No. 1 player in the world Dustin Johnson secured his spot in the final four this afternoon with another dominating performance over Alex Noren.
Johnson closed out the match with a birdie on the 16th hole to win 3 and 2. This is the farthest he has ever advanced in this event, and puts him within striking distance of completing the WGC grand slam.
Although Johnson closed out his match early, it was not as easy as he made it seem. Noren pulled all square in the match with a birdie on the 13th hole.
“I knew Alex was going to be a tough opponent,” Johnson said. “I wasn’t frustrated that I was all square. I was frustrated that I kind of gave away 10 and 11.”
It was all Johnson from that point forward. He made birdie on 13 to pull ahead, and followed with birdies on 15 and 16 to close out the Swede.
When asked what made him such a tough match play opponent, Johnson was at a loss for words.
“I don’t know. I’m playing good golf right now,” Johnson said. “I like this golf course. I feel like it suits my game pretty well. I’ve got a good feel for it. I make a lot of birdies.”
The reigning U.S. Open champion is looking to become the first PGA Tour player since Rory McIlroy in 2014 to win three straight starts. He won the Genesis Open in February – making him the No. 1 player in the Official World Golf Rankings – and followed it up with a victory at the WGC-Mexico Championship earlier this month.
“He looks unbeatable,” said Hideto Tanihara, Johnson’s semi-final opponent.
Maybe not unbeatable, but Johnson is in some kind of zone. When asked what his pulse was like on the golf course, he dryly replied, “It’s beating. Not very fast.”
And from his even keel demeanor and in-control play he has exhibited over the last six weeks, that much is obvious.