Justin Thomas will make his competitive golf return next week at the TGL league, playing for the Atlanta Drive ahead of his PGA Tour season debut. The 16-time Tour winner has been sidelined since November 2025 due to back surgery. He announced his plans on social media with assistance from country music star Luke Bryan.
Justin Thomas, a 32-year-old with 16 PGA Tour victories, announced on Tuesday via social media that he will compete for the Atlanta Drive in the TGL league on Monday, February 23, 2026. This marks his first competitive action since undergoing microdiscectomy surgery in November 2025 at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York to address a disc issue causing nagging hip pain. Thomas has not played since the Ryder Cup in September 2025 and was cleared for full golf activities last week, as shown in a video of him hitting drives on the range.
The Atlanta Drive faces a doubleheader that day: first against Boston Common Golf at 5 p.m. ET on ESPN, followed by Los Angeles Golf Club at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN2. Thomas previously led the team to the inaugural TGL championship, securing the first SoFi Cup. TGL's simulator format offers a low-impact way for Thomas to test his recovery before resuming outdoor play.
Thomas aims to debut on the PGA Tour during the Florida Swing, which begins next week with the Cognizant Classic, followed by the Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship. In January, he shared an update on his rehabilitation: “Recovery has gone well. I'm slowly building back my strength and conditioning in the gym, and also hitting wedges/short irons. Little victories and patience have been the biggest part of the process. Taking it slow and listening to how I'm feeling each day! I'm looking to come back competitively at some point during the Florida Swing. I know how important it is to get this injury behind me so that I'm only looking forward over the course of the season."
Thomas enters 2026 ranked No. 14 in the world after a strong 2025 season, where he finished seventh in the FedExCup standings and won the RBC Heritage—his first victory since the 2022 PGA Championship.
