Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images
Dustin Johnson came out red hot on Thursday at the 123rd U.S. Open. He posted a 64 and is only two shots off the lead entering Friday.
Dustin Johnson didn’t lay eyes on Los Angeles Country Club until the Monday before the 123rd U.S. Open. That didn’t stop him from shooting a 64 to sit T3 on the leaderboard. The unusually low scoring shocked everyone, but Johnson didn’t mind how L.A. Country Club played in the first round.
Afterwards, he met with media to answer questions and revealed a conclusive reason for the history made Thursday.
“In the practice rounds, we are playing on the back edge of every tee box,” Johnson said. “The course was set up really nicely today and then the par 3’s… they had them (tee boxes) all up a little bit today, which made those play quite a bit easier today.”
The early light rain and mist on the course clearly softened the greens and fairways. Normally in Los Angeles, that all burns off with the marina layer in the afternoon. That did not happen Thursday as it remained cloudy throughout.
“You could tell the greens were more receptive than they have been,” he said.
Johnson had to grind out seven pars on his front nine as he started on the 10th hole. He made two birdies on the 14th and 15th to go out in 33. When he made the turn, he birded the 1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th and 8th holes. Johnson was one hole away from having a clean card but made a bogey on the par-3 9th to close out his round.
He talked about one of the keys for his success.
“I drove it really well and controlled the distance with the irons… If you’re driving it well, the guys hitting a lot of fairways, they’re playing well… You’ve got to hit fairways.”
Johnson did drive it well. He gained 2.18 strokes off the tee, which ranked No. 4 in the field, per the U.S. Open stats. The former U.S. Open Champion also led the field in strokes gained approach, gaining 4.5 strokes.
Johnson is heading into Friday’s round two shots off the lead as he will tee off at 8:02 am PT.
