Justin Thomas, Sam Burns Have the Leaders In Their Sights at Valspar Championship
While Davis Riley and Matthew NeSmith wrestle with each other and with their own emotions as the two players in the lead at the Valspar Championship entering Sunday, they had better not avoid looking in the rear-view mirror. Objects are closer than they appear.
Riley is the 54-hole leader at 18-under par by two shots over NeSmith and both are looking for their first victory on the PGA Tour. But just behind is a formidable pairing – Justin Thomas and Sam Burns, who are tied for third at 15 under, just three back of Riley.
Thomas is a 14-time winner on Tour, including a PGA Championship, while Burns is one of the game’s emerging stars, a 25-year-old with two Tour victories, including last year’s Valspar. Burns had a top-10 at the difficult Arnold Palmer Invitational and was in the mix at the Players Championship before falling away shortly after the beginning of the final round.
“It's nice to see your game stand up in tough conditions like that,” Burns said of the final round at Bay Hill, where his 71 was one of only four under-par rounds that Sunday. “I played a lot of quality golf last week (at the Players), just didn't really get off to a very good start on Sunday or Monday or whatever day the final round was.”
Thomas shot three straight rounds of 5-under 66 at the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook Resort to put him in position to win in only his second start of the Florida Swing.
“I had another good back nine, just need to get off to a little bit better start on the front nine,” said Thomas, who was paired with Riley, a fellow Alabama alum, in the third round. “But didn't feel like (it was) a great round playing with Davis, but it was a solid day and put myself in a good position for tomorrow.”
Thomas will tend to his own business on Sunday and won’t watch leaderboards unless it’s absolutely necessary.
“I'm playing really well,” he said. “I feel good about things. I just need to go out and stay in my own little world and try and go execute. I feel like if I do that there's a good chance that (I’m) going to have a chance come the last couple holes, but I can't control what those other guys do.
“These guys (Riley and NeSmith) are clearly pretty fearless and playing some good golf, so it doesn't necessarily mean they can't get it done. There are first-time winners all the time.”