By Ryan Herrington
There’s getting your game in shape for a major championship and then there’s what Dustin Johnson did on Sunday at the FedEx St. Jude Classic. DJ started the day at TPC Southwind tied for the lead with Andrew Putnam, only to speed away from him and the rest of the field outside of Memphis.

Standing in the fairway on the 18th hole with a four-shot edge, DJ had essentially salted the tournament away when he then hit a shot there reverberated all the way to Shinnecock Hills.

The exclamation point on the victory!@DJohnsonPGA wins the @fesjcmemphis with a walk-off eagle on 18.#LiveUnderPar pic.twitter.com/HKkthusswe

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 10, 2018

Yep, a walk-off eagle. … Poor Andrew Putnam never knew what hit him.

As if the shot wasn’t impressive enough, look again at the reaction from DJ. The nonchalant smile, following by the patented panther strut. If you didn’t know that the victory returns him to No. 1 in the World Ranking, you did with that march to the green to pick his ball out of the hole.

Not long ago, Justin Thomas hit a final-hole eagle at the WGC-Mexico Championship in March. But that was only to get into a playoff, and he eventually lost the title to Phil Mickelson.

For the record, Johnson used a 9-iron that he hit 171 yards using a TaylorMade P730 DJ prototype. Complete with his own initials on the club.

Yep, that’s a boss for you.

Watch out U.S. Open. DJ is on his way.

RELATED: The putters used by the past five U.S. Open champs

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By Christopher Powers
Dustin Johnson didn’t appear to have his best stuff early Sunday in the final round of the FedEx St. Jude Classic, and it likely still would have been enough to hold off Andrew Putnam, who went on to card a two-over 72. If he was able to turn it on, DJ had the opportunity to run away from the field, similar to how he ran away at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, his first victory this season.

Ultimately, that’s exactly what happened thanks to a slippery, 15-foot par save at the par-4 12th, one Johnson pointed to after the round as a turning point. From there, Johnson made birdies at 13 and 16, and then holed out for eagle with a 9-iron from 171 yards at the 18th. The shot emphatically closed out his 18th career PGA Tour victory and took him back to the World No. 1 spot he owned for 64 straight weeks until being displaced by Justin Thomas last month.

It was an incredible final six-hole stretch that had to be a scary sight for Johnson’s competitors next week at Shinnecock Hills, where he’ll look to become the first player ever to win the week before the U.S. Open and then claim the USGA’s signature championship.

“I’m glad it’s over, for sure,” Johnson said. “What a cool way to end the day, to hole that shot there on 18. Obviously a lot of good things happened this week. I knew coming in I was swinging really well and a lot of confidence in the game, I played really well all week.

RELATED: The clubs Dustin Johnson used to win the FedEx St. Jude Classic

“I wasn’t really comfortable until I made that nice putt on 12 for par, and that kind of gave me the boost I needed. I was a little flat starting the day, really couldn’t get anything going. Made that nice putt there on 12, then hit a good drive, good second shot on 13, made birdie. Hit a lot of good shots coming in. It was nice to be back in the hunt, to have the lead, get the juices flowing, feels like it’s been a long time and it’s only been six months. It was a lot of fun though.”

The win is Johnson’s second this season and his second in the event, the first coming in 2012. It moves him into a tie for 43rd on the all-time PGA Tour wins list, joining a group that includes Hall-of-Famers Nick Price and Julius Boros. He’s also tied with Tiger Woods for the most victories since 2008. Next week, he’ll look to capture his second major championship, where he’ll likely be the betting favorite after his performance in Memphis.

“I have high expectations going into every week,” he said. “Feel like the game’s in good shape. I’m driving it well, I’m really hitting my irons well. I’m looking forward to next week. I haven’t seen the golf course yet, but I’ll go out and get 18 holes in tomorrow and go from there.”

Putnam, who had made just one bogey through 54 holes, struggled out of the gate on Sunday, making a double bogey at the par-4 first that proved to be too much to overcome. He did still finish in solo second at 13-under 267, six shots back of Johnson but four strokes ahead of third-place J.B. Holmes. It’s the best finish of Putnam’s career on the PGA Tour.

“I had a lot of fun, felt like I handled myself better than my score looked,” Putnam said. “Just didn’t have some putts go my way, first couple holes were a little rough, but overall I felt like I had a great time. Dustin obviously played pretty solid, definitely learn from these experiences.”

Holmes posted a final-round 67 to finish in solo third at nine-under 271. Stewart Cink and Richy Werenski tied for fourth at eight-under 272.

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By E. Michael Johnson
Dustin Johnson holed a 9-irons from 171 yards at the last with his TaylorMade P730 DJ Proto irons, but that was just piling on. The real damage was done during the course of the week with his driver and putter. In winning the FedEx St. Jude Classic. Johnson used his TaylorMade M4 driver to average 320.3 yards for the week, including an impressive 330.5 yards on Sunday.

