Justin Thomas: Third-Generation Golf, Two Majors, and a Three-Year Wait
Golf runs deep enough in Justin Thomas’s family that his path into the sport barely counted as a choice. His grandfather Paul was a PGA professional for 60 years. His father Mike is a retired PGA professional too. When Thomas won the 2017 PGA Championship, he became the eighth son of a PGA professional to win that specific title β a small, specific piece of golf trivia that says a great deal about the family tradition he was born into.
A prodigy at 16
Thomas was born on 29 April 1993 in Louisville, Kentucky, and made a name for himself before he’d even finished high school. In August 2009, still four years from turning professional, he made the cut at the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship at just 16 years, 3 months old, becoming the third-youngest player ever to do so. He went on to the University of Alabama, where he won the 2012 Haskins Award as the country’s top college golfer and helped lead the Crimson Tide to the 2013 NCAA championship, alongside spots on the victorious US Walker Cup and World Amateur teams that same year.
An immediate PGA Tour breakthrough
Thomas turned professional in 2013 and quickly established himself on tour, but his breakout campaign came in the 2016-17 wraparound season: five victories, including back-to-back wins at The Sentry and the Sony Open of Hawaii, where he shot a 59 in the first round β one of the lowest single rounds in PGA Tour history. That season earned him PGA Tour Player of the Year honours and his first FedEx Cup title.
Two PGA Championships
Thomas won his first major at the 2017 PGA Championship, and added a second at Southern Hills in 2022, coming from seven strokes back entering the final round before beating Will Zalatoris in a three-hole playoff β one of the more dramatic final-round comebacks in recent major championship history. He also won The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in 2021, pushing his PGA Tour win total past double digits, and briefly held the world number one ranking for five weeks in May 2018.
A difficult stretch, then a comeback
After his second major win, Thomas went through a genuinely difficult run β falling outside the world’s top 30 for the first time in over seven years across 2023 and 2024, a rare extended slump for a player of his calibre. He ended a three-year victory drought in dramatic fashion at the 2025 RBC Heritage, beating Andrew Novak in a playoff and climbing back inside the world’s top 10, a return to form that’s continued into the 2026 season, where he sits around 21st in the Official World Golf Ranking with 16 career PGA Tour wins.
The Masters: still unfinished business
Thomas’s best finish at Augusta National remains a tie for fourth in 2020, and the career Grand Slam β completed by adding a Masters green jacket to his two PGA Championships β remains an active, openly stated goal each spring. He’s a two-time major champion with genuine credentials at every other major too, including a tie for 8th at the 2020 US Open and a tie for 11th at the 2019 Open Championship.
Ryder Cup and team golf
Thomas has been a consistent presence for the US Ryder Cup team, including the victorious 2023 team at Marco Simone in Rome, where he went 1-2-1 in his matches and won his Sunday singles clash against Sepp Straka. He’s also known for a close friendship with Tiger Woods, who’s spoken about Thomas’s work ethic and course knowledge, and the two have been paired together in various team and exhibition events over the years, including the first-ever Netflix Cup in 2023.
Family life
Thomas married Jillian Wisniewski in 2022, and the couple have one child together. He lives in Jupiter, Florida β a common base for PGA Tour professionals given the climate and course access β and in 2024, ahead of the PGA Championship being played in his hometown of Louisville, he was named a Kentucky Colonel, the state’s highest civilian honour, by Governor Andy Beshear.
Where his career stands
Justin Thomas’s career has followed a genuinely compelling arc: teenage prodigy, rapid rise to world number one and multiple majors, a multi-year slump that tested his standing among the sport’s elite, and a fightback that’s put him back in major championship contention. With two PGA Championships already secured and a career built on a three-generation family foundation in the game, the Masters remains the one gap left to close.
Quick facts
Full name: Justin Louis Thomas | Born: 29 April 1993, Louisville, Kentucky | Notable: Two-time PGA Championship winner (2017, 2022), former world No. 1, 2017 FedEx Cup champion, 2021 Players Championship winner, 16 PGA Tour wins.
Frequently asked questions
How many majors has Justin Thomas won?
Two β the PGA Championship in 2017 and again in 2022.
Has Justin Thomas won the Masters?
No β his best finish is a tie for fourth in 2020, and completing the career Grand Slam at Augusta remains an ongoing goal.
Who is Justin Thomas married to?
Jillian Wisniewski, whom he married in 2022; the couple have one child together.
Was Justin Thomas ever world number one?
Yes, for five weeks in May 2018.
Is golf a family tradition for Justin Thomas?
Yes β both his father, Mike, and his late grandfather, Paul, were PGA professionals, and he was raised around the game from birth.