News

Johnson Goes The (Full) Distance

Published

16 years ago

Feb 14, 2010

In 2009 Dustin Johnson won the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in a rain-shortened 54 holes but he proved today that he could win the event over the full duration.

The 25-year old captured his third PGA Tour victory by with a slim one-stroke margin thanks to a timely birdie on the final hole, the famous par-five closer at Pebble Beach Golf Links. It took him 74 strokes of varying quality to finish up the tournament on Sunday but nothing mattered more than avoiding that 75^th stroke for Dustin Johnson.

With J.B. Holmes, and most notably, David Duval, all finished up ahead of him at -15, Johnson required a birdie or better on the 543-yard final stanza. Facing soft turf conditions and a wind blowing almost straight into him he still managed to drive the ball past the signature fairway tree, leaving him just 235 yard to the hole on the par 5. From there he struck a bombed 3-iron into the front bunker where an exquisite extraction left him the 42-inch birdie putt he would convert for the win.

With his 270 total (64,68,64,74) Johnson (photo – Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) earned $1,116,000. The Myrtle Beach, South Carolina native also leaped to the lead in the FedEx Cup standings.

Having started the day tied for the lead with Paul Goydos at an impressive 18 under par, many suspected that the pair would be closely bunched in the final holes today but the famed Pebble Beach Golf Links had something to say about that. Their four stroke lead over the field evaporated quickly. Course conditions were tough and the small, undulating greens that require precise approach shots did not see very many on Sunday. Within the top ten finishers just three broke 70 in the final round.

It appeared early on that the plodding style of 18-year tour veteran Goydos might be the winning formula through the first half of the round. Despite being out driven by up to 50 yards or more ,in typical fashion Goydos found fairway after fairway on the front nine and stayed relatively mistake free. After Johnson made a sloppy double bogey on the difficult ninth hole Goydos was one clear of the field.

Then the back nine arrived.

Goydos looked anything but a veteran as he started the back nine at Pebble Beach. Bogeys on the 11^th and 12^th holes with a follow up birdie on 13 were simply a prelude to something that could only be described as a disaster.

Goydos and Johnson could be overhead discussing the strategy of playing the 573-yard, 14^th hole, as they waited for Bryce Molder to make a quadruple bogey nine on the hole ahead of them. Goydos talked of the possibility to make a “big number” and he fulfilled that prophecy as he slapped the ball around the green on the way to a nine of his own. It lead to his back nine 42, a 78 total, and his removal from the possible win scenario.

In the meantime Johnson did not let the glitch on #9 affect him and took advantage of his power (he ranked #1 in driving distance for the week) to manage his way around the golf course. He did stumble on 12 and 17 with bogeys, eventually putting him in the tie for the lead as he stood on the 18^th.

“During the rounds today I never felt like I was making any mistakes, but, you know, just nothing seemed to be going my way,” explained Johnson after the win. “Hitting two good shots on 18, I pushed my second shot a little bit, but it was in the front right bunker, which me and my caddie talked about, and it wasn't gonna be a bad spot to be. Got up-and-down to get the victory. Can't beat that.”

Even after making the mistake on #17 Johnson said he still had resolve on the final hole as he knew what he had to do to finish with a win. “You know, all you can ask for is a chance to win it on the last hole. I was in position. Obviously I wasn't playing the way I wanted to play today, but I was still right there. So, you know, nothing I had done all day mattered until — the only thing that mattered was that hole.”

Johnson said that even though he went the full distance for this year’s victory he does not rank it as better than last years. “Even though it was shortened last year, it's still a win and I still played great.”

While many fans were rooting on Johnson to take the back-to-back victories and join an elite group that have done so at Pebble Beach, there were plenty of golf fans following the David Duval story.

Duval, the former #1 player in the world was on the radar throughout the back nine today with his only blemish on the inward holes being a bogey on #14. A timely birdie on #17 gave him a great opportunity to push to the very top of the leader board on the last but a par left him waiting on the green for the possibility of extra hole. J.B. Holmes also made a par on 18 to put him in the same position. Johnson’s final stroke eclipsed all that.

