Sunday
Sep122010
Steady Johnson dusts Western field, claims title
Sunday, September 12, 2010 at 3:14PM
Writing from Lemont, Illinois
Sunday, September 12, 2010
There was no swing meltdown for Dustin Johnson this time. No calamity involving the rules, either.
There was just solid golf, the caliber of golf that champions produce under pressure.
Johnson did that Sunday on Cog Hill Golf & Country Club’s testing Dubsdread course, his 2-under-par 69 just enough to capture the 107th Western Open – played for the fourth time under the moniker of the BMW Championship – by a solitary stroke over England’s Paul Casey.
In so doing, Johnson accomplished a lot.
First, he answered the critics who had said he’d do something to ruin another chance at victory, either in how he played, as at the U.S. Open, or via something even more bizarre than the grounded club in the bunkers, as at the PGA Championship.
Not so. He produced 12 pars and two birdies, including one at the penultimate hole, in his last 14 holes.
Second, he made recent swing tweaks authored by Butch Harmon pay off under pressure. That big drive over the trees on the par 4 17th hole, followed by a 95-yard wedge with a 54-degree lob wedge? That’s new, especially the wedge.
“I talked to Butch after, and he said, ‘That’s what we’ve been working on. Everything was in sync, the arms and body were working together,’ ” Johnson, a big hitter even when he was little, relayed.
Third, he proved something to himself. It’s not as if the 26-year-old South Carolina native hasn’t won. There was a win at Turning Stone two years ago, and back-to-back wins in the old Crosby Clambake the last two winters. But the big one has been getting away from him. Aside from the final-group experiences at the National Open and PGA, he was in the last twosome at The Barclays, which started this PGA Tour playoff shooting match, a fortnight back. He shot a respectable 72, but the field lapped him and he tied for ninth.
This time, he stuck with it, tying 54-hole leader Ryan Moore with a birdie on the first hole, then playing steady while Casey fired three birdies across six holes to lead by three strokes, then fell back with three bogeys in succession.
“To finally get it done, especially after the things I’ve gone through this summer, to finally get it done on Sunday, it can’t feel any better,” Johnson said. “I played really good golf today. I didn’t make as many birdies as I would have liked to, but I made just enough.
“I felt I really stayed in the moment. I did a really good job of being patient.”
As he had at Whistling Straits, only to be tripped up, and left out of the playoff, by the bunker that he didn’t know was a bunker on the 72nd hole.
But remember the Open at Pebble Beach, where Johnson led by three on the first tee and was off NBC’s radar only a few holes later? Remember the haste with which Johnson played the chili dip lob shot, and then the next one, and the tee shot on the following hole that was pulled farther left than Che Guevera?
So did he.
“Pebble taught me a lot,” Johnson said. “I kind of maybe got a little fast. Everything starts moving fast in a situation like that. So I really learned to be patient and not rush things. I didn’t rush any shot today.
“I took my time, took practice swings. A few times, I felt myself trying to rush a little bit, but I would stop, put my club back in the back and come back and go through my routine. Just take things slow.”
Not slow as in slow play, but prudently. That led to solid shot followed by solid shot, especially on the last six holes, when he hit every green in regulation, and four of the five available fairways. He was aggressive when the cup placement allowed it – as on the 17th, where that 95-yard wedge was stuck 2 1/2 feet from the hole – and prudent when he had to be.
And prudence didn’t mean he didn’t bash the ball. Johnson was first this week in driving distance, counting all par-4 and par-5 holes. Of the 14 driving holes, Johnson hammered drives of over 300 yards on nine of them, and a 299-yarder on the into-the-wind eighth.
And drive for show, putt for dough? Johnson did the latter as well. He had 27 putts in the final round, fewer than any other contender, and 110 for the week, which tied for ninth in the field of 70.
“I think I’m getting a lot more consistent with my ball-striking day-in and day-out, and my short game is pretty good,” Johnson said. “This week is the first week I’ve really felt like my putter has come back.
“Even though I didn’t make a lot of putts today, I made the short ones, and all my putts were on line.”