The driver (as well as its sister M3 model) features a technology called Twist Face, where the face curves more open as it moves toward the toe and curves more closed as it moves toward the heel. Although it isn’t really detectable at address, the idea is to help off-centre hits fly straighter than they would with conventional bulge and roll. Johnson, who will sometimes use the company’s M3 model, also used the M4 when he earlier this year at the Sentry Tournament of Champions.

Johnson also returned to his TaylorMade Spider Tour Black putter after a brief tryout with the company’s new Spider Mini model. Johnson posted a very respectable .965 strokes gained mark for the week after reuniting with the putter.

Interestingly, Johnson went back to a Spider Tour Black with no sightline on the crown. Earlier this year he used one with a T-shaped alignment line after visiting the company’s putter lab in Carlsbad, Calif., where the Tour team built him 12 identical Spider Tour putters. Each of the putters had a different sight line and Johnson hit five putts with each (flat, 15-footers) and found the one with a T-line alignment was aimed nearly centre on every putt, prompting Johnson to put the club in the bag at the start of the new year.

Johnson’s win continues a strong run at TPC Southwind as he now has four top 10s in five starts (not counting a WD), including wins in 2012 and 2018.

What Dustin Johnson had in the bag at the FedEx St. Jude Classic

Ball: TaylorMade TP5x

Driver: TaylorMade M4 (Fujikura Speeder Evolution 661X), 10.5 degrees

3-wood: TaylorMade M4, 16.5 degrees

Irons (3-PW): TaylorMade P730 DJ Proto

Wedges: TaylorMade Milled Grind (52, 60 degrees); TaylorMade Milled Grind Hi-Toe (64 degrees)

Putter: TaylorMade Spider Tour Black

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By Christopher Powers

On Sunday at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, Andrew Putnam will play in the final pairing for the first time in his career thanks to a second-straight six-under 64 on Saturday at TPC Southwind. His reward? He gets to face Dustin Johnson, who kept it rolling in his third round with a five-under 65, putting him in a tie at the top with Putnam at 15-under 195.

Normally, this may have prompted a canned “just treat it like any other round” response from a tour pro still finding his footing on the PGA Tour, but that wasn’t the case with Putnam. He knows this won’t be like any other final round he’s played in his professional career, even though he’s won twice on the Web.com Tour.

“It’s going to feel a little different than the typical Sunday round of golf,” said Putnam, the only player in the field without a bogey through 54 holes. “But I’m excited about it, I’ve earned my way here and I feel like it’s going to be a fun day. We’ll see what happens, just keep going with the game plan and see what we can do.”

The game plan has been a good one so far, especially on the greens, where Putnam has seen noticeable improvement following a post-round practice session after he shot a three-under 67 on Thursday. For the week, he ranks 23rd in strokes-gained/putting.

“I felt like I hit the ball the best my first round and just didn’t get anything to drop,” he said. “Putted a little bit afterwards, matching the line up with the speed. I grew up on poa annua and I think it’s just a little different putting from poa annua to bermuda. I love bermuda too, I putt well on it, it’s just lining up the line and the speed and the last 36 (holes) have been pretty good.”

He’s going to really love bermuda if he can hole a few more on Sunday and capture his first PGA Tour victory, and his first win as a professional since the 2017 Panama Claro Championship on the Web.com Tour.

For Johnson, it was another smooth walk to the clubhouse, as he made just one bogey and six birdies to remain atop the leaderboard. He’s been the best player tee to green this week and leads the field in birdies with 18. A win on Sunday would be the 18th of his career, and his second in this event, which he won in 2012.

Alone in third is 45-year-old Stewart Cink, who carded a six-under 64 that included a hole-in-one on the 144-yard par-3 eighth. This is Cink’s second start since a cancer scare that required him to undergo surgery to have a sizable chunk of tissue removed from the right side of his nose. He’s five back at 10-under 200.

Richy Werenski and Wesley Bryan are tied for fourth at nine-under 201, while Chez Reavie is in solo sixth at eight-under 202.

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By Ryan Herrington
Adam Scott’s streak of playing in 67 straight majors, the second longest current run behind just Sergio Garcia, remains in jeopardy after the Aussie failed to qualify for the U.S. Open on Sunday under one of the handful of remaining exempt categories. But it was not for a lack of trying.

Sitting a No. 65 on the World Ranking, Scott, 37, added the AT&T Byron Nelson to his schedule with the knowledge that if he was 60th or better after play ended at Trinity Forest, he would be exempt through sectional qualifying to compete at Shinnecock Hills in June. And while Scott closed strong on Sunday, shooting a bogey-free 65, including a birdie on the final hole, to grab his first top-10 finish in almost a year, he only managed to jump to 61st on the ranking, with Chesson Hadley sitting in 60th.

