Justin Thomas followed his opening 7-over 79 with another 79 in Round 2 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, finishing 14 over par and missing the cut by a wide margin in his comeback from back surgery. Despite the struggles, Thomas reported his body feels strong, while Rory McIlroy offered encouragement for a rebound.
In his second round at Bay Hill Club & Lodge, Justin Thomas posted another 7-over 79 on Friday, matching his Thursday opener and ending at 14-over par, dead last in the 72-player field. This fell well short of the cut line (top 50 and ties or within 10 strokes of the lead). His Round 2 scorecard featured three bogeys, two double bogeys, one triple bogey, and three birdies, with ongoing issues in putting and shots veering left—including one into the water.
Thomas expressed frustration: "Just a pretty miserable couple of days... I expect more of myself. I don't think there's any situation where I feel like I should shoot 14 over par for two days." He described feeling anxious, nervous, and unfocused, building on the mental rust noted after Round 1.
A silver lining emerged: "My body feels great, which is a huge positive." Thomas plans Saturday practice in Orlando before the Players Championship. He downplayed injury advice from Tiger Woods, emphasizing mental preparation as his main hurdle.
Rory McIlroy, after a 68 to climb the leaderboard, supported his peer: "J.T.'s been one of the best players in the world for the last 10 years—he'll be fine. He just needs to get sharp again... As long as he got through these two days without ill effects from the surgery, he's in a good spot."
Daniel Berger led at 13-under after 36 holes, 27 strokes clear of Thomas. Bay Hill's U.S. Open-like conditions challenged the field, with players like Tommy Fleetwood and Jordan Spieth scraping through.
