‘Whatever’: Justin Thomas Grows Sick of Tiger Woods Comparison as 5 Years Old Incident Returns to the Spotlight

Justin Thomas will have none of it. His big brother on tour, Tiger Woods, might outdrive him, but JT would rather not have the world watch it on loop. So, here is what happened. The two-time major champion is in the Hero World Challenge field, an event hosted by Tiger Woods. 

The host has given the limited field a miss, but the PGA Tour thought it a good opportunity to share a throwback from five years ago. The 15-time major champion outdrove his playing mate, Thomas, in the Bahamas. But you know Woods. He never really leaves an opportunity to trash talk. And with Thomas, it goes a notch higher. 

So, while walking up to his ball, Tiger Woods stopped ahead of where JT‘s ball was lying. He bent down as if to confirm it was indeed how ‘far’ Thomas drove his ball. The 31-year-old could only give a sheepish smile. While this was a rather modest banter than the other time Woods outdrove him, it’s worth a relook (even though Thomas might not approve).

Thomas was in no mood to accept ‘defeat,’ however. “@tigerwoods [Tiger Woods] got a big bounce. Mine spun back. Whatever,” wrote the 15-time PGA Tour winner, sarcastically sharing the clip on his Instagram story. It might very well be the case that Woods did nettle him for that for the rest of the round. 

PGA Tour might just have sparked some old memories of banter in Thomas’s head. Memories he would rather not revisit. It was all in good humor, though. Woods and JT are close friends, and even Charlie, the teenage son of the 15-time major champion, loves to take a quip or two at his father’s ‘younger brother.’

Tiger Woods calls Justin Thomas his younger brother

For the record, Woods has two ‘family members’ inside the ropes. One is Fred Couples, who he calls his ‘Dad on Tour.’ And then there is Thomas. The two have formed an unlikely bond despite their age difference. It seemed to have started with their galvanizing performance and rip-roaring celebrations at the 2019 Presidents Cup. Soon, that turned into a family affair. Thanksgiving, and Christmas, Thomas, and Woods shared the bread.

Justin Thomas was also the first person to be interviewed after Woods’s near-fatal car crash. That only strengthened the bond and perhaps gave the 2022 PGA Championship winner the liberty to take a jab or two at Tiger Woods publicly. “He’s still his sarcastic a-hole self,” said Thomas in 2021, when Woods was still recovering. 

In fact, Charlie Woods is not afraid of needling Justin Thomas. “We have become so close that I think Charlie’s like Justin’s little brother he never had, and Justin has become the little brother I never had,” said Woods a few years ago. The ‘little punk kid,’ as JT dubbed the teenager last year, left a note for him in the 2020 PNC Championship. After Thomas got stuck in a bunker, he found a handwritten note from then-11-year-old Charlie Woods. “Draw Hole,” it read. The Thomas-Woods friendship thrives on smack talk. And it seems Justin Thomas has started it again. The ball is in Woods’s court.