Justin Thomas returns to faithful Scotty Cameron mallet putter at ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP

Editor's note: This was published before the start of the 2024 ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP. Justin Thomas shot an opening 66 and is T7, three shots behind leader Taylor Moore, after the first round.

Justin Thomas is making another putter switch this week at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP.

Although Thomas has racked up five top-10 finishes in just 19 starts this year on the PGA TOUR – and he’s ranked 11th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green – he has struggled on the greens, ranking a distant 167th in Strokes Gained: Putting.

To try and right the ship, Thomas has experimented with several different putters throughout the year.

Thomas started the year off using his familiar Scotty Cameron X5 Tour dual-winged mallet putter with a flow neck. It’s a putter he’s used off and on throughout his career, and it was in his bag for notable wins at the PGA Championship in 2017 and THE PLAYERS Championship in 2021.

By the time he came to this year’s Masters, however, Thomas had switched into a newer Scotty Cameron T5 prototype mallet.

Then, at the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, Thomas switched into a Scotty Cameron G.S.S. blade putter that was inspired by a putter he picked up from Gordon Sargent at a local gas station. That putter didn’t last long either, however, as he switched into a Scotty Cameron Phantom 9.2 Tour prototype mallet putter at The Open Championship.

The 9.2 mallet head stayed in Thomas’ bag through the FedExCup Playoffs – where he ultimately finished T14 at the TOUR Championship – and even inspired Tom Kim to switch into a similar version of the prototype head.

This week at the ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP in Japan, however, Thomas is stoking an old flame. On Wednesday, Thomas was spotted reuniting with his old Scotty Cameron X5 Tour mallet putter – the same one he started off using in 2024, and the same one he’s used to win multiple TOUR titles.

Sometimes in golf, when you’re struggling on the greens, it’s best to go back to what you know and what you’re comfortable using. Having past success and good memories to fall back on can help provide confidence in familiarity.

Thomas will tee it up in PGA TOUR competition this week for the first time since the TOUR Championship, as he searches for his first victory since the 2022 PGA Championship. He’ll likely do so with good vibes on the greens.