“I tried to make the most of really favorable conditions today, and I did a pretty good job of it. Just never really got a hot run going,” said Scott, who went 67-65-72-65 for a T-9 finish. “I feel like I struggled on the weekend reading the greens well enough to really get it going, but I think everyone but the leaders did that, too. They’re not the easiest greens to read.”

Scott had been scrambling for the last few weeks to try to earn a way into the field at the U.S. Open, playing in the Wells Fargo Championship and the Players ahead of the Byron Nelson.

All is not lost for Scott. There is another cutoff for players inside the top 60 in the world after the FedEx St. Jude Classic (June 11), just as U.S. Open week begins.

He’ll also be competing at this week’s Fort Worth Invitational and is prepared to play the Memorial and the FedEx St. Jude Classic if needed to earn his trip. He is not, however, scheduled to compete in sectional qualifying.

“I’ll play next week and hopefully play really well, and give myself a bit of cushion so I can take a week or so off and try to prepare the best I can for the U.S. Open,” Scott said.

Scott’s major streak began in 2001 at the Open Championship. During his run, he has one win (2013 Masters), eight top-five finishes, 16 top-10s and just 15 missed cuts.

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By John Strege
The Waste Management Phoenix Open next week will become the first PGA Tour event to make use of a new pro-am format now offered to tournaments.

The policy is explained in the tour’s 2017-2018 Player Handbook & Tournament Regulations:

“A tournament hosting a pro-am with four amateurs may request to utilize an alternate format whereby one professional plays the first nine holes and second professional plays the second nine holes (9&9 format). Professionals will have the option to request 18 holes (up until the commitment deadline) until all the first nine-hole positions are filled.”

It is a concept employed on the LPGA and underwent a successful and popular trial run at the FedEx St. Jude Classic last year.

“I think it could be good for everyone,” David Lingmerth said at the Farmers Insurance Open on Thursday, offering what likely is a consensus opinion among tour players. “You get more players in the pro-am the day before the tournament starts, so more people get a look at the conditions of the golf course. And the amateurs get a couple pros to play with, which could be fun. I know that some guys like to come in late and just use the pro-am round as a practice round. You can still ask to play all 18. I don’t see an issue.”

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Wood, whose father is a former U.S. Junior Amateur champion, completed 36 holes at nine-under par 131, a 36-hole qualifying record, eclipsing the record of 132, set by Hank Kim at the TPC Sawgrass in 1994. Wood followed an opening-round 64 at Riviera Country Club on Monday with a three-under 67 at Bel-Air on Tuesday. He finished three strokes ahead of runner-up, Norman Xiong, the recent Western Amateur winner.

Wood is a junior at Oklahoma State, the university his father also attended.

Xiong, who like Wood opened with a six-under 64 at Riviera on Monday, shot an even-par 70 at Bel-Air.

Among those advancing to match play that begins Wednesday at Riviera Country Club was Joaquin Niemann of Chile, who is No. 1 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. Niemann, who reached the round of 16 in the Amateur a year ago and tied for 29th in the PGA Tour’s Greenbrier Classic earlier this summer, shot a 69 at Bel-Air and tied for sixth in medal play.

Maverick McNealy, No. 2 in the World Amateur Ranking, had a three-under 67 at Bel-Air, tied for 16th, and advanced to match play.

Among those who did not advance was Stewart Hagestad, the reigning U.S. Mid-Amateur champion who in April became the first Mid-Am champion to make the cut in the Masters. Hagestad, who had his clubs stolen 10 days earlier, shot 74 at Bel-Air and missed advancing by two strokes.

Thirteen players tied for the final eight spots for the 64-player match play field, including Braden Thornberry, and will play off Wednesday morning at 7:30 (PDT). Thornberry is No. 3 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking and tied for fourth in the PGA Tour’s FedEx St. Jude Classic in June.

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By Christopher Powers

Daniel Berger did not begin his round optimally Sunday at TPC Southwind. He missed the fairway on the 434-yard par-4, then his approach found high grass left of the green. He chunked a chip short of the putting surface, leaving him a nervy par chip from 25-feet away. Berger holed it and never looked back, shooting a bogey-free 66 to successfully defend his title at the FedEx St. Jude Classic.

Berger, 24, was not a factor through the first 36 holes, shooting rounds of 70 and 68, leaving him seven shots off the lead. But a pair of 66s over the weekend to get to 10-under overall proved to be enough, despite those chasing him with numerous chances to match or better his score.