Two birdie putts were from short range, 5 feet on the par 4 eighth after a saucy wedge over the guarding bunker, and the aforementioned bird from half that distance on the 17th. But he sank a 26-footer for a bird on the par-4 first, tying Moore. Having only one three-putt green all week, the par-5 11th in the second round, also helped.
With all that, Johnson could never afford to let up. Moore, who parred the first 10 holes, fought back after a double-bogey on the par-5 11th, set up by a wayward drive to the right hitting a spectator in the shoulder and bouncing out of bounds. He birdied the par-3 14th from 5 feet to get within a stroke of Johnson, but by that time, Casey had reared up and taken over the lead.
That wasn’t the biggest surprise in the world. Casey entered the Western No. 8 in the world rankings, and with something to prove after European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie had passed him over.
That decision looked odd at the time, and appears even more foolish now. Casey went through the front nine in 3-under 32, grabbing the lead with a 19-foot birdie on the eighth hole. Birds on the 11th and 12th holes moved him to 11-under and a three-stroke lead over Moore and Johnston. If Montgomerie was watching on the telly across the pond, he had to be thinking about throwing the remote at the screen.
Then Casey displayed his occasional ability to self-immolate, posting bogeys on the next three holes, including the par-5 15th, when he pulled his drive hard left into the Greg Norman Commemorative Forest and had to play hard to come away with a 6. That dropped him into a tie with Johnson, which Johnson broke with his birdie on the 17th.
“I tried to make some birdies and fell short,” Casey admitted. “I didn’t see (Johnson’s) shot into 17, but congratulations to him.”
It was 4:45 p.m. when Johnson’s putt dropped. Johnson was able to survive the next 24 minutes, two-putting from 40 feet at the last to grab the championship, the J.K. Wadley Trophy, and the oversized – in every way – check for $1.35 million.
“It doesn’t get any better than that, especially for the confidence,” Johnson said. “I mean, I always have confidence. After a few unfortunate situations I’ve had, it definitely feels good, gives me a lot of confidence going into (the Tour Championship) and the rest of the year.”
And that confidence means stepping up and hitting big drives and precision approaches on the 17th and 18th holes, with Casey’s 8-under total of 276 posted and no room to spare.
“You’ve got to sack up and hit a good shot,” Johnson said.
Or four. As a champion does.
– Tim Cronin
Sunday, September 12, 2010
There was no swing meltdown for Dustin Johnson this time. No calamity involving the rules, either.
There was just solid golf, the caliber of golf that champions produce under pressure.
Johnson did that Sunday on Cog Hill Golf & Country Club’s testing Dubsdread course, his 2-under-par 69 just enough to capture the 107th Western Open – played for the fourth time under the moniker of the BMW Championship – by a solitary stroke over England’s Paul Casey.
In so doing, Johnson accomplished a lot.
First, he answered the critics who had said he’d do something to ruin another chance at victory, either in how he played, as at the U.S. Open, or via something even more bizarre than the grounded club in the bunkers, as at the PGA Championship.
Not so. He produced 12 pars and two birdies, including one at the penultimate hole, in his last 14 holes.
Second, he made recent swing tweaks authored by Butch Harmon pay off under pressure. That big drive over the trees on the par 4 17th hole, followed by a 95-yard wedge with a 54-degree lob wedge? That’s new, especially the wedge.
“I talked to Butch after, and he said, ‘That’s what we’ve been working on. Everything was in sync, the arms and body were working together,’ ” Johnson, a big hitter even when he was little, relayed.
Third, he proved something to himself. It’s not as if the 26-year-old South Carolina native hasn’t won. There was a win at Turning Stone two years ago, and back-to-back wins in the old Crosby Clambake the last two winters. But the big one has been getting away from him. Aside from the final-group experiences at the National Open and PGA, he was in the last twosome at The Barclays, which started this PGA Tour playoff shooting match, a fortnight back. He shot a respectable 72, but the field lapped him and he tied for ninth.
This time, he stuck with it, tying 54-hole leader Ryan Moore with a birdie on the first hole, then playing steady while Casey fired three birdies across six holes to lead by three strokes, then fell back with three bogeys in succession.
“To finally get it done, especially after the things I’ve gone through this summer, to finally get it done on Sunday, it can’t feel any better,” Johnson said. “I played really good golf today. I didn’t make as many birdies as I would have liked to, but I made just enough.
