No. 2-ranked player in the world is expected to play Colonial. Plus a ticket update.

The Charles Schwab Challenge has landed the No. 2-ranked player in the world.

Tournament officials are expecting Justin Thomas to play at Colonial later this month (May 27-30). Thomas made his Colonial debut in 2020, finishing tied for 10th.

“I anticipate that Justin Thomas will be playing us,” tournament director Michael Tothe told the Star-Telegram on Wednesday.

Thomas is expected to be the highest-ranked player in the field. Top-ranked Dustin Johnson has informed officials that he does not intend to play the event, and neither does No. 3-ranked Jon Rahm, whose wife gave birth to the couple’s first child in early April.

Collin Morikawa, the No. 6-ranked player in the world who lost in a playoff to Daniel Berger at the 2020 Colonial, is the other top-10 player in the field for now.

The field is expected to add more star power in the coming week. But this year’s field will not compare to what the tournament saw in 2020 when it was the first event played after the PGA Tour shutdown amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year a number of the top players, ranging from Johnson to Thomas to Rory McIlroy, competed in what had the feel of a major championship event.

“What happened for us last year was incredible and amazing,” Tothe said. “Our field this year is going to be good too. I think our field is always good. We know this is a tough part of the schedule [coming the week after the PGA Championship].

“But I say this every year, when we get to Friday of our week, we celebrate who’s on the grounds and who’s up on the leader board. We don’t pontificate on who’s not here. The field will be good as it’s always been.”

Along with Thomas and Morikawa, other top 30 players committed include Berger (16), Sungjae Im (19), Scottie Scheffler (21), Lee Westwood (22), Cameron Smith (24), Abraham Ancer (26) and Colleyville resident Ryan Palmer (29).

North Texas native and three-time major champion Jordan Spieth, who is ranked No. 31 in the world and the 2016 Colonial champion, is also in the field. So is two-time champion Zach Johnson as well as other past champions including Kevin Na (2019) and Kevin Kisner (2017).

Among the notable exemptions already handed out this year include 2010 U.S. Open champion Graeme McDowell, 2013 PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner and PGA Tour veteran Scott Piercy. The champions’ choices are Will Gordon, who had a standout college career at Vanderbilt, and John Augenstein, who was the runner-up in the 2019 U.S. Amateur.

Other rising players in the field include 2020 Ben Hogan Award winner Sahith Theegala of Pepperdine and 2020 U.S. Amateur champion Tyler Strafaci.

Of course, the tournament made headlines this week when Charles “Chuck” Schwab himself offered a spot in the field to Michael Visacki, who has been trying to work his way up on the mini-tour circuit and finally made his PGA Tour debut at the Valspar Championship via a Monday qualifier. Visacki’s conversation afterward with his dad went viral.

“Chuck said, ‘That’s the kind of guy we want to be in our golf tournament,’” Tothe said. “Challenging the status quo, coming from behind, the little guy wins … he won the heart of Chuck Schwab. We’re excited. There’s been a lot of attention on it and it’s fun. That’s kind of what you use your exemptions for.”

Ticket update

The response on tickets has been good so far, Tothe said. The lowest price point is the premium grounds for $175 a day, which is an all-inclusive ticket including food, beer, wine and soft drinks at concession stands throughout the course.

As far as Saturday is concerned, Tothe said, fans interested in attending that day should purchase tickets as soon as possible. There is only about 100 left at the $175 price in the “first release” before it increases to $250.

“If you’re interested in coming to the golf tournament and want to pay the $175 price, it’s time to act,” Tothe said.

The Colonial is selling approximately 2,000 premium grounds tickets per day. Other higher-end ticket options include the 75th anniversary ticket for $475 a day, which would include spirits along with food, beer and wine, as well as the patio club ticket for $575 a day, which grants access to the patio overlooking No. 16.

“We’re not naive to the fact that this is a different way than we’ve sold Colonial before,” Tothe said. “We know it’s a higher ticket price, but the amenities associated with it are pretty good too.”

More information on how to purchase tickets and what is included is available at charlesschwabchallenge.com/tickets.