By adding PGA Tour’s finale and FedEx Cup to his victories, he threw himself into competition with Brooks Koepka for Player of the Year.
A half-dozen people were injured, including one of the tournament’s vendors, after lightning struck a tree near the 16th tee during a weather delay. “It was like a sonic boom,” the vendor said.
Sungjae Im of South Korea, the only rookie to advance to the Tour Championship and its youngest competitor, kept playing and playing this season to reach an unlikely goal.
Under the new scoring format in the FedEx Cup playoffs, Thomas needed to shoot only par in the first round to stay on top.
Neither Tiger Woods, the Masters winner, nor Shane Lowry, the British Open champ, made the 30-man field of the playoff finale, the Tour Championship. Some players in the field are questioning the rules.
The basketball star will donate a seven-figure sum to fund men’s and women’s Division I golf at the university for at least six years.
Justin Thomas got his first PGA Tour win of the season and Woods, who finished tied for 37th, began his transition to Presidents Cup captain.
Tiger Woods is tied for 31st but far off the lead, where Justin Thomas sits on a six-shot edge heading into Sunday’s final round.
Joe LaCava, Woods’s caddie since 2011, was inducted into the Caddie Hall of Fame this week, and golf fans have been acknowledging his milestone.
A hard time on the range and a shot off a tree early on couldn’t stop Thomas from matching a course record.
PGA Tour executives have long resisted singling out anyone for taking a long time to hit a shot. So some of the top young players are applying peer pressure.
They were the greatest players of their generation, perhaps any generation. But time eventually catches up with everyone.
Reed ended a 16-month title drought by holding off Abraham Ancer for a one-stroke lead at Liberty National Golf Club.
Other golfers had complained about his pace during Friday’s round.
Spieth, 26, played the first two rounds with Matthew Wolff, 20, and absorbed some of his aggressive style. Seeking his first win in two years, Spieth headed into the weekend in second place.
Woods, who finished the first round 13 strokes behind the tournament’s leader, cited an abdominal injury.
Since his dramatic Masters victory in April, Woods has struggled to compete, adjusting his workload according to his back pain.
New format shortens playoff to three weeks and gives players more opportunity to contend.
The 20-year-old Shibuno, who was making her debut in a major championship, birdied five of the final nine holes to close out a four-under-par 68.
In her major championship debut, the 20-year-old shot a 67 to seize a two-shot lead going into Sunday’s final round.
The 30-year-old Buhai, who has never won on the L.P.G.A. tour, shot 67 on Friday to take a three-shot lead into the weekend.
The South African shot a seven-under 65 and took a one-stroke lead over Hinako Shibuno of Japan and Danielle Kang of the United States.
A master teacher, he was content to stay in Brazil. “If he had played more on the PGA Tour,” one golfer said, “I am sure he would be in the Hall of Fame.”
The two-shot victory put Ko back in the No. 1 spot in the women’s world golf rankings.
Hyo Joo Kim leads the major by one stroke, followed by Sung Hyun Park. Jin Young Ko and Inbee Park are four strokes off the lead.