“I felt I really stayed in the moment. I did a really good job of being patient.”
As he had at Whistling Straits, only to be tripped up, and left out of the playoff, by the bunker that he didn’t know was a bunker on the 72nd hole.
But remember the Open at Pebble Beach, where Johnson led by three on the first tee and was off NBC’s radar only a few holes later? Remember the haste with which Johnson played the chili dip lob shot, and then the next one, and the tee shot on the following hole that was pulled farther left than Che Guevera?
So did he.
“Pebble taught me a lot,” Johnson said. “I kind of maybe got a little fast. Everything starts moving fast in a situation like that. So I really learned to be patient and not rush things. I didn’t rush any shot today.
“I took my time, took practice swings. A few times, I felt myself trying to rush a little bit, but I would stop, put my club back in the back and come back and go through my routine. Just take things slow.”
Not slow as in slow play, but prudently. That led to solid shot followed by solid shot, especially on the last six holes, when he hit every green in regulation, and four of the five available fairways. He was aggressive when the cup placement allowed it – as on the 17th, where that 95-yard wedge was stuck 2 1/2 feet from the hole – and prudent when he had to be.
And prudence didn’t mean he didn’t bash the ball. Johnson was first this week in driving distance, counting all par-4 and par-5 holes. Of the 14 driving holes, Johnson hammered drives of over 300 yards on nine of them, and a 299-yarder on the into-the-wind eighth.
And drive for show, putt for dough? Johnson did the latter as well. He had 27 putts in the final round, fewer than any other contender, and 110 for the week, which tied for ninth in the field of 70.
“I think I’m getting a lot more consistent with my ball-striking day-in and day-out, and my short game is pretty good,” Johnson said. “This week is the first week I’ve really felt like my putter has come back.
“Even though I didn’t make a lot of putts today, I made the short ones, and all my putts were on line.”
Two birdie putts were from short range, 5 feet on the par 4 eighth after a saucy wedge over the guarding bunker, and the aforementioned bird from half that distance on the 17th. But he sank a 26-footer for a bird on the par-4 first, tying Moore. Having only one three-putt green all week, the par-5 11th in the second round, also helped.
With all that, Johnson could never afford to let up. Moore, who parred the first 10 holes, fought back after a double-bogey on the par-5 11th, set up by a wayward drive to the right hitting a spectator in the shoulder and bouncing out of bounds. He birdied the par-3 14th from 5 feet to get within a stroke of Johnson, but by that time, Casey had reared up and taken over the lead.
That wasn’t the biggest surprise in the world. Casey entered the Western No. 8 in the world rankings, and with something to prove after European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie had passed him over.
That decision looked odd at the time, and appears even more foolish now. Casey went through the front nine in 3-under 32, grabbing the lead with a 19-foot birdie on the eighth hole. Birds on the 11th and 12th holes moved him to 11-under and a three-stroke lead over Moore and Johnston. If Montgomerie was watching on the telly across the pond, he had to be thinking about throwing the remote at the screen.
Then Casey displayed his occasional ability to self-immolate, posting bogeys on the next three holes, including the par-5 15th, when he pulled his drive hard left into the Greg Norman Commemorative Forest and had to play hard to come away with a 6. That dropped him into a tie with Johnson, which Johnson broke with his birdie on the 17th.
“I tried to make some birdies and fell short,” Casey admitted. “I didn’t see (Johnson’s) shot into 17, but congratulations to him.”
It was 4:45 p.m. when Johnson’s putt dropped. Johnson was able to survive the next 24 minutes, two-putting from 40 feet at the last to grab the championship, the J.K. Wadley Trophy, and the oversized – in every way – check for $1.35 million.
“It doesn’t get any better than that, especially for the confidence,” Johnson said. “I mean, I always have confidence. After a few unfortunate situations I’ve had, it definitely feels good, gives me a lot of confidence going into (the Tour Championship) and the rest of the year.”
And that confidence means stepping up and hitting big drives and precision approaches on the 17th and 18th holes, with Casey’s 8-under total of 276 posted and no room to spare.
“You’ve got to sack up and hit a good shot,” Johnson said.
Or four. As a champion does.
– Tim Cronin
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