Anti-Gay Slur Puts Justin Thomas In Training

Justin Thomas said something offensive and will try to train himself to say less offensive things.

Thomas, the world's No. 3 ranked golfer, uttered an anti-gay slur under his breath when he missed a putt last month at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii. Video footage captured the incident and Thomas described it as "humiliating" and said "it's not me."

Clothing sponsor Ralph Lauren ended its relationship with Thomas as a result.

"It’s not a word I use," Thomas said Wednesday, "but for some reason it was in there and that’s what I’m trying to figure out — why it was in there.

"And like I said, it’s going to be part of this process and training program, whatever I need to do, not only to prove to myself but to prove to my sponsors and prove to the people who don’t know who I am that that is indeed not the person I am."

Thomas, 27, won the PGA Championship in 2017 and finished fourth in The Masters last year. He is a native of Louisville, Ky., and attended Alabama, where he was a member of the 2013 NCAA championship team.