Justin Thomas being called out by the USGA was out of line

Justin Thomas hasn’t kept quiet with his opinions on some of the questionable rulings we’ve seen on the PGA TOUR this year. But when the USGA called him out publicly, the situation got more than a little uncomfortable, and it left the governing body looking worse for it.

Justin Thomas has taken his role as one of the leading members of the “new generation” of players on the PGA TOUR very seriously. He’s mostly let his play on the course do the talking for him, but he’s also clearly not afraid of speaking his mind when he feels it will benefit the game, particularly for himself and his colleagues on Tour.

I like to think I’ve got a pretty clear view on the somewhat new (or perhaps just newly recognized) trend of players on the PGA TOUR being a bit more vocal in their feelings on different issues in the game today. Overall, I think it’s a great thing, but all parties – players and ruling bodies – are still trying to find their balance. Keep that in mind when we get into this one.

Justin Thomas had an unspectacular week at the Honda Classic, finishing in a tie for 30th place at even-par 280. But while he wasn’t making headlines with his play, he did find himself embroiled in the center of a rules controversy that didn’t even involve him directly.

On Saturday, prior to the start of his third round, Adam Schenk was informed that he had been given a two-stroke penalty for an infraction that had occurred on the 17th hole the day before. Schenk’s caddie, the Tour stated, was in violation for standing “in a location on or close to the player’s line of play behind the ball” once Schenk had taken his stance. Of course, the stance in question was in a greenside bunker, certainly with little to no advantage given.

This situation irked Thomas, who retweeted the PGA TOUR Communications announcement of the penalty with the hashtag “#growthegame”. After some back and forth conversation, Thomas said that he was simply looking for communication to improve to benefit all golfers, but there was one account that didn’t see things his way.

That would be the USGA’s PR team.

It’s true – when a conversation starts with “we need to talk”, nothing good ever comes after it. While many disagree with players being vocal in their frustrations, nearly every one of them has been polite, almost to a fault. This reply from the USGA seemed to be petty, aggressive and almost spiteful. “You’ve cancelled every meeting,” they said, “but we’re reaching out again.”

Thomas called that statement many things – “shocking”, “upsetting”, and “unfortunate”. But most of all, he called it “inaccurate”.

"“I haven’t cancelled anything, especially any meetings,” Thomas said. “But it is what it is, and all I want is the best for the game of golf and the best for the sport, and that’s what we’re going to continue to try to communicate with each other to get that. It is unfortunate. It just was — it really hurt me.”"

The USGA hasn’t made any more public statements regarding Thomas in the few days that have passed, but perhaps that’s for the best. Where some may draw comparisons between these “callouts”, there’s a line. Players are addressing an organization’s rules. In this case, whoever was running the USGA’s PR handle called out Thomas specifically. Individual actions like that are best kept behind closed doors.

Nobody comes out of this one smelling like roses, but in this case, the governing body made things worse. Which, ironically, is exactly what players like Thomas are rallying against. Just not in the same way.