Brooks Koepka has now won as many majors as Rory McIlroy and one more than Jordan Spieth, so why is the 29-year-old only now getting recognition?
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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – If Dustin Johnson started at No. 1; Jason Day, Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth want to get back to No. 1; and Jon Rahm, Justin Rose, Justin Thomas and Spieth actually could get to No. 1, then by the law of hypothetical syllogism and the transitive property… Oh, never mind. After copious No. 1 chatter at THE PLAYERS Championship, Thursday’s first round suggested the new No. 1 might end up being the same as the old No. 1. Johnson used a new putter and a new putting method to shoot 66 and seize the early lead with Sweden’s Alex Noren and 2012 U.S. Open champion Webb Simpson. “It was definitely a big deal to get there,â€� Johnson said of the top ranking, which he could lose to Thomas (73), Spieth (75), Rose (68) or Rahm this week. “And it’s a big deal to stay there, I think. Yeah, I mean, I like being No. 1, so I want to stay there.â€� Defending champion Si Woo Kim and late addition Keith Mitchell, who got into the field when Paul Casey withdrew, were part of a foursome at 67, one shot back after the morning wave. Johnson, though, was the talk of the morning. His 66 was his best by two at TPC Sawgrass, where he was averaging 72.43 coming into this week. He hit nine of 14 fairways, 17 of 18 greens in regulation, and made six birdies and no bogeys. It’s rare to categorize a world No. 1 as a surprise leader, but Johnson has looked wobbly here since he shot a second-round 80 to miss the cut in his first PLAYERS in 2008. His recent results on TOUR weren’t exactly encouraging, either. He looked lost in going 0-3 at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play, and was never really in contention at the Masters (T10) and RBC Heritage (T16). The culprit, he said, was his inability to make anything on the greens, and indeed the fact that he holed over 111 feet of putts Thursday was a happy surprise. Using a new TaylorMade putter and the Aimpoint green-reading technique for the first time, he finally capitalized on his ball-striking. “I felt like at Augusta and Hilton Head I was hitting a lot of good putts that were not going in the hole,â€� Johnson said. “I needed to figure out something. I still feel like I read the greens really well. It’s helped with getting a definite spot to putt at, where I want the ball to start. I felt like today we read ’em all really well. There were no surprises.â€� As for all the talk about his tenuous position atop the Official World Golf Ranking, that was another matter. When Rickie Fowler won here in 2015, much of the buzz was around a player poll that tagged him as overrated. Fowler obliterated all that with his clubs. Did all the No. 1 chatter get to Johnson? Was his opening statement here a reminder not to write him off too soon? He said no. “I don’t care what people talk about,â€� Johnson said. “It doesn’t bother me. I want to play good golf.â€� Rory McIlroy (71) has been to No. 1, and said he’s been impressed with how long Johnson has held onto the top spot. “I think he’s done a great job because I feel it’s harder to stay there than it is to get there,â€� said McIlroy, who lost the No. 1 spot to Spieth in the summer of 2015. Rose, one of the four who could take over in pole position if everything breaks his way this week, found himself leaderboard-watching Thursday but quickly diverted his attention away from the No. 1 ranking as Johnson piled up the birdies. “I thought I better play well this week to not go miles behind him again,â€� Rose said. Johnson’s coach, Claude Harmon III, with whom Johnson worked at the Floridian last week, said that while Johnson may downplay it, the laconic, 33-year-old South Carolinian had heard the No. 1 speculation concerning himself, Thomas, Rahm, Rose and Spieth. “Absolutely,â€� Harmon said. “There are not a lot of people walking around who have gotten there, and if you’re lucky enough to get a chance to get to No. 1, then you always want to stay there. D.J. is far more competitive than people realize. “It’s certainly something that drives him,â€� Harmon added. “One of the weird things in golf right now is that he’s the No. 1 player in the world, and there are so many other stories right now that he doesn’t really get talked about. Sometimes that works in your favor; you can just do what you do and let your clubs do the talking.â€� So far, so good for Dustin Johnson, whose clubs said it all Thursday.
