Dustin Johnson, he formerly of the 800-lb major championship gorilla, appears to be breaking through big time. With his most recent win, this time at Firestone, Johnson now has three WGC wins, and continues to move up the career wins list. Johnson’s 11 PGA Tour wins look more and more impressive by the year as the PGA Tour searches for a dominant star player to fill the Tiger void.
On this week’s Hittin’ the Links, we take a look at DJ’s win, JD’s collapse, and more from this week on the PGA Tour. We also check in with Stacey Lewis, who has some opinions on the Olympics, take a look at the best food at the turn, and learn how to get a tee time at The Old Course.
Let’s get to it!
Hole #1: Dustin Johnson Wins at Firestone
U.S. Open champ Dustin Johnson kept it rolling with a win at the WGC-Bridgestone. Johnson is now second only to Tiger Woods in PGA Tour wins since 2008, and looks to be among the favorites going into the British Open. [Link]
Hole #2: Day Collapses Late
Jason Day started the day with a sizable lead over Dustin, but saw it vanish for good after a nightmarish double bogey on the monstrous 16th hole. [Link]
Hole #3: U.S. Women’s Open Preview
Despite her LPGA dominance, Lydia Ko has yet to even sniff a U.S Open. This year’s tournament may be her best shot yet. [Link]
Hole #4: Best Food at the Turn
Alternative title: The fastest non-booze way to ensure your back nine score is worse than your front nine score. [Link]
Hole #5: How Far is the Ball Flying on Tour?
An in-depth look into driving distance trends on the PGA Tour. [Link]
Hole #6: Spieth Promises to Play Faster
Remind me to look into this come the end of the season, will ya? [Link]
Hole #7: John Rahm Shanks One at Quicken Loans
At last week’s Quicken Loans National, John Rahm straight-up shanked a tee shot on a par three. Golf announcers like to call all extreme slices a shank, but this was truly a spine-tingling cold shank from a PGA Tour pro. And now I’m going to go wash my eyes out with soap and bleach. [Link]
Hole #8: Stacey Lewis Calls Out the Men for Dropping Out of the Olympics
An underrated story going into Olympic golf is that the women have much more to gain from the exposure, particularly with so many top men dropping out. [Link]
Hole #9: PSA: How to Get on The Old Course
The Old Course at St. Andrews is the home of golf. So how do you get on? [Link]