Amidst rumors of cocaine use and other off-the-course issues, Dustin Johnson took a six-month break from the PGA Tour and returned in early February for the Farmers Insurance Open. It didn't take him too long to get his first win since Nov. of 2013.
Johnson held onto a one-stroke lead heading into the 18th hole and defeated J.B. Holmes and Bubba Watson for a win at the WGC-Cadillac Championship. The 30-year-old finished 9-under par after four rounds at Trump National Doral in Miami, Fla. and earned $1,570,000 with the victory to silence his critics.
"I've been working hard on my game and been working hard on me, and so it means a great deal to have some success right out of the gate. It gives me a lot of confidence," Johnson told Rex Hoggard of the Golf Channel.
Johnson finished with a 69 in the final round and capitalized on Holmes' struggles (75) and Watson's late-round bogeys (71) to capture the trophy. The key for Johnson came on the par-4 18th hole, which was a crucial test for both his game and discipline. He ripped his drive 317 yards off the tee box and cleared the water to help set himself up for a routine par and the win over Holmes, who failed to make a number of important putts.
"I absolutely smashed it," Johnson said, via The Associated Press. "I wasn't worried about it getting over the lake. ... I played the hole the best I've played it all week. And it was a good time to do that."
He also hit a few big putts in the final round, including ones that saved par from 20 feet and 10 feet as well as another from 15 feet for birdie on the 15th hole that extended his lead. Johnson led the pack with an average of 333 yards on his driving distance and hit 74.1% of his greens in regulation, including a hole-in-one on the par-3 fourth on Saturday.
We're exactly a month away from the Masters Tournament and Johnson is now in a good position to contend in the first major tournament of the 2014-2015 season.
