Johnson beats Spieth in dramatic play-off at Northern Trust
Dustin Johnson proved he can do things few others can in a dramatic play-off victory over Jordan Spieth at the Northern Trust on Sunday.
World number one Johnson birdied the first play-off hole at Glen Oaks Club to take out the opening event of the FedEx Cup Play-offs.
Johnson shot a bogey-free four-under 66 to get to 13 under and erase a three-shot deficit to start the day.
Spieth (69) began the day clear of the field, but he was unable to hold off Johnson's power down the stretch.
Faced with a tough 17-foot putt on the 72nd hole, Johnson used all of the cup to salvage par, forcing a sudden-death play-off with Spieth.
The two stars then headed back to the 18th tee box. Spieth hit his drive on the fairway, but Johnson was not messing around any longer. He crushed a drive over the lake guarding the left-hand side of the fairway, some 80 yards past Spieth. He then knocked a wedge to three feet for the win.
Has @DJohnsonPGA ever played a more perfect hole than that playoff birdie? pic.twitter.com/9gUOrTINTB
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 27, 2017
"Jordan's a tough competitor. He played well all day," Johnson said on CBS after his round.
"I felt like I played really good all day. It was nice in the play-off here, the wind sort of switched so I could cover the water."
The win was Johnson's fourth of the year, but it was just his third top 10 since injuring himself before the Masters.
Four #FedExCup Playoffs victories makes @DJohnsonPGA tied with Rory McIlroy for most all-time. pic.twitter.com/e3ikgQpTZ3
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 27, 2017
Jhonattan Vegas and Jon Rahm tied for third at nine under. Vegas shot a five-under 65 to vault into the top 10 in the FedEx Cup standings. Rahm made a 24-footer for birdie on the par-four 18th to join Vegas.
For the fourth straight time – dating back to last year – Paul Casey recorded a top-five finish in a play-off event. He shot a one-over 71 to finish solo fifth at six under.
US PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas (69) tied for sixth at five under with Jason Day (67), Webb Simpson (65) and Kevin Chappell (70).
Thomas fired four straight rounds in the 60s, but he just could not get it going enough to contend.
Day birdied four out of five holes in the middle of his round Sunday to sneak into the top 30 in the standings.