WASHINGTON: World No. 1 Dustin Johnson rediscovered his driving form to fire a six-under par 64 and seize a five-stroke lead after Sunday’s (Monday in Manila) third round of the United States PGA Tour Championship.
The 36-year-old American is chasing his first PGA playoff crown and third victory since the tour returned from a three-month coronavirus shutdown in June, standing on 19-under after 54 holes at East Lake in Atlanta.
“I’m playing well. The game is in good form,” Johnson said. “Tomorrow I control my own destiny. If I go out and shoot a good score, I’ll be hard to beat.”
Johnson found 11 fairways on Sunday, blasting his tee shots beyond 300 yards to set up seven birdies, after matching a career low on Saturday despite finding only two fairways to stand last in driving accuracy.
“I was just a little off with the swing. It was a pretty easy fix and obviously drove it a lot better,” Johnson said. “I just worked on the setup and my start lines a little bit better. The shape was there. I needed to execute. I was practically hitting it on a string.”
Johnson, a 22-time PGA winner, could become the first overall point leader since 2009 to win the season-ending showdown for a $15-million (12.6 million euro) playoff prize.
He began the week on 10-under thanks to his season points edge. Spain’s second-ranked Jon Rahm was next on 8-under with third-ranked Justin Thomas on 7-under and others up to 10 shots adrift in the staggered start system.
PGA Championship runner-up Johnson, who won two weeks ago in Boston and lost a playoff last week to Rahm, has his fourth consecutive 54-hole lead — the first player with such a streak since Tiger Woods in 1999 — with compatriots Thomas and Xander Schauffele second on 14-under.
“It’s hard to force it here,” said Schauffele. “You have to let the birdies come to you. I’m going to be as patient as possible to fight back.”
Rahm was another stroke back after shooting 66 following a second-round 74.
PGA Championship winner Collin Morikawa holed out a 47-foot bunker shot to open with a birdie and birdied five of the last seven holes to stand fifth on 12-under.
Fellow American Daniel Berger, who birdied the last three holes to shoot 64, was sixth on 10-under alongside South Korea’s Im Sung-jae, who began the day one stroke behind Johnson but shot 72.
Johnson began on Sunday (Monday in Manila) with a one-shot lead on Im and pulled away quickly, his 312-yard opening drive into the middle of the fairway setting a tone for the day.