Even so, Duval was content with his play. “I'm just pleased to get out of my golf game over the course of four days again what I feel like I should be getting out of it. I feel very comfortable and very confident in what I'm doing. And, you know, also, in a kind of strange way, it makes me proud. I feel like I kind of have given the folks who have given me starts this year good firepower for why they did it. That makes me feel good, too.”

Duval can take that great feeling to Mexico this coming week where he will play in MayaKoba Classic, the opposite field event to the Accenture Match Play.

With the February visit to Pebble Beach in the books some players can now look forward to seeing the golf course again this summer at the United States Open Championship. Dustin Johnson will be looking ahead to that major with great interest but he knows what he will face in June will be a different test than the one he has conquered in consecutive years. “It's gonna play different. Hopefully it'll be firm and fast. The rough's gonna be three times as long as it is right now knowing the USGA. So it's gonna play very difficult…”

Notes:

-Dustin Johnson, a TaylorMade staff player, uses a 60 degree Cleveland Classic wedge and a Scotty Cameron Prototype putter.

-Johnson used the TaylorMade 5-piece Penta ball for the win.

—

This report provided to GolfWRX.com by Flagstick Golf Magazine (www.flagstick.com)

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2026 Memorial Tournament

Published

1 day ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ben A

GolfWRX is on site this week at the Memorial Tournament, with both Alistair Cameron and Tour Photographer Greg Moore on the ground in Dublin, Ohio, where a strong field is assembled to pay homage to the Golden Bear.

In addition to WITB galleries, we’ve already been treated to an in-hand look at Tommy Fleetwood’s new TaylorMade Spider putters.

Check out links to all our photos below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

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News

Tour Tech Rundown: Heroic Henley

Published

2 days ago

Jun 1, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Around the world, the golf wheel spun this final week in May of 2026. From New Jersey to Austria, with stops in Korea, Texas, and North Carolina (don’t let me route your next trip) the world’s finest put their golf games on display. There were three playoffs, some known commodities and some new talent. It was the sort of week that we hope to have at this point in the seasons. June and July afford double-digit major events, and perhaps, one of this week’s champions will use this success as a springboard to new heights. Time to run it all down, tech style, in this week’s Tour Tech Rundown.

Thanks to WITBHub, Today’s Golfer, GolfWRX, and Inside Tour Golf for initial research into equipment.

PGA Tour @ Charles Schwab Challenge: Heroic Henley denies Cole

Eric Cole did nearly everything that a fellow can do, to secure a first PGA Tour title. He stayed one shot clear of Ryder Cup player Ben Griffin. He kept US Open champion Gary Woodland and wunderkind Michael Brennan two shots distant. He posted 70 on day four to reach twelve under par. And then, Russell Henley revealed his Dr. Strange cloak. Henley made 47 feet of birdie putts on holes 16, 17, and 18, to jump from minus-nine to twelve-deep, and secured a spot in a playoff with Cole. The duo returned to the final tee, and put on a stripe show.

Both golfers found the fairway off the tee, and Henley improved on his regulation play with an approach to four feet. Cole did himself proud, tucking an iron to a dozen feet, but he was unable to convert the putt for three. Henley is one of the best putters on tour, and he proved it once more by draining a putt for a fourth consecutive birdie, and a sixth PGA Tour title. For Eric Cole, that first victory should come, and soon. He has done everything necessary to earn the chalice lift.

Henley’s Suitcase

Driver: Titleist TSi3 at 10 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 70g 6.5 TX
Metal: Titleist TS3 at 16.5 degrees. Shaft: Project X HZRDUS Smoke Black 80 TX
Hybrid: Titleist TSi2 at 21 degrees. Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT hybrid 100 TX
Iron: Titleist T250 4-iron. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 5-6 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf AMT Tour White X100
Irons: Titleist T100 7-9 irons. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 48 and 50 degrees. Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue X100
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 at 54 and 60 degrees. Shaft: rue Temper Dynamic Golf Tour Issue S400
Putter: Titleist Scotty Cameron T5 Tour Prototype

LPGA @ Shoprite LPGA: Welcome back, Celine!

Soo Bin Joo had her eyes on a maiden LPGA title. She held the lead after two rounds, then hit a red light at the intersection of can-I and how-To. Joo posted plus-two on day three in New Jersey, and dropped to a T4 finish, which was still a career-best for the young Korean golfer. Instead of a new face, a familiar face returned to the top of the podium.

