PGA Tour: can Dustin Johnson stay hot at the Memorial Tournament?
By Tim Letcher
The last time he played on the PGA Tour, Dustin Johnson was a winner. Can he win at this week’s Memorial Tournament, a spot where he has played well before?
Dustin Johnson has had success at the Memorial Tournament before. And he’s had recent success on the PGA Tour. That sounds like a winning combination heading into this week’s stop on tour.
Johnson enters this week in an ideal situation. Just two weeks ago, he won at the Travelers Championship, furthering him as one of the more underappreciated players on the PGA Tour. It was Johnson’s 21st win on tour and gave him wins in 13 consecutive seasons, a number topped only by this week’s host, Jack Nicklaus, his rival Arnold Palmer and a guy named Tiger Woods. Elite company for sure.
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Johnson also has a strong history at Muirfield Village Golf Club, the host of this week’s tournament. DJ has six top 20 finishes at the Memorial, including a tie for eighth last season. He has the distance and, if he plays like he did two weeks ago, the short game to take on the Nicklaus-designed track.
After winning at TPC River Highlands two weeks ago, Johnson took a couple of weeks off
As if things were not enough in his favor, he will also come into this week rested. That’s another scary thought for his competition.
Johnson, who is currently fourth in the Official World Golf Rankings, has made seven starts on the PGA Tour this season. He has made six cuts in those events and has three top 10 finishes. In addition to his win at the Travelers, Johnson tied for seventh at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January and tied for 10th at the Genesis Invitational in February. His only missed cut of the season came at the Charles Schwab Challenge.
In his other start since the tour returned from the coronavirus break, Johnson tied for 17th at the RBC Heritage. That event showed that he was turning his game around and getting back to the old DJ.
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Johnson will face a world class field this week in Central Ohio. Rory McIlroy is in the field, as are Justin Thomas and Tiger Woods, among others. If DJ is to win the Memorial for the first time, he will have to earn it.
And is says here that he will do exactly that, claiming his second title of the season and 22nd of his career. And he will continue to show golfers and golf fans around the world that he’s as talented as anyone, even if he is not appreciated for just how great of a player he is.