Golf

Dustin Johnson Wins LIV Tulsa in Final Tournament Before PGA Championship

Dustin Johnson Wins LIV Tulsa in Final Tournament Before PGA Championship
USA's Dustin Johnson lines up a putt on the 17th during day two of The Open at the Old Course, St Andrews. Picture date: Friday July 15, 2022. - Photo by Icon sport

Former world number one, Dustin Johnson, is heading to the second major tournament of the year with a win under his belt after winning the LIV Golf Series event in Tulsa this weekend. Johnson finished the weekend with a score of -17 which wasn’t enough to be crowned the winner after 54 holes as Cameron Smtih and Branden Grace matched the 38-year-old’s score.

However, in a tense playoff, Johnson came out on top to earn his second tournament victory since leaving the PGA Tour to play in the LIV Golf Series last year. He will now be hoping that the taste of success and good form will stand him in good stead at the PGA Championship this week at Oak Hill Country Club.

Other big names who performed well at Tulsa this weekend include Brooks Koepka, who finished with a score of -12, and Patrick Reed, who wasn’t far behind on -10. Both men are part of the 18-man LIV cohort who have qualified for the PGA Championship this week with Koepka in particular keen to impress once again after coming up just short at the Masters last month.

A tense finish in Tulsa

Not for the first time this season, a LIV Golf event needed a playoff to find a winner after three men finished on the same score after three rounds. Johnson, Smith, and Grace all tussled with each other on day three of the tournament and the tournament opened up when the eventual winner found the water on the 10th hole after a lengthy rain delay.

After triple bogeying the hole, Johnson found himself a shot behind Grace but managed to rally on the back nine to force a playoff with the South African, and Cameron Smith who shot an incredible round of 61 in round three to play himself into contention from nowhere.

In the end, Johnson only needed one playoff hole to win the tournament. Playing the par four 18th, all three men gave themselves a putt for birdie but only Johnson, who had the toughest putt of the three, could deliver the goods. After becoming a two-time winner on the LIV Tour, Johson said:

“To fight back and birdie 18 two times in a row when I had to, I’m really happy with that but next time I’d like to win without going into a playoff. It would be a lot less stressful.

I feel like I’m doing everything really well right now. I’m really looking forward to next week (at the PGA Championship). I’m obviously going to get up there and get out and get a little practice in.”

Consolation team prize for Grace

Although Branden Grace came up just short in his pursuit of a maiden individual win on the LIV Golf Series, he did secure a team win for Stinger GC thanks to his two-putt on the final hole of regulation. Speaking afterwards, the South African was adamant that the team victory was more important. He said:

“In the end, it was not bittersweet. I know I put in a lot of hard work and it’s paid off, and the team really wanted this one.”


Subscribe to Punditfeed on Google News for all the latest updates from the world of sports!