Celine Boutier was the It Girl in 2023. She collected four victories, including a major title at Evian. Boutier reached world number one status, then simply faded into the background. No wins came her way over the next 30 months. On Sunday, she collected LPGA victory number seven, at the same trace as LPGA victory number two.

Day three saw Boutier manage the windswept Seaview Bay course with six birdies and a bogey. She was challenged in the end by Thailand’s Arpichaya Yubol, who signed for a 66 of her own. Yubol came up one shot shy of the top ladder rung. Finishing in third place at -7, two back of the winner, was Ireland’s Lauren Walsh.

Celine’s Suitcase

Driver: PXG 0311 Black Ops Tour-1 at 9 degrees. Shaft: Graphite Design AD IZ-5
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Black Ops at 19 and 22 degrees. Shaft: KBS Hybrid Prototype
Hybrid: PXG 0311 Gen5.
Iron: PXG 0311 P Gen 4 5-9 irons
Wedge: PXG 0311 T Gen 4 PW
Wedges: PXG 0311 Sugar Daddy II at 50, 54, 58 degrees
Putter: Bettinardi Studio Stock 3 DASS

DP World Tour @ Austrian Alpine: KK? KK!

Kota Kaneko has a rhythmic name. It has strong vowels and a run of voiceless stops in its crunchy K sounds. On Sunday in Austria, Kaneko put a stop to a challenge from Portugal’s Ricardo Gouveia and everyone else, and claimed a first-ever title on the DP World Tour. Gouveia did well to reach 16-under par over four days, but Kaneko held firm, two shots in the clear.

Davis Bryant of the USA also forged a strong challenge for the win. He ended in a tie with Gouveia for second place. Kaneko began and finished his final round in a bit of a malaise, but he caught fire midway through. Birdies at 10, 12, and 13 provided the necessary cushion to cruise to the finish line without breaking a serious sweat.

Kaneko’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping Max G440
Metals: TaylorMade Qi4D at 15, 16.5, 21, and 24 degrees
Irons: TaylorMade P760 5 and 6 irons
Irons: TaylorMade P7TW 7-9 irons
Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design at 46, 52, 56, and 60 degrees
Putter: Odyssey Ai-One Cruiser Arm Lock #7

Korn Ferry Tour @ UNC Health Championship: Improbably Alvaro

Alvaro Ortiz may have had a bit of scare on the outward nine on Sunday, but he came through in clutch fashion in the end. Ortiz began the day bogey-double, and added another double bogey at the 11th hole. He was mired in a downward trend, spiraling away from the top of the leader’s board. Ortiz found hope at the 14th, where his first birdie of the day tumbled home. Inspired, he closed with birdies and 17 and 18 to catch Ross Steelman at 10-under par, and the duo returned to the 18th deck for overtime.

The extra session concluded in brief time. Ortiz, buoyed by his newly-retrieved confidence, hit the fairway with driver, then approached to six feet and drained the putt. Gobsmacked, Steelman could do little more than smile and applaud, as his run at the top came to a close. The victory was the first for Ortiz on the KFT, and will implant him squarely in the chase for a PGA Tour promotion.

Alvaro’s Suitcase

Driver: Ping G430 MAX driver at 9 degrees loft
Metal: Ping G430 MAX 3W
Iron: Ping iDi Driving Iron
Irons: Ping Blueprint S irons
Wedges
Putter: Scottsdale TR Piper C

A party on the green!

Alvaro’s time comes in Raleigh with his first win @UNCHealthChamp ? pic.twitter.com/2dmtZdbSzk

— Korn Ferry Tour (@KornFerryTour) May 31, 2026

LIV @ Korea: Me llamo Joaquin

Chile’s Joaquin Niemann had been away from the LIV winner’s circle throughout all of 2026. This week in Korea, he reminded us that he is still a force to consider. Niemann chased down Taylor Gooch over the closing holes at Asiad Country Club, then claimed victory with a hole-one birdie in extra time. Bryson DeChambeau claimed solo third, one shot in arrears at minus-eleven. Dustin Johnson finished on fourth, one putt farther back.

Niemann’s Suitcase