The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Johnson wins by 11 shots, is back to No. 1
NORTON, MASS. » Dark clouds gathered. Thunder rumbled. Lightning flashed on the horizon. Just as unsettling was seeing Dustin Johnson in complete control of his game with a performance worthy of his return to No. 1 in the world.
He was as close to unbeatable as he has ever been.
Johnson capped off his dominant week at The Northern Trust with an 8-under 63, finishing with a tap-in birdie in the dark following a storm delay for an 11-shot victory at the TPC Boston.
It was the largest margin of victory since Phil Mickelson won by 13 at the TPC Sugarloaf in 2006.
“The best I’ve ever seen him look,” said Claude Harmon III, his swing coach, as he stood off the 18th green that was partially illuminated by the video board that flashed the scores of this astounding feat.
Johnson hit every green in regulation Aug. 23, and missed only three greens over his last 54 holes. His final 54 holes were rounds of 60-64-63.
Johnson finished at 30-under 254, making him only the third player in PGA Tour history to finish at 30 under or better. He missed the record by one shot set by Ernie Els in 2003 at Kapalua. Jordan Spieth also was 30 under at Kapalua in 2016. Johnson at least holds the record on the mainland.
“I knew I was playing well and I knew the guys were going to shoot low,” Johnson said. “I was trying to get to 30 under . ... I’ve never shot 30 under in four rounds. Just something that I wanted to do.”
That was about the only competition he faced.
Harris English figured that out early when he trailed by five shots at the start of the final round, shot 32 on the front nine and fell seven shots behind.
“Kind of had my own tournament that I was playing,” English said. “I mean, really, the goal starting today wasn’t necessarily to win. It was to put myself in position to have a run in the FedEx Cup. That’s why we’re all here.”
English did the job, With a bogey in the dark that didn’t matter at the end, he shot 69 to finish alone in second and moved to No. 6 in the FedEx Cup, securing his place among the top 30 who go to East Lake for the Tour Championship. English started the year with only partial status.
Louis Oosthuizen delivered, too, in what might have been the only drama Aug. 23. Oosthuizen was No. 99 in the FedEx Cup and appeared to waste his opportunity when he was 4 over through 14.
He came to the par-5 18th needing birdie, drove into the fairway, and then had to wait more than an hour because of the storm delay.
He hit the green with a 3-iron, rolled the eagle putt 4 feet by the hole because he could barely see, and knocked in the birdie to move to No. 70 on the number. The top 70 go to the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields next week.
“Most happy 73 that I’ve had in a while,” Oosthuizen said.
Johnson won for the 22nd time in his career, and he never made it look easier. He said his game felt as good as the spring of 2017, when he won three straight tournaments — Riviera and two World Golf Championships — to first reach No. 1.