better than in his FedExCup-winning campaign, which also included six missed cuts and nearly as many top-10s (12) as finishes outside the top 25 (11). “I feel very confident in pretty much every part of my game right now,� he said. It showed as Thomas parred PGA National’s penal finishing holes, then stiffed a wedge shot on the final hole of regulation to tie Luke List atop a tightly-packed leaderboard. On the first playoff hole, Thomas flew a 5-wood over water and two-putted for victory. His victory at last year’s PGA Championship also came on a tough track with a finishing stretch notorious enough to earn its own nickname, but the margins were much slimmer this time. At Quail Hollow, Thomas had some shots to work with after his chip-in at the 13th hole. The final-round leaderboard at The Honda Classic saw as many as four players share the lead on the back nine. “I just hit some really, really well-executed shots coming down the stretch. I haven’t done that on this difficult of holes before,� Thomas said. “One swing equals a double on those holes. It just was a big confidence booster, really.� It’s surprising Thomas would need one, considering his success over the past year, but each win is unique. He spoke on the eve of the final round about the satisfaction he’d get from winning on a course with such a penal reputation. The scoring average on the par-70 Champion Course at PGA National was more than two strokes over par. Thomas and List tied for the lead at 8-under 272; only 11 players broke par this week. Thomas’ five bogeys were second-fewest in the field (he also made one double-bogey). “When you get out of position, you have to get back in and try to salvage a par. That’s what I did so well,� he said. Three years ago, he estimates that he took nine penalty drops in 36 holes en route to a missed cut. He finished third here in 2016, but missed the cut again last year. He returned to PGA National to congratulate Rickie Fowler on his win, and Fowler returned the favor this year. “It’s definitely very satisfying when you can get the job done on a course that tests all parts of your game,� Fowler said as he watched Thomas accept the trophy. Thomas was bogey-free on the back-nine, making birdies on 13 and 18 and executing several clutch up-and-downs. He drove in the rough on the final hole before stuffing a 117-yard wedge shot to make birdie and match List.   “This was a hard win, it was,� Thomas said. “I was very calm and comfortable kind of those first 14 holes, and that’s the first time I’ve had to play the Bear Trap in that much pressure, and it was pretty nerve-wracking.� Mike Thomas was impressed with his son’s ability to go 72 holes without a penalty shot on a course lined by so many water hazards. “He’s ultra-aggressive, and he’s good enough to be aggressive,� Mike Thomas said. “I think he’s learned that he doesn’t have to attack every flag. … He just didn’t make any mistakes.� And so he walked away with yet another trophy.

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CARNOUSTIE, Scotland – John Daly has withdrawn from the 147th Open Championship to a knee injury and will be replaced by Keegan Bradley. Daly, the 1995 winner of The Open, has been battling the injury throughout the season. The next three competitors on the reserve list are (in order of priority): Adrian Otaegui, Aaron Wise and J.B. Holmes.

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Wake up. Step out of your room. Hop onto a boat. Arrive at the first tee. Theoretically, that’s how you could start the day at Mayakoba, the resort course hosting this week’s event. Of course, players will need to warm up on the range first, but it’s easy to get distracted at the Riviera Maya, with all the fresh-water canals, emerald jungles and wildlife in the area. And yes, those are spider monkeys roaming the fairways. THE FLYOVER The 532-yard par-5 13th is the easiest hole at El Camaleon. A year ago, it played to a stroke average of 4.475, which made it the 31st easiest par 5 of the 163 played on the PGA TOUR last season. A prevailing left-to-right wind will impact a player’s strategy, but those who fail to make at least a birdie are giving up significant strokes to the field. Here’s a look at an Aaron Wise chip-in for eagle at the 2016 Mayakoba. LANDING ZONE Of the 918 holes played on the PGA TOUR last season, the 452-yard par-4 14th at El Camaleon was the 11th toughest, playing to a stroke average of 4.373. Just one eagle and 19 birdies were made, compared to 113 bogeys and 29 doubles or others. The fairway offers a fairly generous landing zone, but a headwind and dense mangroves surrounding the hole turn par into a difficult task. WEATHER CHECK From PGA TOUR meteorologist Stewart Williams: “High pressure will keep the tranquil weather pattern going through Friday. Can’t rule out an isolated shower or thunderstorm on any given day, but the bulk of the area will likely remain dry. Just enough increase in moisture may increase our chances for seeing scattered showers and thunderstorms on Saturday. Showers may linger into Sunday morning with dry conditions returning for the afternoon. A cold front will drop south and bring a good chance for t-storms by Tuesday.â€� For the latest weather news from Playa del Carmen, Mexico, check out PGATOUR.COM’s Weather Hub. SOUND CHECK Brought a smile to my face really just stepping on this property.This is an extremely relaxing week, which I’ll take advantage of that. Definitely a couple spa days. BY THE NUMBERS 68.65 – Scoring average by Charles Howell III in his nine appearances at Mayakoba. He has three top-10s in his last five starts in this event. 70 – Number of birdies made individually this season by Beau Hossler, Emiliano Grillo, Si Woo Kim, Chez Reavie and Gary Woodland, each of whom is in the field this week. That’s one birdie shy of the current birdie leader Kevin Tway (71). 1 – Number of players who have competed every year of the Mayakoba. That distinction belongs to Chris Stroud, who has three top-5 finishes in those 11 starts. 2 – Number of Mexico natives who have won PGA TOUR events. Cesar Sanudo won the 1970 Azalea Open Invitational, while Victor Regalado won twice, in 1974 (Pleasant Valley Classic) and 1978 (the tournament now known as the John Deere Classic). SCATTERSHOTS  A record four players from Mexico – Carlos Ortiz, Roberto Diaz, Jose de Jesus Rodriguez and Abraham Ancer — have their PGA TOUR cards this season, and all four are in the field this week. They’ve each played and made the cut at Mayakoba in previous starts. “Having four Mexicans playing with a full card this year, it’s incredible,â€� Ancer said. Added defending champion Patton Kizzire: “They didn’t just get here by chance; those guys are really good golfers.â€� U.S. Amateur champ Viktor Hovland of Norway is making his PGA TOUR debut this week. Hovland, who played collegiately at Oklahoma State, is playing on a sponsor exemption. So is Adria Arnaus, who also is making his TOUR debut. Arnaus, who played collegiately at Texas A&M, is from Spain. Green speeds this week will be between 10.5 to 11 feet due to the contours of the green and the sea breeze. The latter is most noticeable on the ocean holes No. 4 and 15.

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