Writing Illini
Fansided

Illinois Golf: Thomas Pieters continues consistent play on the PGA Tour

ByRees Woodcock|
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FL - FEBRUARY 24: Thomas Pieters of Belgium plays his tee shot on the second hole during the third round of the Honda Classic at PGA National Resort and Spa on February 24, 2018 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
PALM BEACH GARDENS, FL - FEBRUARY 24: Thomas Pieters of Belgium plays his tee shot on the second hole during the third round of the Honda Classic at PGA National Resort and Spa on February 24, 2018 in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

While the Illinois golf team continues to light it up on the course, so does a few of their former greats on the PGA Tour.

The Honda Classic just concluded in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida with Justin Thomas emerging as the winner in a playoff with Luke List. Before Thomas dominated the headlines with his great finish, Tiger Woods was the talk of the course. He finished in 12th place which was his best finish since 2015. There were a lot of storylines during The Honda Classic but one headline Illini fans might like is how well Thomas Pieters is getting acclimated to the PGA Tour.

Pieters finished The Honda Classic in a tie for 13th place at one over par. His consistent play of 69-70-71-71 in the four days of the tournament proved good enough to clinch another top 25 finish on tour. While his results aren’t spectacular this season, Pieters continues to make cuts. He has played in five tournaments since the season started back in October and has made the cut in all of them. Before The Honda Classic finish, Pieters’ best result was a tie for 28th at The CJ Cup.

The play of Pieters has been more consistent this season than in the past. In 2017, he managed to miss five cuts despite having four top 10 and five top 25 finishes. In The Honda Classic last year, Pieters actually missed the cut. In the middle of the PGA Tour events, Pieters continues to be a presence on the European Tour as well.

In the four tournaments Pieters has played on the European Tour, he has two top 15 finishes which include a top 5 as well. He also made the cut in the other two tournaments. His play has been more consistent this season considering he hasn’t missed a cut yet on either tour.

Next: 5 takeaways from the second Illini win over Rutgers

Thanks to the solid finish at The Honda Open, Pieters now moves up to No. 39 in the World Golf Rankings. All of this great play is leading up to The Masters Tournament the first full week of April. This is the granddaddy of them all. If he continues to play the way he is playing right now, who knows, maybe he will improve on the fourth-place finish he had at The Masters in 2017. This could be a title no Illini fan saw coming.

Home/Illinois Fighting Illini