"I’ve worked my butt off" - Justin Thomas almost in tears after first win in over 1000 days

Modified Apr 21, 2025 05:02 GMT

RBC Heritage 2025 - Final Round - Source: Getty — Justin Thomas almost in tears after first win in 1000 days (Photo by Getty Images)

After nearly three years without a win, an emotional Justin Thomas finally clinched victory at the 2025 RBC Heritage on April 20. His win marked the end of a 1000+ day winless drought on the PGA Tour.

Thomas joined the PGA Tour in 2015 and has won one or more times every year from 2015 to 2022. However, he failed to register any victory since his last win at the 2022 PGA Championship.

In the post-tournament interview at Harbour Town Golf Links with CBS reporter Amanda Balionis, Thomas' emotions were evident. He said (via PGA Tour's X handle):

"When it's hard, it's really, really hard, but I've worked my butt off and stayed patient, stayed positive. I've got a great wife, great team, and a great daughter. She's got her eyeballs showing right now, but just take for granted sometimes when you get on those runs, and I just didn't realize how much I missed winning, and that's just battling out there today was so much fun."

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Balionis further asked him how he balanced patience with taking charge this week. The PGA Tour winner said:

"It was a little bit of both. I mean, it's just, it's so hard to force the issue in a course like this. I mean, it's so firm, so fast.It just was so fun to play. I mean, I'm really, really proud of myself today, how patient I was and just plotted my way around."

Thomas also talked about his winning putt, revealing that he told his caddie, Joe Greiner, on the 18th hole that he had never made a lengthy putt to win a tournament and had only made short tap-ins. He made a 21 ft 2 inch birdie putt on the first playoff hole on the par-4 18th to win the tournament. He said making that putt felt 'pretty cool.'

Justin Thomas won a prize money of $3.6 million from a prize purse of $20 million at the 2025 RBC Heritage.

How many wins does Justin Thomas have?

Justin Thomas has 17 wins, 16 of which have come on the PGA Tour. His first win came on the Korn Ferry Tour in 2014 at the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship. After joining the PGA Tour in 2015, his first win came at the 2015 CIMB Classic. He won by one stroke over Adam Scott.

Of the 16 wins, he has two in Major championships at the PGA Championship. He won the 2017 PGA Championship by two strokes over Francesco Molinari, Louis Oosthuizen, and Patrick Reed. His second win at the PGA Championship came in 2022 in the playoffs against Will Zalatoris.

Let's look at Justin Thomas' 16 wins on the PGA Tour:

2015 CIMB Classic
2016 CIMB Classic (2)
2017 SBS Tournament of Champions
2017 Sony Open in Hawaii
2017 PGA Championship
2017 Dell Technologies Championship
2017 CJ Cup
2018 The Honda Classic
2018 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational
2019 BMW Championship
2019 CJ Cup (2)
2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions (2)
2020 WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational (2)
2021 The Players Championship
2022 PGA Championship (2)
2025 RBC Heritage

About the author

Rohit is a Golf writer at Sportskeeda who specializes in PGA Tour coverage. With a Bachelor's degree in Journalism from Delhi University and a Master's degree in Global Studies from Ambedkar University, he has always been passionate about writing on varied topics.

Rohit has over 4 years of prior work experience under his belt. He prioritizes thorough fact-checking of every article he pens with the aim of providing readers with the most accurate and insightful content.

Rohit's favorite celebrity sportsperson is Novak Djokovic; he admires his determination in the face of challenges and fighting spirit. Rohit is an avid reader and when he's not busy reading and writing about the latest developments in the vast world of pop culture and sports, he can be seen absorbed by a book. He also loves playing chess.

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Edited by Parag Jain