Justin Thomas rallies to win the PGA Championship

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Justin Thomas emerged from the shadow of a longtime friend and won the PGA Championship to take his place among the young elite in golf.

With two big breaks to start the back nine, a chip-in for birdie to seize control and a timely 7-iron that soared over the water to a peninsula green, Thomas closed with a 3-under 68 for a two-shot victory.

Mike Thomas, a former PGA board member and longtime pro at Harmony Landing outside Louisville, Kentucky, walked along the edge of the 18th green and into the arms of his son, a major champion.

With five players still in the mix on the back nine, Thomas surged ahead by chipping in from 40 feet on the par-3 13th hole, and holding his nerve down the stretch as his challengers eventually faded, one after another.

Hideki Matsuyama, bidding to become the first player from Japan to win a major, recovered from back-to-back bogeys with birdies on the 14th and 15th holes to get within one shot.

Thomas sealed it with a 7-iron from 221 yards, so pure that he let the club twirl through his hands as he watched it clear the water and roll out to 15 feet.

Oosthuizen holed a 50-foot birdie putt on the 18th to get a runner-up finish in the majors for the fourth time.

Just two months ago, fresh off a record-tying 63 in the U.S. Open to get in the final group at Erin Hills, Thomas struggled from the start and shot 75.

Ten years later, they have won consecutive majors and head into the FedEx Cup playoffs battling for PGA Tour player of the year.