AUGUSTA, Ga. — Rain closed the course for much of Tuesday’s practice round at the Masters, but Justin Thomas expects Augusta National to be “salubrious” when the opening-round begins on Thursday.
“The course is always going to be salubrious,” Thomas said. “It’s always going to perfect. No piece of grass will be out of place even with the weather that’s been going on. It’s going to be a good test.”
For clarification: Salubrious basically means wholesome and healthy, which is also how Thomas described his golf game going into his fourth Masters.
A high-ball hitter with plenty of distance, Thomas said the course suits his game and that he’s hoping an adjustment in preparation will generate a better result. His best finish here came last year, when he tied for 17th.
The 2016 PGA champion has taken a more relaxed approach this year, trying to not put too much pressure on himself to win a green jacket. Instead of grinding through constant practice sessions, Thomas spent time in the Bahamas with his parents on vacation.
“I’ve always prepared so hard that when I get here I really feel like I should have a great chance to win, and I think that gets in my own way sometimes are at least it has the past couple of years,” Thomas said. “It took a little different approach in terms of not wearing myself out at home. At the end of the day, whoever plays the best at the end of the week is going to win and whoever manages their emotions the best is going to win and I feel like that’s what I was trying to do to get myself in the right mind frame.”
Thomas, who has nine career Tour victories, is winless this year. He has five top-10 finishes in 11 events, but said, “If you’re not winning tournaments, you’re getting lapped.”
He hopes he can win again this weekend.
“I don’t know if it will happen,” he said. “That’s just how golf is, unfortunately. It might start this week. It might start later in the year. I just have to hope it starts sooner than later. I feel my game is in a good spot. The results haven’t shown how I’ve been playing or how I feel I’ve been playing.”
Thomas would have thought he’d won more majors by now even though he’s just 25. He said he has “very, very highly underperformed versus what I feel like I should have” at majors, and feels like he may have been too cautious in previous Masters.
“You obviously have to pick your spots and understand when it’s smart and when you have to play conservative or when you can play aggressive versus conservative,” Thomas said. “But as a whole I think that we’ve figure out that I may be over-respecting the golf course.”
A golf course that will be in “salubrious” condition.
