Justin Thomas Returns and Chris Gotterup Beats McIlroy Twice as Atlanta Hands Boston Its First Loss, 5-2

Justin Thomas waited three matches to play a shot in Season 2. When the defending champions finally needed him, it came down to a two-putt. With Boston Common Golf throwing the Hammer at the 14th in a last attempt to stay alive, Thomas hit his tee shot at the par-3 "The Last Toll" to 21 feet and calmly two-putted for par to shut the door. Atlanta Drive GC beat Boston Common Golf 5-2 in the opener of a Monday doubleheader at SoFi Center on Feb. 23, 2026, handing Boston its first loss of the season.

"Obviously, I've missed it. It's been a long time but it's good to be back here and playing," Thomas said, per the PGA TOUR recap (opens in a new tab).

The headline was Thomas. The star was Chris Gotterup, who had a hand in three Atlanta points, including both of his Singles matchups with Rory McIlroy.

Thomas returns, Gotterup rolls on

Atlanta came in off its first loss of the season, an 8-6 defeat to Jupiter Links that snapped a seven-match winning streak. Thomas, sidelined since November back surgery, made his season debut alongside Patrick Cantlay and Gotterup. Boston, unbeaten at 2-0, went with McIlroy, Keegan Bradley and Michael Thorbjornsen, and a win would have clinched a playoff spot.

Gotterup arrived as the hottest player in the building. Two weeks earlier he had won the WM Phoenix Open, his second PGA TOUR title of the season, and he had been Atlanta's most reliable fill-in all winter.

The first hole was halved when Thorbjornsen's birdie try from inside five feet lipped out, a rare miss for the putter who had carried Boston through its first two wins.

At the par-5 second, "Sterling," Atlanta reached the green in two and threw the Hammer. Facing a long birdie putt, Boston declined and conceded the point. Atlanta then won the third as well to go up 2-0.

Triples: Atlanta in front, Boston hanging around

Bradley had a six-footer at the fourth that would have gotten Boston on the board and missed it. He made up for it two holes later with a 10-foot birdie at "Lavender Lane," one of the new holes in this year's rotation, to cut the lead to 2-1.

Atlanta answered at the eighth, "Stinger." Thomas striped his drive, and Gotterup made it count, rolling in a 14-foot birdie putt for a 3-1 lead.

The ninth got away from the Drive. Atlanta hit into the penalty area twice and conceded the hole, sending the match to Singles at 3-2. Atlanta never trailed in Triples, but the momentum had swung.

What Boston did not do in Triples turned out to be costly. It passed on several early chances to throw the Hammer when it had the edge on a hole, opportunities that could have produced an easy point or a two-point swing. On a night when it held its Hammers too long, the caution cost it.

Gotterup against McIlroy

The Singles rotation paired Gotterup with McIlroy, and Gotterup took over. At the par-5 10th, "Bonnie Link," McIlroy three-putted from 24 feet while Gotterup made birdie, and Atlanta led 4-2 with five holes to play.

The 11th and 12th were halved. At the 13th, the par-4 "Alpine," McIlroy's approach found the penalty area. He did pour in a 30-foot bogey putt, the longest made putt of his TGL career, but Gotterup tapped in for par to win the hole and push the lead to 5-2.

That left Boston needing everything over the last two holes. It threw the Hammer at the 14th, "The Last Toll," and put the pressure squarely on Thomas in his first match back. Thomas hit to 21 feet and two-putted for par to halve the hole, which ended the comeback. Boston threw its last Hammer at the 15th, after the outcome was settled, and the final stayed 5-2.

McIlroy took the loss with perspective. "I think compared to last year this has already been a success, getting our first couple of wins," he said. He also joked that Boston's veterans told Thorbjornsen, walking off the green, that this was how they felt all last year, "so welcome to your first defeat."

A full roster, finally

It is easy to forget how patched together Atlanta's season had been. The Drive opened in December with Billy Horschel and two alternates, Gotterup and Corey Conners, and still beat New York on Horschel's 37-foot eagle at the last. Cantlay returned for the win over The Bay in January. Lucas Glover made his first appearance in the loss to Jupiter. Monday was the first time Atlanta had Thomas, Cantlay and Gotterup together, and the group looked like it had been playing together all winter.

Thomas did not need to carry the night, and that was the point. He drove it well in Triples, set up Gotterup's birdie at the eighth and handled the one pressure moment that came his way at the 14th. For a player coming off back surgery, a quiet, solid return was exactly what Atlanta needed with the playoffs a few weeks away.

Boston, meanwhile, has been remarkably consistent with its lineup. McIlroy, Bradley and Thorbjornsen have now played all three of the club's matches together, and the rookie had been the story of the season until Monday. A lipped-out short putt on the first hole was not the reason Boston lost, but it set the tone for a night when the putts that had been dropping for the Ballfrogs did not.

What it means

The numbers are simple. Atlanta's only Hammer, at the second, got a point. Boston threw two Hammers, both late, and got nothing from either. Gotterup was in the middle of three of Atlanta's five points: the eighth with his birdie putt, then the 10th and 13th against McIlroy. In a match decided by three points, that is the difference.

For Atlanta, this was a statement after the Jupiter loss. The Drive moved to 3-1 and leads the league with 20 holes won, the first tiebreaker if teams finish level. Thomas is back, Cantlay is in the lineup, and Gotterup looks like he belongs in the regular rotation rather than as a fill-in.

For Boston, it is the first loss of a season that has already been a success by any measure. Bradley acknowledged the night was not their best and said the club would come back on Tuesday and try to clinch the playoff spot it missed out on here. Boston is 2-1 and still controls its own destiny, as McIlroy put it.

Heading into the nightcap, the table looked like this: Atlanta 3-1, Boston Common 2-1, New York 1-1, and Jupiter Links, Los Angeles and The Bay all at 1-2. With four of six clubs making the playoffs and most clubs down to their last match or two, every point on the board this week carries real weight.

The doubleheader continues

The night was not over for Atlanta. The Drive still had its regular season finale to play in the 9 p.m. ET nightcap against Los Angeles Golf Club. Boston returns Tuesday, Feb. 24, in the second game of another doubleheader, against New York Golf Club at 9 p.m. ET, after New York faces The Bay at 5 p.m. ET.

Earlier Undrafted recaps: Atlanta's 8-6 loss to Jupiter Links and Boston's 9-1 win over The Bay. Last season's meeting between these clubs, a 6-3 Atlanta win, is recapped here. The official match page is on tglgolf.com (opens in a new tab).

Sources: TGL, PGA TOUR, Irish Golfer. More TGL coverage on Undrafted.

Boston has learned how to win in this building. On Monday, Atlanta reminded it what the champions look like when they are whole again.

Photo: TGL.