“I have putted quite nicely” - Dustin Johnson shares his thoughts on what techniques have worked for him this season
Dustin Johnson is off to a hot start this year. The superstar golfer has a win under his belt and a top five finish as well. Ahead of the event at Jeddah, the former Major winner is in really good form and he believes there's one distinction from last year that has made all the difference - the putter.
Johnson struggled from close range last year at times. His putting failed him on numerous occasions, but he has seemingly fixed that issue in the early stages of the season.
The LIV Golf star said via a video posted on the X account (formerly Twitter) of 4 Aces GC:
"I think that is the biggest thing from last year, you know, I was struggling with the putter a lot and then this year, the first two events, I have putted quite nicely."
Johnson added:
"I mean yeah last week and this week, I rolled the putter really nicely. I put a lot of work in on the greens and you know, I felt like I putted really well... Just making all the putts that I need to make, like the one on 17 obviously was a clutch putt that I needed to make there if I wanted to take a one shot lead. So the putter has been very nice to me here for the first two weeks."
The former PGA Tour player is currently leading the LIV points list early on after two very good outings. This comes after he finished fifth in 2023, behind Talor Gooch, Cameron Smith, Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.
He won in 2022 in the inaugural season, so he's looking to return to that level of play and recapture his individual crown while he also tries to captain the 4Aces to a team title. Thus far, his putting has helped him on his way to those things.
Dustin Johnson and Collin Morikawa were a fearsome duo
Back before Dustin Johnson left for LIV Golf, he was a mainstay for the American side at the Ryder Cup. It's not as if he's barred from being on the team since LIV star Brooks Koepka made it last year, but he didn't qualify and wasn't selected.
But in the past, he's been a major player for them. If he were to ever return, he likely would resume that role. Collin Morikawa, who played alongside him, said this via AOL.com:
“We didn’t say too much. When we were up, it was just me saying, ‘Let’s step on their necks. Let’s finish off this match.’ Our conversations ended pretty quickly. It wasn’t a ton, probably less than everyone else. One DJ moment came after Paul Casey holed out on Saturday morning on 14. I think our match was now 1 up. And I’m sure a lot of guys would start freaking out and worrying, but he looked at me, shrugged his shoulders and said good shot. We went to the next hole. Absolutely no conversation about the hole-out."
He praised Dustin Johnson's quiet leadership, which may be something the United States needs after a shellacking at Marco Simone in 2023.