Johnson’s three-shot lead to start the day quickly evaporated when he bogeyed two of his first three holes and Casey birdied holes two and three.
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Johnson shook off two early bogeys in his final round to close with a 5-under 67 to post an impressive a 23-under par total of 265 after opening with scores of 67, 63 (a new course record) and 68.
Even after Johnson got that eagle on hole 15 – stealing back a 3-stroke lead from second-place finisher Paul Casey (20-under), who had just gotten his own eagle on that hole – even after that, Johnson thought about showing some excitement. Johnson finished 11 strokes clear of fourth place.
DJ blistered a wet Crooked Stick course to pick up his third win of the season – and take the lead in the FedExCup standings heading to Atlanta for the Tour Championship in two weeks.
“To keep a clean sheet, I was very happy with”, said Casey, who posted a bogey-free round in “ugly” conditions.
“I think I played really solid”.
Johnson used his prodigious length off the tee to overpower the tough 7500 yard (6,858 metre) Crooked Stick layout which had been softened by rain but still presented a formidable challenge.
“I enjoy being in the hunt and having to hit really good shots when you need to and I felt like the last few times I’ve been there I’ve hit some great golf shots to finish it off”.
He drilled it down the middle of the fairway, hit the green, lagged a 40-foot putt to 4 feet and made it for par for a 74.
This is it for the final 30 players remaining after a grueling year-long PGA Tour schedule.
Johnson heads into East Lake as the FedEx Cup leader, while Barclays victor Patrick Reed is second, Adam Scott is third and world No. 1 Jason Day, who withdrew from the BMW after nine holes on Sunday with a back problem, is fourth.
U.S. Ryder Cup hopefuls Matt Kuchar and J.B. Holmes also finished at 12 under with Charl Schwartzel and Ryan Palmer. He made some noise late with an eagle on the par-five 15th hole, but Johnson matched him.
It’s the first time in Johnson’s career that he has won three times in a season, the realization of the awesome potential that he has flashed ever since he broke on Tour in 2008.
“But just better safe than sorry”. “It’s always fun for me to get there”.
The Australian has a history of back issues, withdrawing from the BMW Championship in 2014 with a similar complaint.
Whether Day is a starter at the Tour Championship in a fortnight remains to be seen but the opportunity to pocket $10 million might be enough to quell the pain.
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The PGA Tour is off next week. “Hopefully he be ready for Atlanta but the most important thing is the next 15 years, not the next 15 days”. He mentioned after the round that he fixed his putting posture, which allowed him to feel more confident with his stroke.
