Justin Thomas claims he predicted stunning bunker shot to caddie Bones

Justin Thomas moved to within striking distance of the lead after three rounds of the Fortinet Championship on the PGA Tour.

Ben Smith

17 Sep 2023

Justin Thomas claims he predicted stunning bunker shot to caddie Bones

Justin Thomas revealed he told his caddy Bones he 'liked the look' of his bunker shot before holing out for eagle en route to getting into contention at the Fortinet Championship.

Thomas carded a third round of 65 in Napa, California to reach 15-under par and move within striking distance of Sahith Theegala.

Theegala, leading by two, is searching for his maiden PGA Tour win but Thomas has commanded all of the attention so far in this fall season event.

We are sure you don't need reminding that is because of Thomas' inclusion in the Ryder Cup team despite, by his own admission, a poor season.

Thomas later told media his thinking has become more positive in recent weeks.

An example of that came at the par-5 15th hole at Silverado Resort's North Course on Saturday.

Thomas, using a shaft in his driver that is a tad longer this week, blocked his tee shot out right.

He had made par on the hole on the first two days of tournament play and it looked like it would be a similar story in the third round.

Thomas hit his second shot into a greenside bunker but then holed out.

Watch that here:

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Thomas said of the moment:

"When I got there, I don't know, I just liked the look of it. And I told Bones walking in I think it's about time we hole a bunker shot there. As soon as it landed, after that first bounce and it started rolling, I thought it was going to go in. So that was a pretty cool moment for us."

Asked about what it is like being in contention again, Thomas added:

"It's the best. The crowd [was] amazing today, seemed like there was quite a lot of people out there. The finishing stretch obviously creates a lot of excitement. Yeah, this is why all of us play, so it's nice to be a part of those roars a little bit."

Earlier in the week Thomas reacted to Rory McIlroy's comments about his inclusion in Zach Johnson's U.S. side.

Unsurprisingly, McIlroy stated that the reaction over Thomas' pick was unwarranted.

McIlroy's comments gave Thomas 'goosebumps', he said.

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