MEMPHIS, Tenn. — About once a month, Titleist takes Justin Thomas’s TS3 driver off his hands to give it a thorough once-over. The goal behind these regular checkups is simple: ensure Thomas is playing a conforming driver head at all times. Given the pounding a driver face endures on the professional circuit, it’s not uncommon for the bulge and roll on the face to gradually flatten, changing the overall characteristics of the driver.

“It’s something that, over time, where you use drivers for a while, they do get hot, they do get a little bit worn out,” Thomas told GOLF.com Tuesday at the WGC-FedEx Invitational.

Thomas experienced this firsthand in the run-up to the 2019 Open Championship during a routine driver inspection by Titleist Tour rep J.J. Van Wezenbeeck. During the once-over right before the Scottish Open, Van Wezenbeeck informed Thomas that the face was getting dangerously close to failing, which led the rep to suggest he put a new head in play to keep things legal.