Justin Thomas lauded Adam Schenk and Eric Cole as inspirations. Both were outside 150 in the FedEx Cup points list but made it to the top 50 this year. The massive leap has sealed their spots in the Majors and all the $20 million purse-signature events next year. Thomas, meanwhile, has crashed out of the top fifty and tied his fate to a rather thin thread of sponsor exemption.

For the first time in nine years, the Jupiter native failed to reach the FedEx Cup cutoff. While that alone sums up the drastic fall in form the 15-time PGA Tour winner has gone through this season, his lofty goals also show the stark contrast between his massive 2023 ambition and meager achievement.

Can Justin Thomas take part in signature events?

Starting next season, only the top 50 players from the previous year’s FedEx Cup points list get the chance to tee off at the Signature events. Additionally, the top 30 players in the OWGR leading up to the signature events qualify for the tournaments. But both options look unfavorable to Justin Thomas.

The 2022 PGA Championship winner ended up in the 71st position on the FedEx Cup final points list. So, Justin Thomas has two ways for the current world no. 26 to qualify. Firstly, Thomas has to maintain his rank within the top thirty. But it won’t be a cakewalk as rising stars Ludvig Aberg (30), Sahith Theegala (32), and Min Woo Lee (33) are breathing down on his neck.

Moreover, the OWGR point eligibility is not applicable at the Sentry, the first Signature event. So, the only remaining option for the Jupiter native is to get a sponsor exemption, which he might get considering his stature on the tour. The eight signature events each have four sponsor exemptions.

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Although 2023 was a shock season for the two-time Major winner, his abysmal performances could only have yielded this outcome. In fact, the 15-time PGA Tour winner’s year-ending checklist also evinces that.

Ambition vs. achievements: a shocking contrast for JT

Each year, Justin Thomas posts about his ‘goals’ list to review his season. The checklist that’s generally marked green for the most part had only one green tick this year, out of a possible nine. Thomas wanted to win more than three titles but managed none. In fact, the 33-year-old couldn’t come in the top three in any of the tournaments.

Moreover, Justin Thomas missed cuts in three of the four Majors. Compare that to his hopes of winning more than one Major this season. The only green mark on his list is the Ryder Cup selection. However, that too went in vain as he could rake only 1.5 points from a possible four.

Taking the example of Schenk and Cole, what the 30-year-old wanted to hammer home was that anything is possible on the PGA Tour. Justin Thomas will need plenty of that belief next season.

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