Thomas eyeing another big opportunity Sunday

Noren, a Swede who graduated from Oklahoma State, will try to prevent an All-American final, while an All-Georgia Bulldog final could develop if Kisner and Watson win. Meanwhile, Alabama’s Justin Thomas, currently No. 1 in the world, could also move to world No. 1 if he beats Watson.

Justin Thomas vs. Bubba Watson

Bubba Watson was supposed to go out of the country on vacation tomorrow. Due to the sheer uncertainty of match play, Watson bought plane tickets, never realizing that he would make it to the semifinals for the second time in eight Match Play appearances.

“I figured I wasn’t going to make it, so I went ahead and scheduled a vacation,” said Watson, seeded 35th this week. “So I’ve got to call my wife now and tell her that I’m going to be a day late.”

Instead of relaxing 40,000 feet up in the air, Watson will go head-to-head with Justin Thomas in a semifinal match that has extra significance for the second-ranked player in the world.

Getting past Watson would guarantee Thomas the No. 1 ranking for the first time in his career. In an interesting twist of fate, Sunday’s match against Thomas will be the second time Watson has gone up against a player who needed a win to secure the No. 1 ranking.

The last time was back in 2011 when Watson lost to Martin Kaymer in the Match Play semifinals. That win secured Kaymer the No. 1 ranking for the first time in his career.

“I guess I’m good at that,” Watson said. “If you want No. 1, just beat me, and you’ll be No. 1.”

Watson appears to be up for the challenge based on the way he’s played this week. After making it through the group stage, Watson held off Brian Harman in the Round of 16 before taking down good friend Kiradech Aphibarnrat in 15 holes. Watson went 1 down early in his match against Harman but never trailed against Aphibarnat.

Thomas has been on a similar run this week. Before he went 1 down on the second hole against Kyle Stanley in the quarterfinals, Thomas had not trailed all week. Playing the role of front-runner has suited the 24-year-old well, who needed just 13 holes to take down Si Woo Kim before ending Kyle Stanley’s week, 2 and 1.

Thomas was on the fence about playing in Austin following the removal of his wisdom teeth, which turned into a sore throat — a doctor told him it was likey strep throat — that saw him lose six pounds.

“I had a pretty serious conversation with my dad on Monday if I was going to play,” Thomas said. “I never want to play in a tournament, first off if it’s going to hurt my health. If I was sick or really sick, me trying to play this week wasn’t going to do me any good. But also if I feel like I don’t have a chance to win, it’s also really — to me, I don’t understand the point of playing if I don’t feel like I can.”

With the help of antibiotics, Thomas has regained his strength and has the look of someone who won the Honda Classic and finished runner-up in Mexico in his last two starts. On the verge of becoming No. 1, Thomas is relishing that possibility that it could happen tomorrow.

“I don’t know what’s going to come with it,” Thomas said of the No. 1 ranking. “But I just hope it happens tomorrow.”

Alex Noren has played with Kevin Kisner only once since the two turned professional, but there’s a history between the players that dates back to their time at the University of Georgia and Oklahoma State University.

Playing at two golf powerhouses around the same time meant Kisner and Noren saw a lot of each other. While Noren couldn’t recall who got the better of those battles on the course, he’ll have the chance to take on Kisner in a match that would move him one step closer to earning his first PGA TOUR victory.

He’s looked the part of a player who’s on the verge of finding the winner’s circle this season, with a runner-up finish at the Farmers Insurance Open and a third-place showing at the Honda Classic. Then there’s the impressive run he’s been on this week that’s seen him go 9-1 in his last 10 matches at the event, dating back to last year.

“I’ve always liked match play because I think it’s very — the outcome is quite direct,” Noren said. “Four days, sometimes it can — you can go through holes that maybe mentally you’re a little bit out of it and then you get into it when it’s 72 holes.

“In match play, you’ve just got to be really focused all the time and anything can happen. And then you have to play good each round. You can’t just give up a round and then think you’ve got three more. Maybe that’s what I need to do in stroke play, as well, not give a round away. I’ve always liked it. You can be a little bit more aggressive.”

Noren will face an in-form Kisner who recently found something with his game. Everything has clicked this week, as Kisner made eight birdies in a win against Matt Kuchar before rolling past Ian Poulter in the quarterfinals, 8 and 6.

“A lot of range balls, a lot of time,” Kisner said. “I haven’t been very confident throughout the bag all year. Sometimes you have to get a little worse before you get better. We’re always trying to improve. And I’m not sure if I needed to.

“It’s starting to click now. I started seeing some stuff on Tuesday. I played nine holes with Daniel Berger and started seeing good stuff that I hadn’t seen in a few weeks. That was starting to build the confidence there. And throughout the week I’ve gained a lot more confidence.”

Confidence could be key in a match between two of the hottest putters in the field. Noren currently leads the field in strokes gained: putting this week while Kisner ranks fourth in the statistical category.