NEW YORK, (Reuters) – A pair of bogeys on the back nine and a rain delay were not enough to derail Dustin Johnson, who shot 19 under par to win the Travelers Championship by one stroke in Cromwell, Connecticut yesterday.
The 2016 U.S. Open champion fended off fellow American Kevin Streelman after shooting a career-low 61 the day prior, claiming his 21st PGA title to mark his 13th consecutive season with at least one victory.
“I’m definitely proud of myself for continuing the streak… it was a long time between wins though – hopefully it won’t be that long for the next one,” Johnson said in a televised interview.
He narrowly avoided disaster on 15, when he was forced to remove his shoes and stand in a pond to hit his ball, which landed in the damp turf next to the water. He made par, only to bogey on the next hole, after rain forced a brief delay at the fanless tournament.
“Even though there’s no fans here, you can still feel the pressure,” said the 36-year-old American. “The rain delay didn’t help very much because then I actually had time to think about everything.”
American Will Gordon rocketed nine spots up the leaderboard to finish tied for third with Canadian Mackenzie Hughes.
Johnson, who finished second at both the Masters and the PGA Championship in 2019, failed to make the cut earlier this month at the Charles Schwab Challenge when the tour resumed after the COVID-19 forced a three-month suspension of play.
American Brendon Todd, who had been in the lead after a career low nine-under 61 in the third round, self-destructed on 12 with a triple bogey and failed to recover, ending the tournament tied for 11th.
