CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Justin Thomas’ wild opening round at the PGA Championship ended fittingly enough, with his left sock and shoe off as he contemplated how to hit from an utterly ridiculous lie after his ball came to rest on a one-foot patch of tall grass sandwiched between a large rock and a creek next to the 18th green.
Yeah, it was that kind of a day.
For what it’s worth, Thomas somehow managed to land his chip beautifully on the green by striking down at the ball with his lob wedge, only to miss the 12-foot par putt and finish at 2-over-par 73, nine shots behind leader Jhonattan Vegas.
It could have been worse.
The two-time PGA champion played the first six holes in 4 over before rallying back to 1 over for the day heading into No. 18. By the end of his round, his scorecard had more squares and circles than a kindergarten playroom as he finished with five birdies, five bogeys and a double bogey.
His start was somewhat reminiscent of the 2017 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow, which he went on to win.
Thomas began that round on the back nine and was 2 over with three holes left. Then he bogeyed the seventh hole when he hit into the water and flew the green on No. 8.
“I could not have been in a worse place,” Thomas said at the time. “I was 7 yards over the green on a downslope. And now I have a chip that I have to get up-and-down or I’m 4 over.”
Thomas holed what he called “the most ridiculous flop shot I’ve ever hit” for a birdie to shoot 73.
The following day, he shot 66 and was on his way to capturing the Wanamaker Trophy.
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