1 reason why Justin Thomas is fighting in Zozo? His propellant

Justin Thomas is in the running for his first win in nearly two and a half years this week at the Zozo Championship and a big reason why

The two-time major winner’s 2024 was much better than his bitter 2023 campaign where he failed to break into the top 50 of the FedEx Cup.

But it still wasn’t up to the Justin Thomas standard we’ve grown accustomed to as a perennial PGA Tour competitor. Thomas was not offered a spot on the Presidents Cup team like he was for the 2023 Ryder Cup team based on his past record.

A big reason why Thomas has yet to win since the 2022 PGA Championship is that his putting this season has actually been worse than it was a year ago. Thomas’ ball-striking numbers returned to what we’re used to, ranking 11th this year in strokes gained: approach, up from 39th in 2023, but he missed nearly half his shots on the green in the round, almost .35 strokes worse than last year and dropped to 167th on the tour.

As one can imagine, he’s tried a bunch of different players this season trying to heal his struggles on the greens. He began the year using his signature Scotty Cameron X5 hammer, a putter he used to win the 2017 PGA Championship and The Players Championship 2021. The shot features a double-arm design and flowing neck to give the hammer more blade-like properties.

But this gauge was discontinued by Masters with a similar but newer T5 hammer. That shooter lasted until the memorial, when Thomas completely changed the look and went with a Scotty Cameron GSS blade shooter that was originally designed and given to him by Vanderbilt standout Gordon Sargent.

The blade was only in the bag for about a month before putting a Cameron Phantom 9.2 The prototype of the tournament hammer, a completely new and larger form for it. That shooter stayed in the bag until this week when the “old reliable,” the old X5 hammer he started the year with, was back in action this week in Japan.

“Yes, it was good. I hit some nice shots,” Thomas said after his opening-round 66, which saw him hit .238. “Even a few shots that I missed, I felt like they were good shots. I burned some edges. When the greens have so much rest, you really have to be accurate with your speed and match everything. I feel like I did a really good job of that.”

Thomas’ sentiment is one thing, but the stats back it up. Through three rounds this week, Thomas is tied for 29th in the 77-player field, gaining just over a stroke on the green for the week. The 1.099 mark is already nearly double his best four-round total this season of .663.