The Jordan Spieth experience with Justin Thomas. That should be the headline for the RBC Heritage Open. Thomas started the signature event with a course record of 61 for 10 under par. The Harbour Town Golf Links bore witness to an amazing sequence of golf from the two-time major winner for two days before it unraveled on day 3.

Justin Thomas’s moving day was highlighted by his escapades on hole 11. The 15-time PGA Tour winner hit a tee shot that went away from the fairway and landed just in the muddy creek. Thomas then made the outrageous decision to take the shot from the creek instead of taking a drop, a decision even the commentators felt was dubious. “This is risky right here. I am not sure I love this idea,” Thomas stated. He had squatted next to the creek and swung his club, and the ball soared up only to land just a few meters away from the creek. In the process, Thomas ended up getting a good chunk of the mud onto himself.

Speaking after a tumultuous day 3 at South Carolina, Thomas recalled the incident at hole 11 that kind of proved to encapsulated the whole day for the American golfer. “It really was, I felt like, my only bad swing of the day. I thought I hit it so badly that it was going to be short of the water, and it just got in there.” Thomas stated. “Usually, when you can see the ball like that, at least from past watching experience, it’s not too difficult to get it out as long as you kind of accelerate through.”

Thomas had initially ruminated on the decision before going for it. His shot required him to remove the sign that was next to where his ball lay. It required help from his temporary caddie, Joe Grenier, to do so. The rest, as they say, is history. “I said to Joe after the fact, ‘I don’t know if I’ve actually ever hit one out of the water. So I definitely wasn’t going to say that beforehand. I think I got a little too deep and went, like, right under it in the water and mud and whatnot. Just kind of pushed it out.” Thomas explained.

Justin Thomas’s standard caddie, Matt Minister, had been away from action due to a back issue. So instead, Thomas teamed up with Max Homa’s former caddie, Joe Grenier. Grenier has been on the bag for the 15-time PGA Tour winner since the Masters. The caddie’s presence has been a rejuvenating one, as the experience provided by Grenier has vaulted him to a strong position at the RBC Heritage Open.

Grenier had some very choice words about the muddy accident Thomas faced. “Joe said I smell like a wet dog after that, so it was very nice of him.” Thomas added with a smirk.

The mud-filled incident was not the only notable incident from Round 3 for the two-time PGA Championship winner.

Justin Thomas’s eventful day 3 at the RBC Heritage

The topsy-turvy RBC Heritage posed a challenge as early as the second hole on Day 3 for Justin Thomas. His tee shot at the second hole fell into the waste area. Thomas started clearing some loose gravel around the ball that was forming an impediment to the ball. That was when the ball moved a fraction. He called the rules official to talk about the incident.

“My ball did move down a fraction because there’s just some stuff around it, and I was moving rocks,” Thomas explained to the rules official. The official asked Thomas, “Do you feel like you caused it to move?” to which Thomas duly responded, “I would think so.”

Thomas was allowed to move the loose gravel because it was in the waste area and not the bunker, but the movement of the ball cost him an unwanted penalty. JT recovered to score a birdie, which got converted to par after his penalty.

Do you think Thomas could regain his advantage and win the RBC Heritage Open and register his first title since 2022?