The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Focus on game’s men of the moment.
Dustin Johnson is making the right decision in taking a week off to prepare for the US Masters.
The world number one made it back-to-back WGC victories when he claimed the world match play title on Sunday.
But here’s the thing about winning – it’s tiring.
Competing at the top takes it out of you and DJ has been doing that on a regular basis in the last 12 months.
The big difference has been his putting. It has been excellent and, as the saying goes, he is a man “driving for show and putting for dough” just now.
Clearly, his game is in good shape and it’s why he has felt comfortable enough to withdraw from the Houston Open this week, relax a little and get himself mentally ready for Augusta next week.
Professional golfers are not robots. We do what works for us. Don’t get me wrong, we’ve all experimented by doing what some of our colleagues do but when it comes to preparation for a major we’re roughly split into three types.
There’s the guy who wants to play the week before a major and work on his game. Then you have the guy who wants a break and a week out of the limelight. The third type is the guy who wants to get to the major venue early, acquaint himself with the course and do his due diligence.
It’s a calculated risk but a sensible one. If DJ is feeling the slightest bit jaded he’s doing the right thing as next week will be an energy sapping one for sure and he cannot afford to be going there feeling ready to give anything less than 100%.
What makes the Masters unique, of course, is the fact Augusta National hosts the event every year.
That has always been a major factor in who wins. I’ll be looking for Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson and Rory McIlroy to play well there next week.
I’d love to see Rory complete the set as I know he is desperate for his fourth and final major, but DJ has got to be in the equation, too, purely for the fact he is playing so well right now.
He was never behind in any of his matches last week and, in 112 holes, he lost just 23. He was only taken to the 18th twice. That’s stunning consistency.
To win seven in a row in match play is no mean feat. DJ is the man in form right now. That reason alone means only a fool would bet against him winning next week.