Justin Thomas Reveals Jordan Spieth Was Grilled for a Year After He Allegedly Ruined PGA Tour Pro’s Career

With the last tour win in 2022 and a major win way back in 2017, some would have you believe that Jordan Spieth can no longer strike as intimidating a figure on the course today. But back in 2015, fresh off the Masters win, Spieth had many believe that he may be treating the Open lightly. The contention was, unlike what the last five Open champions preferred to get some links practice by playing the Scottish Open before the British Open, Spieth chose to tee off closer to home. Whether Spieth made the right call or not can always be debated, but Spieth competing at the John Deere Classic did more than just destroy the career of a fellow golfer; he denied him his shot at a historic record!

When little-known Tom Gillis entered the John Deere Classic, he may not have been the favorite to win the tour. But that one week in Illinois was the biggest highlight of his pro career, well on his way to becoming the oldest first-time winner on Tour in 20 years. Even Gillis knew that what he was up against: “Being in a playoff with Jordan Spieth, who is probably playing better than anybody in the world right now. I think that was really exciting. I take the confidence away from the tournament itself, how well I played for the four days there.”

For Spieth, despite making it a lot tougher on himself than it needed to be, and still managed to be Gillis’s biggest nightmare! It was a slow start for the Masters winner, but birdies on four of the TPC Deere Run’s closing five holes drew level with Gillis. But Spieth fourth season win was assured when Gillis, who was searching for his Tour title, found trees and subsequently water on the second play-off hole. Although there is no documented record of the story, a decade later, Justin Thomas let us in on what that 2015 loss for Gillis meant. It was a Pardon My Take interview after Thomas’s win at the 2025 RBC Heritage.

“There’s a funny story a handful of years ago. Jordan Spieth was in a playoff with Tom Gillis, who doesn’t play professionally anymore. And Jordan beat Tom in a playoff, and for the whole year, Jason Duffner was grilling Jordan. He’s, like, ‘Man, you just ruined Tom Gillis’s career. He would have had a two-year exemption. He would have been Mali Kapulua. He would have taken his family there. They would have been swimming with the Dolphins at the Tournament Champions, but you had to beat him in a playoff and ruin his life.’”

Top Comment by Joyce

Joyce McClay, I love Jordan and am angry at he is victim to unfair comments. 89 old fan ????

Share your take

Debate

So, did Spieth really “ruin” Gillis’s career? Well, the answer is subjective! While Thomas may not have faced any awkwardness during his win, the golf world recently witnessed something similar during the Masters.

Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler share an awkward moment at the Masters

For Rory McIlroy, the 2025 season has been remarkable, and he solidified his position this season with his winning putt in the playoff match during the Masters. With that putt, Scottie Scheffler’s hopes of defending his Masters title were dashed. Although Scheffler did not have the opportunity to don the green jacket for a third time, he still had the responsibility of placing it on McIlroy. However, the moment turned out to be a bit awkward, according to the fans.

After celebrating his Grand Slam win with friends and family, McIlroy went to Butler Cabin for the televised Green Jacket Ceremony, where he became emotional during his interview with CBS’s Jim Nantz. On the other hand, Scheffler sat quietly next to him, holding McIlroy’s green jacket over his arm. Once the interview concluded, Masters chairman Fred Ridley called on Scheffler to put the green jacket on McIlroy. As the two golfers stood up, they struggled to put McIlroy’s right arm into the jacket. Once the jacket was finally on, Scheffler stepped back and quickly exited the stage without even shaking McIlroy’s hand. A similar incident happened between Tiger Woods and Mark O’Meara during the 1998 Masters.

Would Justin Thomas have felt similarly if there had been a similar ceremony during the RBC Heritage? We say unlikely, but let us know in the comments below!