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broken arrow, Ok no. (AP) – Dustin Johnson He beat triple bogey on Sunday by making a birdie on the 18th hole to join a playoff and another birdie on the 18th to take LIV Golf Tulsa for its first win of the year.
It was Johnson’s second victory since joining LIV Golf a year earlier. Outside Boston also won a three-man playoff.
It took some hanging shots on the closed hole at rain-slicked Cedar Ridge for Johnson to take down British Open champions Cameron Smith and Brandon Grace.
Johnson, who closed with a 3-under 67, was one shot behind Smith (61) and Grace (65) when he hit his car into the rough left on the 18th, partly blocked by a tree. The sand wedge hit just above the corner of the tree to about 12 feet and made the jumper.
Smith was in the waiting range, having already landed an 18th for his 61st, tying Grace’s LIV record in the opening round. Grace putt two pars from 35 feet on the final hole, putting him in a playoff and ensuring his South African Stinger club their first win of the year.
In the playoff game, all three players are on roughly the same line, with Grace standing on the sidelines. Grace bogeyed left, Johnson holed his putt from 15 feet and Smith bogeyed from 12 feet to the right of the hole.
All of this was made possible by Johnson making a mess of the par-3 10th hole. He had a shot that bounced off a road in the water, a muddy lie and missed 4 feet. He added to the triple bogey, allowing Grace to take the lead.
“Everything I could possibly do is wrong, I made a mistake on the hole,” Johnson said, “to parry and birdie 18 twice in a row when I had to, I’m really happy about that.”
He was equally happy to see a good result heading into his second major of the year. The PGA Championship begins Thursday in Oak Hill.
Until Sunday, Johnson had never finished within close range of more than five shots to the winner of five LIV Golf events. He was never a factor in the Masters. Now he feels like his game is ready.
“I’m playing really well,” said Johnson.
Tallor Gooch, who is off of two straight golf victories, played in front of a home crowd in Oklahoma. He finished tied for 36th.
Lee Westwood pulled out before the final round, saying he injured his left leg during a long run on a treadmill. He’s not in the PGA Championship next week and is expected to be ready for the next LIV event at Trump National just outside Washington.
Of the six players who went to Oklahoma for school, Eugenio Chakara had the best finish. He shot 66, tied for fifth.
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AP Golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
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