PGA Championship: Dustin Johnson gives Brooks Koepka reasons to worry, but falls two shots short

FARMINGDALE, N.Y. – It was a difficult loss down the stretch of the PGA Championship for Dustin Johnson, but he still felt happy for his friend, Brooks Koepka.

“Brooks is a great player,” Johnson said Sunday after making a charge at Koepka but setting for second place at wind-swept Bethpage Black. “I play a lot of golf with him. He's one of my good buddies.

“You know, very happy for him, for his win. He's one of the guys that I look for that I have to beat. He's one of the best players out here, so he's always somebody that I've got my eye on.”

You knew Johnson would have Koepka in his sights after beginning the final round in a four-way tie for second place, seven strokes off the lead. He fired a 3-under 32 on the front nine to take over second place, four shots behind, and made more progress after Koepka bogeyed four consecutive holes.

Playing two groups ahead of the leader, Johnson birdied the 15th hole and Koepka bogeyed the 14th to make it a 1-stroke margin. But bogeys by Johnson at 16 and 17 put a halt to his comeback and he went on to complete a grand slam of sorts by finishing second in a fourth different major.

“I’m very pleased with the way I played,” said Johnson, who relinquished the world No. 1 ranking to Koepka. “I feel like my game’s been pretty good all year. This week especially, I felt like I really, really played well tee to green. The first three days, I didn’t make enough putts. I hit the ball plenty good enough to have been tied with Brooks going into Sunday. I just didn’t make enough putts.

“Today I felt like I rolled the putter a lot better. In these tough conditions, tough wind, even the putts that I missed looked like they were going in. Hit the ball really well again today, too. So I'm pleased with where the game's at. Especially we've still got a lot of big tournaments left this year. I'm very happy with that.”

As for the crowds, who chanted “D.J.! D.J.!” even while watching Koepka, Johnson said, “I couldn’t ask any more from the fans. They were definitely out there and on my side.”

CBS commentators Nick Faldo and Dottie Pepper both said fans yelled at the top of Johnson’s backswing at No. 17, causing a shot that went over the green into deep rough and leading to a bogey, but Johnson shrugged it off.

“There were a lot of yells out there,” he said. “You’ve just got to go with it. I made a bad swing. It had nothing to do with anyone else.”