Joburg washout sees England’s Waring left in a tie for the lead
Delays had already left the event behind schedule, and although the second round was completed yesterday morning, thunderstorms and heavy rain flooded the Royal Johannesburg & Kensington course before anybody could complete their third round, with the top 15 on the leaderboard all still to tee off.
That forced officials to reduce the event to 54 holes, with tournament director David Williams saying: “The course is now completely waterlogged. We’re going to restart round three – which will also now be the final round – at 07.00 tomorrow morning.
“The forecast for tomorrow is pretty good. I think we’ll just have to wait and see how much damage is done today because at the moment it’s coming down very hard onto an already- saturated course so we’ll just keep our fingers crossed that we have a reasonably good evening, that we can restart tomorrow and get finished over three rounds.”
Waring held a one- shot lead overnight but played the closing holes of his second round in oneover-par after a bogey on the 18th.
The 32-year-old, who is looking for his first European Tour victory after several years ravaged by injury, sits on 11- under- par alongside South Africa’s Darren Fichardt, who did not hit a shot on
Johnson doesn’t have the burning ambition of Rory McIlroy or Jordan Spieth, who are both desperate to be the world’s best golfer.
But the American could end up staying there for a good while because, quite simply, at the moment he is the best player.
At 32, everything is starting to fall into place for Johnson. He has turned his life around from that enforced break in 2014 when things were spiralling out of control off the course.
Now he has a son with fiancée, Paulina Gretsky, and there is another child on the way. So he is in a good place.
Since he returned to the sport, things have gone inexorably on an upward curve. He’s laid-back and loose and he brings that approach to golf. He won’t lose sleep over his ranking.
Plus he is the most perfect physical specimen. Tall, strong and athletic. You could imagine him playing any sport.
Watching him launch into his mammoth drives is a sight to Saturday having completed his battle with breast cancer, which behold. Long hitters are usually second round on Friday. has helped him put some erratic but Dustin flies it straight
South African pair Dean perspective into his game. down the fairway every time. Burmester and Jacques Kruyswijk “When you get inside the ropes, To underline that, at last week’s are tied for third on 10 under. everything kind of goes away. You Genesis Open, he was partnered
The leading Scot is David enjoy those four or five hours,” he with Adam Scott and Justin Rose, Dysdale at eight under. said. “It helps make golf less who are by no means short. At one
RYAN PALMER and Wesley aggravating at times. You realise hole, Scott hit his drive 308 yards Bryan were the joint leaders at the it’s just a game we’re playing. and Justin just beat him with 312 halfway stage of the Honda Classic “Things are clear and she’s yards. in Palm Beach. doing awesome.” Johnson’s drive was marked as
Palmer, chasing a fourth PGA Rickie Fowler is a shot further 342 yards, and straight down the Tour title, shot a five-under-par 65, back on eight under after a second middle. With that sort of with Bryan going round in two successive 66 while Indian prodigious length, there is no more, as both sit on nine-underAnirban Lahiri is on seven under. course that doesn’t suit him. par after the opening two rounds. England’s Tyrrel Hatton is on To get to top spot, he dominated
Palmer has only recently five- under, one shot ahead of a very strong field containing seven returned to the tour after his wife’s compatriot Luke Donald. other members of the world’s top 10.
To win by five around a course as
A flooded Royal Johannesburg & Kensington yesterday.
Callum Hawkins. good as Riviera really was a statement of intent.
Johnson knows he has the game to be in this lofty position. Some, like Lee Westwood and Luke Donald, didn’t feel they were truly the World No. 1 when they hadn’t won a Major.
That victory at last year’s US Open was a pivotal moment. He had been threatening for so long to win one. It could open the floodgates.
In Butch Harmon, he also has the perfect coach. Working in tandem with his son, Claude, Harmon has left well alone with Johnson’s swing.
They have been working very hard on the short game and it’s improved out of all recognition in the last couple of years.
Butch will think he has the next best thing after Tiger Woods. All the raw materials are there.
Dustin doesn’t have the natural drive and will to win of Tiger. But that is a work in progress. Tiger was the finished article as soon as he turned pro.
But this guy is so naturally gifted. The secret is not to bombard him with too much information.
If he takes that natural style to Augusta, he will need only a half-decent week on the greens to be the man to beat.
New world No. 1 Dustin Johnson. THERE was a real sense of justice that Brett Rumford was the inaugural winner of the World Super 6 event in Perth last weekend. Something would have felt wrong if, having led by five shots after 54 holes of strokeplay, Rumford had lost early in the matchplay on the final day.
As it was, the Australian was comfortably the best player over the week, in both formats of the game. On that basis, he fully deserved to regain his European Tour card.
But it was a worthwhile experiment and it brought attention to an event that would have otherwise gone under the radar.
Whether the format has a long-term future, I’m still undecided, as it’s hard to compete against the winning formula the PGA Tour already has.