Dustin Johnson off to strong start after long layoff

SAN DIEGO – Dustin Johnson is often lauded for his stoicism, but he was so frustrated at the end of last year that he needed to take an extended hiatus from the TOUR.

Johnson re-emerged at this week’s Farmers Insurance Open and, as you would expect from a player so preternaturally talented, didn’t look like he’d missed a beat. He shot a 4-under 68 on Torrey Pines’ South Course that was nearly five shots better than the field average and just two shots off the low round of the day on the tougher of the two courses in use this week.

Jon Rahm, who has won both the Farmers Insurance Open and U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, shot 66 on the South Course in Wednesday’s opening round.

This is just Johnson’s second start since he went 5-0-0 in the United States’ record-setting Ryder Cup victory in September. His only other event this season was THE CJ CUP @ SUMMIT, where he finished T45.

“I just needed a reset with mind, body, everything,” Johnson said in his pre-tournament press conference at Torrey Pines. “I was really frustrated with how I played last year.”

Johnson’s results were especially tough to swallow in light of his fruitful 2020, which included his first FedExCup and second major victory, at the Masters in November. He was seemingly invincible in the latter half of that year, but he has not won since the green jacket was slipped on his shoulders.

When Johnson was asked Tuesday how he spent his offseason, he replied, “I probably have not played as much as you think I have, that's for sure.” He spent the time with family, fishing and doing “pretty much anything but golf.” He didn’t start practicing in earnest until last week.

The club that’s been so key to his successful career was the one that caused him the most frustration last year.

“One thing that I was really frustrated with was with my driver,” he said. “We got a new driver this year, the new Stealth driver, and I really like it. So that was one reason why I wasn't playing or took a break, until I could get the new driver and start practicing with it. That was one of the main reasons why.”

He still ranked 21st in Strokes Gained: Off-the-Tee last season, but that was low by his high standards. It was his worst ranking in that statistic since 2013. He finished in the top five of that stat every year from 2014 to 2019 and was 11th in 2020.

Johnson led the field in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green in Wednesday’s opening round and shot 68. He was fourth in driving distance while hitting a respectable 8 of 14 fairways on the South Course, which annually has some of the hardest fairways to hit each season. He was second in the field in Strokes Gained: Approach-the-Green, as well, after hitting 15 greens.