BLAINE, Minn. – Michael Thompson hasn’t experienced the anxiety and thrill of playing the last round of a golf tournament in the final group for several years.
This time, pitted against Richy Werenski in the PGA Tour’s 3M Open, he’ll do so without the murmuring, clapping and roaring sounds of spectators. For Thompson, that’ll do just fine.
“It kind of allows me to keep my emotions even keel. That’s kind of the way I play golf. That’s what I like to do on the golf course,” Thompson said. “I don’t talk very much, and sometimes if I get too riled up or faced with a hard shot in front of a lot of people, I get a little nervous.
“I’m not going to lie about that. It’s just who I am. I think no fans, it’s going to allow me to be more composed,” said the 35-year-old former University of Alabama player whose lone PGA Tour win came at the 2013 Honda Classic.
Werenski, a 28-year-old Georgia Tech graduate in search of his breakthrough on golf’s top circuit, birdied three of the last four holes Saturday to erase a four-stroke deficit and catch Thompson. After sharing the 36-hole lead, Thompson and Werenski traveled vastly different paths to each shoot a 3-under 68.