USA TODAY International Edition
GOLF Johnson hits Playoff finale in high gear
World No. 2 wins at Crooked Stick in record 23 under
CARMEL, IND. Reigning U. S. Open champion Dustin Johnson burned rubber earlier in the week at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Then he floored it at Crooked Stick Golf Club.
The reigning U. S. Open champion and world No. 2 left the BMW Championship field in his rearview Sunday, calling on all of his horsepower to win the third leg of the FedExCup Playoffs by three shots. With a final- round 5under- par 67, Johnson finished at a tournament- record 23 under and three clear of Paul Casey, who did all he could with a 67.
Paired with Johnson, Casey briefly pulled within one stroke with an eagle on the 15th, only to see Johnson make an eagle of his own to increase the lead to three.
With a new putter, which he took from the golf bag of brother and caddie Austin, Johnson was just as intimidating on the greens as he is when holding one of the game’s biggest weapons, his driver. He led the tournament in driving distance, birdies and putts per green in regulation.
Johnson, who shot a courserecord 63 in the second round, won his third PGA Tour title of the season — the first time in his career he’s won three titles in one season. He also has won Tour titles for nine consecutive seasons.
“I’ve got a lot of confidence, especially after all the work I’ve put in that is paying off,” said John- son, who has three wins and five other top- 10s in his last 10 starts. “And the putter really worked. Those were four solid rounds. ...
“There’s still a lot of room for improvement. There’s quite a few things I’m going to go home this week and work on. Definitely feel like I can get better with some things and hopefully improve by the time I get to East Lake.”
Casey doesn’t want to see an even- better Johnson.
“I ran into a buzz saw with Dustin Johnson the last two days,” Casey said. “I did everything I could. I hold my head up high that it was a great fight.”
Roberto Castro ( 67) finished in third place and jumped from 53rd in the standings to 21st to be one of the top 30 to advance to The Tour Championship by Coca- Cola, the Playoff finale in two weeks.
Defending champion and world No. 1 Jason Day withdrew after he tweaked his back on the ninth hole.
Johnson will be one of captain Davis Love III’s players in three weeks when the USA meets Europe in the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club in Minnesota. Love will fill out most of his roster Monday when he selects three of his four captain’s picks at 11 a. m. ET at Hazeltine.
That created a tense backdrop at Crooked Stick as a few players were equally concerned about being one of the top 30 who advanced to The Tour Championship and being one of the four picks by Love.
Leading contenders for the picks are Rickie Fowler, J. B. Holmes, Bubba Watson, Matt Kuchar and Jim Furyk.
Love will make his fourth and final captain’s pick during halftime of the Chicago Bears- Dallas Cowboys Sunday night game Sept. 25. Ryder Cup week starts the next day.
Holmes improved his case to be a pick with a tie for fourth at Crooked Stick. He had been thinking too much about making the team earlier this season, which was one of the reasons he missed five cuts in seven events before the Playoffs started.
But he has righted his mental approach. And in his lone Ryder Cup appearance, he went 2- 0- 1 in 2008, the last time the Americans won.
“It’s totally up to ( Love), but I feel like I played well enough to get that shot,” Holmes said. “It’s out of my hands, so all I can do is wait.”
Kuchar helped his cause with a tie for fourth at Crooked Stick. He hasn’t won on the PGA Tour since the 2014 RBC Heritage but has 21 top- 10s in 64 Tour starts since then. Kuchar, who is 4- 5- 2 in three Ryder Cup appearances, won the bronze medal in the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Watson finished in a tie for 20th and would add firepower. Furyk didn’t make it to Crooked Stick. He would add experience, as he has played in the Ryder Cup nine times. But he has lost 20 matches — the most by an American in Ryder Cup history.
Fowler left himself in a precarious position. He finished 59th at 1 over and missed out on making it to The Tour Championship by less than a point. He said he putted well all week but burned a lot of edges. Fowler, who was a captain’s pick in 2010, thinks he’s done enough to be a pick this year as well.
“I would like to think so,” said Fowler, who has played in the Ryder Cup twice, going 0- 3- 5. “I’ve done basically everything I can do as far as schedule and playing, and obviously it would have been nice to play better to make the pick a lot easier on him. But whether he has his mind made up or is still thinking, that’s up to him. ... I think all of us out here, we want to have a chance to make a difference. Luckily I’m not the one having to make the picks.”
“I ran into a buzz saw with Dustin Johnson the last two days. I did everything I could.” Runner- up Paul Casey