The Presidents Cup has entered Day 3, with Team USA desperately trying to claw its way back from a four-point deficit after the International team swept Friday’s session. However, the Americans’ efforts have not gone entirely smoothly, and one particular major champ is one of the many reasons.
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Two-time major champion Justin Thomas, in particular, found himself in a difficult situation on Saturday morning on the opening hole. In a video circulating on social media, Thomas is seen playing left-handed near the infamous fence at Medinah. But that is not news.
The news is how he played the shot from there. In a post on X, NUCLR Golf shared a clip of Thomas playing, writing, “🚨 ONE OF US 🗣️. Welcome to Saturday at The Presidents Cup, courtesy of Justin Thomas. 😳.” Here’s what happened.
On the opening hole, playing alongside rookie Jackson Koivun against International Team members Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im, Thomas hit a wayward drive, leaving the ball barely in bounds near a boundary fence. The fence and the rough prevented him from taking a conventional right-handed swing.
The position of his shot forced Thomas to attempt his second shot left-handed from the thick rough. However, when Thomas tried to hit the approach shot, disaster struck. Thomas hit the ball, but the ball rolled just a few feet away. All hope wasn’t lost, however.
He played his third shot left-handed as well, with better results. Fortunately for Thomas and Team USA, Koivun came to the rescue. The 21-year-old struck his second shot to within 10 feet of the hole and sank the putt, giving the American duo a 1-up lead. On the other hand, it’s not like Thomas hasn’t been here before.
In the final round of the 2020 WGC-Mexico Championship, a drive nestled against a tree forced him to play left again. He took a few swings and punched the ball about 40 yards through a gap, earning widespread praise as one of the day’s best shots before double-bogeying the hole. And there was another.
At the 2017 Tour Championship, his ball sat against a tree with no room for a right-handed attempt. So, he flipped a right-handed iron and punched it lefty back into the fairway, saving a stroke.
He had a more unsuccessful attempt at the 2017 Hero World Challenge. At that time, Thomas’s ball was sitting against a rock on the 15th. So, when he tried to rescue the hole, he mostly hit the rock more than the ball. He made bogey.
However, away from tournament pressure, he’s also messed around lefty for fun. In 2019, ahead of the BMW Championship, he joined Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth for left-handed practice swings. During the 2020 COVID break, he and Fowler played a full 18-hole “Lefty Championship.” Really, it all plays into the narrative.
Professional golf is a game of near-impossible perfection, where players routinely execute flawless shots that the average fan could never replicate. However, when a pro hits a catastrophic slice into the woods, chunks a chip shot two feet in front of them, or three-putts from close range, they suddenly look like an weekend golfer struggling at a local public course.
And this often leads fans to chant “one of us” lightheartedly, as in Thomas’ case.
Regardless, when fans discovered Justin Thomas’ attempt on X, they quickly started sharing their opinions. One user wrote, “☠️ JT going lefty.”
Someone else didn’t quite agree with NUCLR Golf’s caption. “ONE OF US is the most dangerous thing you can say about a two-time major winner,” the user commented.
Another chimed in, mocking the situation. “This is why you should always cut your grass,” the user posted.
The next user decided to be honest. “I wouldn’t have gotten out in two,” wrote the user.
This comes after Thomas partnered with Koivun on Day 1 and delivered a dominant 4&3 win over Corey Conners and Nico Echavarria, securing the first U.S. point and extending Thomas’s perfect Presidents Cup four-ball record to 7-0. Meanwhile, on Day 2, Thomas teamed with Cameron Young but struggled badly, failing to make a single birdie in a 3&2 loss to Adam Scott and Christiaan Bezuidenhout.
Meanwhile, this user took a sarcastic approach. “Welcome to President’s Cup Saturday, where JT shows us first-hand how to play golf just like us,” the user commented.
That being said, Justin Thomas’ left-handed attempt appears to have amused some fans. However, only time will tell whether Thomas and Koivun can close out the match before the afternoon foursomes get underway.