Not that Johnson was thinking about his place among the elite as he recovered from a faltering start in the final round at Crooked Stick in Carmel.
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Casey, who also went round in 67, was three shots back, with American Roberto Castro third on 17 under.
Choi Jin-ho, who won the SK Telecom Open previous year, carded a 68 with five birdies and two bogeys to share third place with Lee Chang-Woo, who finished with a 69 and a total of 202.
England’s Paul Casey (15 under) and American J.B. Holmes (14 under) matched Johnson’s 68 to be in second and third place overnight.
He will be going for his third victory of the year and move to the top of the FedEx Cup going into the finale at the Tour Championship.
“The strength this week has been putting”, Johnson said.
J.B. Holmes, who finished 10th in the Ryder Cup standings and is in need of a captain’s pick to make his second USA team, shot 30 on the back nine and made a strong run at Castro until he was slowed by a bogey on the par-3 third hole and at the par-5 ninth.
World No.6 Adam Scott put together a second consecutive three-under 69 to remain the best of the Australians but at six-under he sits eight shots back in a tie for 10th.
“I’m seeing the lines pretty well out here, I’ve got pretty good speed and it’s going where I’m looking”, Johnson said.
How long the honeymoon period will last with his new putter is still to be seen, but the early returns have been sensational.
Johnson carded a bogey free nine-under-63 thanks to five birdies and two eagles to rocket up to 14-under for the tournament.
The course measured 7,289 yards when Daly, the longest hitter on tour, won 25 years ago, and it has since been stretched by roughly 300 yards, a distance that presented little problem for Johnson in rain-softened conditions. Worst yet, the Georgia Tech alum who lives in Atlanta hurt his chances of moving into the top 30 who advance to the Tour Championship.
“Not much you can do”, Casey said.
Casey made a 25-foot eagle putt on the 15th hole to get within one shot, but that lasted only as long as it took Johnson to make an 18-foot eagle putt on top of him to keep the margin at three shots.
Johnson has 11 victories on the PGA Tour, including a major and a three World Golf Championships.
The impetus for Johnson’s switch came from playing several rounds during the FedEx Cup Playoffs with Jason Day.
Defending champion Jason Day shot a third round 71, leaving him in a tie for 21st.
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Castro leads by one at weather-hit BMW was posted in Sports of TheNews International – https://www.thenews.com.pk on September 10, 2016 and was last updated on September 10, 2016.
