July 28, 2018
Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Dustin Johnson is once again atop the leaderboard at a PGA Tour event. He currently is in a four-way tie with Byeong Hun-An, Kevin Tway and Whee Kim at the RBC Canadian Open, after shooting a clubhouse lead 65 in the third round. After missing the cut last week at the Open Championship in Carnoustie, Johnson is looking to win his third tournament in 2018, maintaining his place atop the FedEx Cup standings.
Dustin Johnson Starts and Finishes Strong in Third Round
World number one Dustin Johnson could not have asked for a better start to his third round. He birdied five of the first six holes, climbing his way to the top of the leaderboard. He even made a couple critical par saves on holes three, seven, eight and nine to maintain such a positive score.
“I got off to a really nice start,” stated Johnson. “I putted really well today. I felt like I was definitely rolling the putter nicely.”
But a fairway miss on number 10 off the tee and a three-putt on the par-5 13th led to Dustin going two over in the first three holes of the back nine, suddenly giving up the lead of the tournament.
“Didn’t hit as many fairways as I would have liked to have hit. If you’re in the fairway, you can attack pretty much every hole. If you’re not in the fairway, it definitely makes it a lot more difficult.”
The best players in the world have the innate understanding of what it takes to battle adversity in order to have a confidence boost to end the round. And this is exactly what Johnson did holes 14 through 18, going four under the last five holes, which consisted of two birdies and an eagle on the par-5 16th hole.
“I never got frustrated, even after two bogeys,” stated the world number one. “I hit a good putt on 10 that just lipped out. Same on 13. I knew I just needed to keep giving myself chances and I had two par-5s I could reach and a short par-3. Just needed to keep on going which I ended up doing.”
For the round, Johnson hit 9 of 14 fairways and 14 of 18 greens in regulation. He is currently second for the tournament in driving distance, averaging 322.9 yards per drive. But as Johnson told the media after his round, he needs to be better on the par-5’s under soft conditions.
“I’m going to have to go out and play really well tomorrow, particularly on the par 5s. There’s definitely low numbers out here. There’s a lot of guys that are ight around the lead, and somebody is going to go shoot low. Hopefully that’s me.”
World Number One Hoping Final Round Different than Previous Canadian Open Sundays
World number one Dustin Johnson is a major champion, has come close to winning more majors and currently has 18 victories on the PGA Tour. But he has never won the RBC Canadian Open, a tournament where he has finished second twice.
In 2013 and 2016, Johnson had a share or piece of the lead in the final round but could never close down the stretch to win the Canadian Open at Glen Abbey. Last year, he finished tied for eighth, despite four rounds in the 60’s. But the way Glen Abbey is set up, it is very gettable for Johnson’s game.
“I’ve definitely played well here … it sets up well for me,” Johnson said.
If Johnson is going to win tomorrow’s tournament, he is going to need to fend off his fellow co-leaders, including Byeong Hun An, who shot a bogey-free 66 today. While it was an up-and-down round, Hun An credits his short game for providing success to maintain a share of the lead.
“I had a lot of up-and-downs today,” stated Hun An. “I think I had bunker shots and rough from everywhere. It’s been one of those nice up-and-down days, but I stayed patient throughout. That’s why I was able to finish with three birdies on the par-5s.”
With the Canadian crowd cheering loud for the world number one today, it is clear that next to a player from Canada, Johnson would be the most popular winner amongst the fans. And he has someone to thank for such a positive reception from the patrons.
“I can thank Wayne [Gretzky] for that,” laughed Johnson. “There’s a lot of Gretzky fans out there, and so they tend to pull for me. I do get a lot of love up here, and the fans have been great this week.”
With the last PGA Tour round at Glen Abbey set for tomorrow, Johnson is ready to give it his best performance to hoist the trophy of the third oldest tournament in professional golf.
“I want to win just because I like to win golf tournaments. But with it being the last tournament at Glen Abbey and me being an RBC Ambassador, it would mean a lot ot get it done tomorrow. It’s a golf course I like to play. I’ve played well here, and I’d definitely like to just give myself a chance to win coming down the last few holes.”
