Justin Thomas chasing perfect with golf swing ahead of WM Phoenix Open | Golf Central | Golf Channel

Justin Thomas is ‘chasing perfect’ with his golf swing, and the Golf Central crew analyze what that means for Thomas ahead of the WM Phoenix Open. #GolfChannel #GolfCentral #JustinThomas
» Subscribe to Golf Channel: https://www.youtube.com/golfchannel?sub_confirmation=1
» For the latest news around golf: https://www.nbcsports.com/golf

Welcome to Golf Channel’s official YouTube channel. We are the #1 destination for everything golf – 24/7. Find golf instruction tips, sneak peeks to our original series, news and tournament coverage. We are part of the NBC Sports Group.

Discover what else Golf Channel has to offer:
Live Coverage on Peacock: https://peacocktv.smart.link/v82e9dl56
Live Scores: http://bit.ly/GCScores
TV Schedule: https://www.nbcsports.com/watch/schedule
Instructional Tips: https://www.golfpass.com/learn
Golf Course Reviews: http://bit.ly/GCCourseReviews

Justin Thomas chasing perfect with golf swing ahead of WM Phoenix Open | Golf Central | Golf Channel
https://www.youtube.com/golfchannel?sub_confirmation=1

how about this group at the WM Phoenix
Open Justin Thomas Adam Scott couple
guys former world number ones and
Cameron young they go off at 244 Eastern
Time round number one on Thursday
thought it was interesting getting to
hear JT in that press conference allude
to saying I was chasing perfect with the
golf swing didn’t like how it looked
aesthetically if you’re the casual golf
fan and you look at what he’s done in
his career it’s like okay he won five
times were Player of the Year in 2017
Paige w would you ever change from That
Swing I don’t know if he even has a good
answer for that I certainly don’t have a
good answer for that uh and I think it
the proof was in the pudding and it was
it was very cool to listen to him talk
about how Frank of a conversation he had
with himself saying why did I get so off
how did I get so off but when you look
at the numbers when you look at what
happened in in 2023 and what is
happening since then since he has gone
back to what is in his DNA as he
describes it the body moves along the
path of least resistance if you fight it
it becomes more difficult and that is
what we saw in 2023 when you look at
Strokes gain off of the te you can see
he was ranked outside the top 60 last
year now he’s inside the top 20 the
approach game as well back inside the
top 10 from 35th last season and then
around the green he’s always been
excellent and I’m not going to put too
much Credence on the putting because
they just came from Pebble Beach last
week which is one of the most difficult
putting uh weeks of the year the PJ tour
players will face but when you you add
it up the te to Green game for Justin
Thomas last year he was gaining just
under a stroke on the field right now
he’s gaining just under three shots on
the field these are incredible numbers
for Justin Thomas and and obviously
pleased with the fact that he’s gone
back to what is in his DNA what really
stood out in that graphic to me the
before and after was the approach play
obviously you know he’s always been one
of the best if not the very best iron
player since he come out on the PGA tour
last year even though it was still
pretty good stuff I mean he was still
picking up what a third of The Strokes
uh on the field uh he was nowhere near
the player that we’ve seen with his
approach play and over the years really
that’s what’s made Justin Thomas so
exciting I mean he’s got a lot of arrows
in the quiver you don’t get uh to the
number one spot in the world without
being great all the way around part of
that graphic uh and it that was was
astounding Strokes gain T to Green he’s
almost picked up three shots and what
did Luke Donald tell us yesterday uh in
the interview he had talked with Mark
Brody early in his career and and the
inventor of The Strokes gain algorithm
that said if you can pick up two a day
you’ll win golf TS you’ll be number one
in the world and he’s at 2.89 just
Strokes gain T the green so if he can
clean up the work on the green like he’s
already making enough uh Strokes on the
field gaining enough Strokes on the
field just what he does off the tea into
the green and around the green because
he’s brilliant around the greens to be
the number one player in the world now
if he could get back because he’s back
into the top 20 in the world if he could
get back to that number one spot what is
interesting about his pursuit of that
and no doubt that’s where he wants to go
he would get in rarified territory
matter of fact only only Tiger Woods
only Greg Norman and only Rory maroy
would have a longer date as we take a
look at this graphic it would have a
longer date between when they first
ascended to number one and the last time
of course Rory still got some work to do
there he may come back and get to number
one again this year but the first and
the last time they got to to number one
this this I think explains uh you know
longevity uh able to maintain such a
razor sharp game over more than a decade
for Tiger decade and change with Greg
Norman decade and change with Roy marroy
that’s just it right there nobody’s done
it that long but so if you start to look
at Justin Thomas if he could get back to
number one in the world he would almost
be at six years which would put him
fourth on that list and I think really
does explain his genius being able to
sustain it over a period of time is
unique in the game and I find it
actually fascinating that it would be
Justin Thomas that was seeking
perfection in a golf swing I just a
little story I remember when he first
made it on the PGA tour he’ come into
the studio in Orlando we were hitting in
the simulator and I was asking him in
the commercial break I said hey you know
I want to ask you how to hit this shot
and and rather than him having a formula
of this is what I do he said ah I mean I
just think about hitting a fade and I do
I just think about hitting a draw and I
do and ultimately what we did in the
segment was just play golf hit shots and
he got to be creative I think back to
the players when he he was hitting those
low draws and those cuts and he he just
has this creativity about he shapes the
ball I find it fascinating a player like
that could fall into the Trap of seeking
a perfect golf swing yeah it is just one
of the obstacles that I think is uh is
is common not just on the PGA tour but
on the LPGA Tour they’re inundated with
not just data but also so much video
it’s you you could hardly go on imagine
being Justin Thomas and going to YouTube
your swing’s going to be all over it
it’s going to be everywhere and you’re
going to be looking at it and there’s
video and the video is great it’s so
easy to just look at it and knit pick it
uh to Oblivion which is I think we bring
this full circle back to Windom Clark
and we start to I I think sort of Peel
away what Windam Clark has been able to
do over the last year and a half which
is own his own golf swing not not look
at it so much on video just rely on the
ball telling you what your golf swing is
doing uh and and I think that’s kind of
what Justin Thomas is getting back to is
oning his own golf swing it’s a lot how
Butch Harman teaches where a lot of its
feel shots versus hey just look at hours
and hours of video yeah the ball is is a
great teacher it’s a great line from
Butch Harman uh but look I mean there
there’s all these diagnostic tools out
there and I’m not saying that they don’t
have their utility uh but they can they
can keep you from from discovering it on
your own they can you know in in the
hopes of being efficient they can rob
you of your own confidence because you
can always look at video and find
something wrong I I promise you Adam
Scott could look at his golf swing and
find something wrong if he really if he
really wanted to we couldn’t but I’ll
bet you he
could yeah it’s that’s a hard one if
you’re talking about chasing Perfect
Adam Scott’s a hard one to nitpick but I
guarantee you any player Tiger Woods
2000 I mean that was perfect and he
changed it so I mean it is no one’s
immune to it is what it’s a blessing and
a
curse