Justin Thomas remembers playing golf as far back as his memory goes. Perhaps even farther. The two-time Major champion was the third-generation golfer in his family. While his father, Mike Thomas, carried the lineage, his mother, Jani Thomas, was instrumental in paving the path for her son. 

Both Jani and Mike have been spotted outside the ropes a couple of times, cheering for their son. Most recently, at the 2023 PNC Championship, Jani Thomas was on the bag for his husband. But the Thomas family’s golfing lineage dates back to the 1960s.

Golf runs in the Thomas family’s blood

Justin Thomas’s father, Mike Thomas has been a PGA professional for three decades. Like Tiger Woods’s father, Earl Woods, Mike has also ‘served’ as the PGA Tour Pro’s early instructor. Mike was the Head Golf Professional at the Harmony Landing Country Club. Before that, he served at Cherrington CC in Pittsburg in the same role.

Mike introduced his son to golf after young Justin Thomas showed interest in the game. In fact, Thomas had a club of his own even before turning two years old. Perhaps it is not so surprising if you consider that his grandfather was a professional golfer as well.

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Paul Thomas was a member of the Zanesville Country Club in Ohio. Paul even teed off in the historic 1962 U.S. Open, where Jack Nicklaus kicked off his legendary career by beating Arnold Palmer in a playoff. However, he switched his professional dream for a modest PGA job, first in Ohio, then in Pittsburg, and finally settling in Kentucky. 52 years later, Justin Thomas teed up at his first U.S. Open.

Jani, on the other hand, has always maintained a low-key presence. In 2014, Thomas earned a chance to play at the Memorial. He was still Korn Ferry Tour Pro (Web.com Tour at that time) at that time. Nevertheless, Thomas had a decent day on the course, with the only glitch being a double bogey on the 18th. He knew it had cost him a lot, but he avoided wallowing in it. The next day, he receives a text from his mom. “That double bogey on 18 yesterday cost you $42,000.” Thomas later joked that he felt like deleting his mother’s number.

Mike and Jani introduced JT to golf

Jani, Thomas’s mother, used to take him to the clubs when his father played with friends. Thomas tried to imitate his father’s swings. Noticing that Mike bought a club for his kid. “From the time he was two, he would come out and hit balls every day, spending longer amounts of time at the club as time went by. I would be busy with work but would see him and my wife out there hitting balls and going out to play a few holes.”

That was the start of Justin Thomas’s golf journey. Mike made no mistake in identifying his son’s talents and nurturing his passion for the game. Taking matters into their own hands, Mike, who has played competitive golf for quite some time, passed on the knowledge to his son. Two things were most important. Patience and the short game.

Patience was more than just staying focused even after making a three-putt. It was more about keeping your head when nothing goes right. It’s about maintaining composure even after losing a close fight.  “There were a lot more little lessons than big lessons,” Mike Thomas recounted later to PGA.com after his son swept the Aloha swing seven years back. Both Jani and Mike were present in Hawaii at that time.

How did Mike Thomas instill competitiveness in Justin Thomas?

Mike devised a fun strategy for his son. At the end of that day, Golf should be more than just work, Mike firmly believed. The ‘fun’ part shouldn’t get lost in the grind. That’s what Mike Thomas learned as part of being in the golf business. 

There were times when kids pushed too hard and ultimately failed. Mike decided being a “best friend more than his father” was a far better way to keep his son happy and also make him enjoy the process. So they used to play ‘money’ matches. “When Justin was young, we would always have chipping and putting contests, and they usually involved cash on the line!” Banters, teasing, and a little bit of benign trash-talking were also thrown into the mix. 

As he grew older, Mike focused on core areas. During junior tournaments, that was the first question Thomas had to answer his dad. How many greens he would be able to reach? Mike Thomas still works on the greens with his two-time Major champion son. Mike laughed off the suggestion that his job might be over. Yes, with a professional swing instructor working with Justin Thomas has reduced his job. But, it hasn’t made it obsolete.

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