The first redesign by noted course architect Tom Doak for the PGATOUR is featured this week as Memorial Park in Houston assumes the role host of the Vivint Houston Open. The TOUR returns to its roots as this municipal track is back on the schedule for the first time since 1963. The inaugural event in Houston took place in 1946 and the first one at Memorial Park debuted the following year, running until 1963. The Houston Open sat as the preparatory exam for Augusta National, for most of the last 15 years and returns to that position on the schedule, albeit accidentally, this time around. Tom Doak and Brooks Koepka (player consultant) have positioned only 19 bunkers through 7,432 yards on this Par-72 (36-36). The focus this week will be on excitement and scoring chances rather than grinding out pars and surviving. With five Par-5 holes, five Par-3 holes and a pair of Par-4 holes that can possibly be driven, a full array of shots will be required, not to mention a bunch of birdies, to pick up the trophy this week. Think ZOZO but with a few hundred additional yards and Bermuda on the greens. We all remember who was on the podium that week (Cantlay, Rahm and Thomas). RELATED: Power Rankings | Expert Picks | Sleeper Picks With a new test it’s always the ball-strikers who move to the forefront. With 28 acres of fairway, less than three inches of rough and only four holes with water, I would think scoring will be a major focus this week. Greens are large, averaging 7,000 square feet, and running slick with Mini-Verde Bermuda so hitting plenty of them will be the angle. The more GIR will give more scoring chances and it won’t hurt to have shorter clubs into those scoring holes. Lanto Griffin is the defending champion at the event and will lead the field of 132 as they look to get their hands on $1.26 million (winner) of the $7 million prize pool plus 500 FedExCup points. The winner won’t get into the Masters next week but will be eligible in 2021. Event Winners at Golf Club of Houston Recent Winners 2019: Lanto Griffin 2018: Ian Poulter (not entered) 2017: Russell Henley Key stat leaders Top golfers in each statistic on the 2019-2020 PGA TOUR are listed only if they are scheduled to compete this week. Those listed in BOLD deserve deeper inspection if not already on your RADAR. Strokes-Gained: Tee-to-Green 2 Hideki Matsuyama 4 Sergio Garcia 8 Harold Varner III 9 Dustin Johnson 10 Scottie Scheffler 11 Tony Finau 13 Tyrrell Hatton 14 Russell Henley 16 Corey Conners 20 Viktor Hovland 21 Luke List 24 Emiliano Grillo 25 Cameron Tringale Par-5 Scoring 6 Wyndham Clark 6 Matt Jones 10 Hideki Matsuyama 10 Dustin Johnson 10 Kevin Streelman 10 Tyrrell Hatton 10 Ryan Palmer 10 James Hahn 18 Alex Noren 21 Cameron Davis 21 Sam Burns 21 Jhonattan Vegas 21 Sungjae Im 21 Scottie Scheffler Strokes-Gained: Putting 1 Denny McCarthy 3 Andrew Putnam 4 Kristoffer Ventura 8 Mackenzie Hughes 9 Maverick McNealy 11 Patrick Rodgers 14 JT Poston 16 Wyndham Clark 23 Troy Merritt 24 Beau Hossler 25 Patton Kizzire Top players at Bermuda Championship (entered this week) 1 Brian Gay P2 Wyndham Clark 3 Ollie Schniederjans 4 Matt Jones 4 Stewart Cink 4 Denny McCarthy 4 Doc Redman 8 Ryan Armour 8 David Hearn 14 Scott Piercy 16 Russell Knox 21 Maverick McNealy 21 Brice Garnett 21 Andrew Putnam 21 Sepp Straka 26 Paddy Harrington 26 Beau Hossler Top 25 ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP @ SHERWOOD (entered this week) 4 Russell Henley 4 Ryan Palmer 8 Corey Conners 11 Tony Finau 11 Dylan Frittelli 11 Lanto Griffin 17 Alex Noren 17 Scottie Scheffler 26 Brian Harman
Marc Leishman’s round of 5-under 66 gives him the 36-hole lead headed into the weekend, but he’s got a few player right on his tail.
