Dustin Johnson has his sights on becoming world number one as he heads into next week’s Open championship at Troon seeking a third win in a row.
A fortnight after claiming his first major title in the US Open at Oakmont, Johnson joined Tiger Woods as the only players to win three different World Golf Championship events with victory in the Bridgestone Invitational.
The 32-year-old from South Carolina carded back-to-back rounds of 66 over the weekend in Akron to take advantage of a late collapse by world number one, Australian Jason Day, who bogeyed the 15th and double-bogeyed the 16th in the final round at Firestone Country Club.
The victory lifted Johnson to a career-high second in the rankings – overtaking fellow-American Jordan Spieth by a fraction of a point – and the big-hitting Johnson wants an extended stay in the top spot for good measure.
“The goal is to get to the number one spot. I’ve still got a lot of work to do to get there,” said Johnson.
“It’s not just getting there, I want to stay there. I’m looking forward to the challenge.
“It’s the first time I’ve won two tournaments in a row. That’s big. I’m excited and looking forward to going over to the Open championship with my game in good form.”
Troon will be the next test for Johnson in his bid for a hat-trick of wins and he plans on being at the venue of next week’s Open championship nice and early.
He said: “I’ll travel early and head over to Troon on Sunday.
“I’ve just got to keep going, keep working on my game, trying to get better, and just keep putting myself in positions to have a chance to win.
“I like the kind of golf over there. I enjoy it. Players have to use a lot of imagination. It’s generally windy, so use the wind.
“You’ve got to use the ground. It’s completely different than what we do here. Ever since the first time I ever went over there, I’ve always enjoyed it, and I feel like I play pretty well over there.”
Johnson is clearly a man full of confidence and it not solely due to back to back wins with the American insisting he has been happy with his performance all year.
He said: “I feel like tee to green I’ve been really solid all year. My wedges have improved a lot. I’m getting a lot more opportunities when I’m on the fairway and I hit my wedges closer than I have been. I just feel like the work I’ve put in with the putter is finally paying off.
“But it still comes down to having to hit the shots. The one thing I’ve got a lot of confidence in is the driver for sure. I’m hitting a lot of fairways, but when I miss the fairways, it just barely misses, which is good.”
