The email body was short and to the point: “Hey guys, please take a minute to check out the attached letter I wrote.” The attachment was much more impassioned.
Justin Thomas sent an impromptu letter to his fellow Tour players Tuesday morning calling on them to give more access and insight into their in-tournament pursuits. To JT, that means pre-round interviews, mid-round interviews — they already give post-round interviews regularly — wearing a mic or communicating what they’re working through. In short, give more, and give it on the TV broadcast.
“We’re incredibly lucky to have many passionate people tuning in to watch us every week,” Thomas wrote, ”but let’s be honest—this game can feel a little distant at times.”
Citing the recent Fan Forward survey the Tour conducted, Thomas said “on-course personality” is “the highest ranked driver of interest for young fans (18-34). Getting the younger age group interested and watching our sport could be a huge difference in our popularity.”
Thomas thinks engaging with the broadcast is the quickest way to humanize players to viewers watching at home, bringing them in to Tour-level thought processes and how they are scheming their way throughout a tournament round. Some of that comes during winning moments, others during losing moments, but it’s players working on their craft that Thomas thinks can be missing if players don’t lean in. (You can read the entire letter below, a copy of which was sent to GOLF.com.)
“The more I’ve watched documentaries and specials on streaming services on other sports, the more I’ve come to realize the main reason I love them so much is the access they provide and the insight the players are giving me; a fan of them and their craft,” Thomas wrote. “I had no interest in rooting for certain players, teams, coaches before watching a handful of shows and games. But the way some of them show their cards and how they go about everything makes me an even bigger fan.”
This comes at a time when the PGA Tour promises it is focusing on its fans. The aforementioned survey was answered by more than 50,000 people and will no doubt be a talking point throughout 2025 — especially as any changes or innovations are put on display.
It also comes with some self-awareness from Thomas. The 31-year-old pro wasn’t always this interested in developing viewership for the PGA Tour, and he acknowledged that in his note. Just four years ago Thomas told reporters, “I would not wear a mic, no, that’s not me.” The PGA Tour was just making its triumphant return after a 13-week break during the beginning of the COVID pandemic, and Thomas’ buddy Rickie Fowler wore a mic for a round. Thomas wanted no part of it.
“I mean, as close as those mics are on the tees and the greens and as close as I get to boom mics during competition anyway, I basically feel like I am mic’d up,” Thomas continued. “I can’t say some stuff that I usually say anyway.”
But in the years since, Thomas has clearly softened this stance. He’s gotten more involved with the Player Advisory Council — a collection of Tour members that represent the membership by elevating issues to the Tour’s policy board — which he was elected to for a second straight year. Sure enough, Thomas was one of the first players in the history of the sport to wear an earpiece during the second round of the 2023 Masters tournament. In just the last two months, Thomas has conducted in-round interviews at the Sentry and Hero World Challenge events.
“At the end of the day, we’re all owners in this Tour,” Thomas said to close out the letter. “So, the bigger and better we make it not only benefits us financially, it benefits our fans and creates the ability for us to do bigger things down the road. Anybody who has any ideas or thoughts, please reach out to me or any of the Tour staff to get the ball rolling on ways we can make OUR Tour the best we possibly can.”
Thomas will have an immediate opportunity to make his own impact in this department when he makes his TGL debut Tuesday night. While it isn’t a mid-round interview of a tournament round at Torrey Pines, Thomas will still be asked questions mid-match at the SoFi Center and be encouraged to share what’s going on while playing. His Atlanta Drive team faces off against New York Golf Club at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.
