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Justin Thomas reveals melanoma scare with gnarly pic of surgical scar

Justin Thomas grimaces after hitting his tee shot into the rough on the seventh hole as first round play continues during the Genesis Open golf tournament at Riviera Country Club on Friday, Feb. 15, 2019, in the Pacific Palisades area of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Ryan Kang)
It's been a tough year for Justin Thomas. (AP Photo/Ryan Kang)

A small mole found by a dermatologist could have been a whole lot worse for Justin Thomas, as the golfer revealed on Thursday.

Thomas, currently ranked fifth in the world, posted a graphic picture of a surgical star through Instagram on Thursday. He said the scar was the result of a recent procedure to remove a small mole in his leg that was in the early stages of melanoma.

Thomas used the post as a reminder that for everyone to get suspicious moles checked.

WARNING: the following photo isn’t for the squeamish.

Thomas’ full comment:

I recently had a scare at the dermatologist where a very small mole on my left leg was caught in the early stages of melanoma. Luckily, we found it at a time where there should be no problems going forward. That being said, EVERYBODY GO GET CHECKED!! No harm can come from it and it’s the best way to catch anything before it becomes a serious issue. Especially for all the junior golfers (and other athletes) spending so much time in the sun. It is so important to make sure you’re monitoring your body - no matter how old you are or how much sunscreen you use. It really got my attention, and hoping it does the same to y’all!

It’s been a tough year for Thomas, even outside of the skin cancer scare. The former world No. 1 didn’t finish inside the top 10 of a single major, captured just one win on the PGA Tour with the BMW Championship and struggled with a wrist injury.

However, it could have been a whole lot worse without that trip to the doctor.

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