The victory makes him the fourth back-to-back champion in the tournament’s history, joining Dave Hill, Lee Trevino and David Toms as the others to do so. He also joins those three, Nick Price, and Justin Leonard as a multiple-winner of the event. It solidifies what’s been an already strong season for Berger, with four top-10s, five top-25s, and now well over $2 million in earnings. Next week, he will tee it up in his third U.S. Open, where he’s finished in the top-40 both times.

After potentially shooting himself out of the tournament on Saturday with a four-over 74, Charl Schwartzel came back on Sunday, posting a four-under 66. It would ultimately leave him one shot short at nine-under, but the South African should be happy with where his game is at heading into Erin Hills.

Tying Schwartzel for second at nine-under was Whee Kim, who fired a three-under 67. It’s the best finish of the South Korean’s career, and comes after missing six of his last seven cuts.

Two of the best rounds of the day came from Billy Horschel and amateur Braden Thornberry. Horschel’s six-under 64 was the low of the field in the final round, and featured birdies on his final four holes. Thornberry, the 2017 Haskins Award winner and NCAA individual champion, carded a bogey-free five-under 65. They both finished at eight-under for the tournament, tying for fourth with Rafa Cabrera Bello, Kevin Chappell and Chez Reavie.

Amidst all the chatter surrounding his status in the U.S. Open, Phil Mickelson could have pulled off a victory on Sunday in Memphis. The five-time major champion had a share of the lead at nine-under on the 10th hole, but a triple-bogey seven on the par-4 12th effectively ended his bid. He finished in solo ninth at seven-under after shooting a two-under 68.

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By Brian Wacker

Jack Nicklaus once said of golf that it’s 80-percent mental, 10-percent ability and 10-percent luck.

Daniel Berger, who grew up in South Florida not far from Nicklaus, has never been lacking in the mental side of the game, specifically when it comes to confidence. His father, Jay, is a former pro tennis player, and as a teenager Daniel worked the range at The Dye Preserve, where he was exposed to several pro golfers, including Steve Marino, whom he competed against (and sometimes beat) despite Marino being 13 years his senior.

Sunday, Berger got his second career win on the PGA Tour, successfully defending his title at the FedEx St. Jude Classic, where he closed with a pair of 66s on the weekend at TPC Southwind to win by one over Charl Schwartzel and Whee Kim.

Phil Mickelson, meanwhile, finished three strokes back. Tied for the lead on the back nine, Mickelson twice found trouble on the par-4 12th and went on to make triple.

Two years ago, it was Berger who was in contention for a win and found a hazard in the final round, rinsing his tee shot at the par-3 17th at the Honda Classic at PGA National in a playoff loss to Padraig Harrington.

“You’re wondering if you let that one go by,” Berger reflected, “will you ever be in this position again?”

A lot of players would have been scarred by the experience. Berger got his first win the following season, a little more than 12 months later, and beat, among others, Mickelson.

It helps to have talent, too. So far this season, Berger ranks in the top 35 in strokes gained/off the tee, approach to the green and putting, and is 23rd in strokes gained/total.

With numbers like that, and an inherent borderline cockiness to go with it, it’s no wonder Berger would give it right back to one of the biggest needlers in golf in Mickelson.

During a Sunday rain delay in Memphis in 2016, Mickelson sarcastically asked Berger if any rookie had been named Rookie of the Year without having won a tournament, something Berger managed to do in the 2014-’15 season.

Berger, meanwhile, has long referred to Mickelson by his full first name, Phillip.

“He says only his wife calls him that,” Berger recalled the 2016 conversation on Saturday. “I can’t call him that until I win on the PGA Tour. But I still call him that anyway. I don’t care. It is what it is.”

A day later, the two ran into each other in scoring after Berger closed out the victory with a four-birdie, no-bogey round.

“I said, ‘I’m calling you Philip,’ ” Berger said. “He said, ‘You earned it.’ ”

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By Joel Beall

It’s been an adventurous 2017 for Padraig Harrington. Nerve damage severely limited Harrington’s play in the early season, pain so severe the Irishman eventually underwent neck surgery. Then he found headlines for the wrong reasons in April, calling Sergio Garcia a “sore loser.” (The two have since made peace.) The latest news concerning the three-time major winner hasn’t turned this tide.

Harrington took to Twitter Tuesday morning to announce his WD from the FedEx St. Jude Classic. The reason? The 45-year-old was injured by an amateur’s practice swing.

Just withdrawn from @PGATOUR @fesjcmemphis this week.I was hit on the elbow with a practice swing by an amateur I was coaching at an outing.

— Padraig Harrington (@padraig_h) June 6, 2017

The incident was scary enough that Harrington initially thought his playing days were through. Luckily, he “only” required six stitches, and reported nothing was broken.

Hopefully this is the end of the bumpy road for Harrington, who’s aiming to get his game in shape for the claret jug’s return to Royal Birkdale, site of his 2008 victory.

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