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Pointing out that several veterans have superb
records at Augusta National, Thomas said on Monday that Woods
could follow the example set by the likes of Bernhard Langer and
Fred Couples.
“If he’s healthy, there’s no reason he wouldn’t (play well),”
Thomas said in a teleconference call.
“There’s a reason Freddie played so well there for so long (and)
Langer... because it’s such an advantage knowing the course and
the more you play, the world of difference it makes.”
Woods, who turns 42 on Dec. 30, has won the Masters four times,
most recently in 2005.
Couples, the 1992 champion, now aged 58, has continued to
perform well at Augusta into his 50s, finishing in the top 20 on
six of his past seven appearances.
Germany's twice Masters champion Langer, meanwhile, was in
contention at the age of 57 going into the final round in 2014,
before finishing equal eighth.
Woods is attempting a comeback after multiple back surgeries. He
has hardly played over the past two years and while few expect
him to recapture his previous greatness, the jury is still out.
“If he plays healthy, I think he’ll have a great year,” said
Thomas, who played with Woods in the final round of the Hero
World Challenge in the Bahamas two weeks ago.
“It’s hard to not hype it up or talk about this or that but in
reality we need to see what happens because no one knows.
“He was just so happy (at the World Challenge), which was cool
to see. I’ve spent some time with him the last couple of years
and I’ve never seen him so happy ... having so much fun and
grinding it out and playing well.”
World number three Thomas is coming off a brilliant year
highlighted by his major breakthrough victory at the PGA
Championship in August.
He won four other events in 2017 and has set new goals for 2018,
though he is not sharing them publicly.
Thomas has enjoyed some time off recently recharging his
batteries for the new season, which he will kick off in two
weeks' time by defending his title at the season opening
Tournament of Champions at Kapalua in Hawaii.
The 24-year-old said he had done little during his break and
outlined a typical day that consists of lounging on the couch at
his south Florida home, punctuated by trips to the gym and a dip
in the swimming pool.
“When you do win, it takes so much out of you,” he said. “It was
such a crazy end of the year. It caught up to me.”
(Reporting by Andrew Both in Cary, North Carolina; Editing by
Ken Ferris)
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