Dustin Johnson, and the golfer who grew-up just over an hour’s drive from Augusta National, produced a masterclass display to become the 84th Masters champion.
It was not just a maiden Masters for the 37-year old Johnson but it was an historic victory. Not only did the golfer affectionately known as ‘DJ’ become only the fourth player to win the Masters as the game’s No. 1 ranked but he won by five shots and in the process set a new 72-hole tournament record of 20-under par and two shots fewer when Jordan Spieth won in 2015.
Johnson took a commanding four-stroke lead into the final round but played his first five holes in one-over after a birdie on 3 was cancelled out by back-to-back bogeys at the fourth and the fifth to see his lead cut in half.
The Green Jacket belongs to Dustin Johnson. #themasters pic.twitter.com/no3mbiOuQk
— The Masters (@TheMasters) November 15, 2020
With Aussie Cameron Smith and South Korean Sungjae Im making birdies in a bid to pile on the pressure Johnson arrowed his approach to the par-3 sixth to return to even par for the day and from there he never looked back.
Johnson, who had held the 54-hole lead and failed to convert four times at Major championships in recent years, never allowed doubt to creep and with his ball on a string and his putter red-hot, it would prove a procession to the Butler Cabin.
‘DJ’ added a two-putt birdie at the eighth to reach the turn under-par before hammering home his advantage with three straight birdies from the 13th to hit the 20-under par mark in a relentless display of almost robotic scoring.
To their credit, Smith and Im never wavered under the weight of pressure the back-nine at the Masters can bring but Johnson was untouchable and after making par on 16 and 17, he could enjoy the best walk in golf, five clear playing the last before signing off with a par for a round of 68, a record 20-under par winning tally anda first Major title since his maiden victory at Oakmont in the US Open of 2016.
“I was nervous all day – I could feel it,” said Johnson. “The Masters to me is the biggest tournament, it’s the one I wanted to win the most. I felt it all day and I’m just very proud of the way I handled myself and the way I finished off the golf tournament.
“Honestly, it still feels like a dream. As a kid, you’re dreaming about winning the Masters, having Tiger put the green jacket on you… it still seems like it’s a dream but I’m here and what a great feeling it is – I couldn’t be more excited.”
Try as he might in the Butler Cabin, not even a photo montage of DJ and his brother and caddie Austin through the years could draw a tear out of the 84th Masters winner but he reserved special praise for his brother in arms who played a significant role alongside his charge in a record breaking week in Georgia.
“It’s an unbelievable feeling to experience all this with my brother,” said Johnson. “He’s been a big help being on my bag, I love him being on my bag. I wouldn’t want anyone else there.
“To share all these memories and moments with him is incredible and having Paulina there today too was awesome. But I had to jab him a little bit on 18 because his tearing up made me tear up. I was like, ‘I still gotta finish this off, I can’t be crying’ but it was a lot of fun and I’ll remember this for the rest of my life.”
Dustin Johnson – Masters Winning Fact File
Age – 36
Number of Majors contested – 46
Number of Masters – 10
Number of rounds at Augusta National – 38
Relation to par 2020 at Augusta – 17 under ???
Sets new Masters record (beating Tiger Woods) 11 straight rounds under par.
Sets new Masters 72-hole low of ?? with rounds of 65, 70, 65 and ??
Wins in 2020 – 4 (Matches 2017)
Pro Career Wins – 27
Time between 2016 US Open win & 2020 Masters victory – 4 years, 4 months, 27 days.
Total sets of crystal goblets for Augusta eagles – 11 (Two in 2020).
First time in five Majors he’s won while leading after 54 holes
Fourth player to win Masters while World No. 1 (Woosnam, 1991, Woods 2001 and 2002).
Eighth player to win Masters after being runner-up/joint runner-up a year earlier.
American winners – 62nd American to win in 84th hosting Masters
Masters 1st Prize – $2,070,000.
Johnson’s Augusta earnings – $4,236, 473 ($111,486 per each of his 38 rounds)
