Dustin Johnson Wins the BMW Championship

If you’re a fan of pro golf, then there’s no doubt that there have been a few events in the golfing world that have stood out above the rest this season. But the biggest event of them all was the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, which saw a rather controversial finish, to say the least. And though this week’s BMW Championship wasn’t a major, it still had to feel pretty good for one player in particular. The man at the center of all the controversy last month, Dustin Johnson, rallied for a big victory at Cog Hill, holding off Paul Casey to pick up his second win of the season.

After a crazy summer on the links, it only seemed fitting that Johnson was the one to win this tournament. Early on in the final round, it looked like it would be a tough task for him, as Casey was really playing well, and seemed to be on his way to the victory. But Casey had three straight bogeys on the back nine, and the door was officially opened for Johnson to make his run.

Johnson didn’t have to play all-out, birdie seeking golf though. He just had to stay the course, and not beat himself, which has been his biggest problem this season. Luckily for Johnson, all it took was one birdie on 17 to win the tournament, and this time around, there was no questionable bunker to ruin his mood once he got to the 18th green. A win is a win in this sport, and even though it wasn’t a major, Johnson has still put himself in great position to win the FedEx Cup trophy, as the victory has moved up all the way up to second in the current standings, with Matt Kuchar still in the lead after a third place finish this week.

And while the victory is a huge achievement for Johnson, Casey has to be left wondering what might have been. When he was left off the European Ryder Cup team after captain Colin Montgomerie failed to include him in his captain’s picks, it seemed like one of two things could happen. Either Casey would be so disappointed that he would finish out the rest of the 2010 season without much confidence or enthusiasm, or he could decide to prove that he should have made the team by winning a tournament or two.

Well, it looks like Casey has chosen the latter of these scenarios, as he played well last week, and had this tournament won this week before the bad stretch run. This wouldn’t have meant anything in terms of getting on the Ryder Cup team or anything like that, but you can bet he would have still enjoyed the thrill of proving that perhaps Monty made a mistake in leaving him off the team. This is the time that you want to be playing well if you’re on the team, and Casey has been has hot as anyone the last few weeks. Unfortunately though, that doesn’t mean much for him in terms of the Ryder Cup, but he’s now put himself in good position to have a shot at the FedEx Cup in a few weeks at the Tour Championship.

But with Johnson being on the U.S. side of the Ryder Cup, you can bet that captain Corey Pavin was thrilled to see him get the win, and perhaps mentally move on from the incident at the PGA last month. He’s certainly going to need to be a major contributor in Wales in a few weeks.

Congrats to Johnson on the win!

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