Thomas locks up POY
It’s been years since a handful of formidable cases could be made for Player of the Year. Both Dustin Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama have won four times, while Jordan Spieth’s Open Championship and two other tour victories certainly warrant consideration. So it’s quite the statement that, with two tournaments left in the season, one player has already wrapped up the honor.
Justin Thomas turned in a final-round 66 to capture the Dell Technologies Championship by three strokes. Thomas, who fired a Saturday 63 to share the 54-hole lead with Marc Leishman, battled the Aussie and Spieth after both toured TPC Boston’s front in 30 strokes. However, both stumbled down the stretch, giving Thomas enough breathing room to cruise to the title.
It was the fifth win of the season for the 24-year-old Thomas, and sixth of his career. The five Ws — most notably, his PGA triumph at Quail Hollow — combined with a 63 at the U.S. Open and 59 at Sony Open is a résumé that rises above the rest. He joins Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods and Spieth as the only players since 1960 to win five times, including a major, in one season before the age of 25.