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WGC BRIDGESTONE INVITATIONAL

July 3, 2016

Dustin Johnson

Akron, Ohio

CANDACE REINHEIMER: Dustin, congratulations on your third World Golf Championship win. You're coming off back-to-back wins. Tell us how it feels to kind of seal the deal on this one.

DUSTIN JOHNSON: It feels good. You know, another really good day I felt like today. I played really solid when the golf course was playing pretty tough. It definitely feels good. It always feels good when you win.

Q. How good?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Really good. (Laughter).

Q. Pardon the pun, but did you know the score playing 18? Did you know what was going on with Jason behind you?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Not until I was on the green. My brother, my caddie, told me that he had hit his third shot in the water on 16. But I didn't know until I was already on the green. It didn't matter. I mean, the way I was playing the hole, it didn't make a difference.

Q. What is it about your game that lends you the ability to come from behind from significant deficits on the final round as you have the last couple times?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: You know, I've been driving it really well. My driver has been great. I feel like if I'm hitting it in the fairway, then I'm going to be very tough to beat. I feel like I'm wedging it well, and out here if you get it in the fairway, you get a lot of wedges in your hands, especially with the course being so firm and fast.

You know, the last couple weeks my putter, I'm making the putts that I'm supposed to make. That's the big difference in me finishing a lot of top 5s that I've had this year to winning a few.

Q. You were in here on Wednesday, and we asked you whether winning the U.S. Open would sort of free you up to play better golf and to maybe win some more, have some more confidence. Looking back on it four days later, do you feel like that was the case?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah. I mean, it definitely gives me a lot of confidence, and maybe free me up, too. I don't know, I'm definitely a little more relaxed out there on the golf course, especially coming down the stretch. Today I felt I was in a really good place, really calm, collected, just focusing on what I was doing. Just playing golf.

Q. More relaxed today than Sunday at Oakmont?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, for sure. Not even close.

Q. You were caught on TV Facetiming, and I think your quote to Paulina was "I found him." Can you elaborate on that?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Tatum, my son. I didn't know -- the nanny and him, I didn't know where they were, and Paulina was asking me where they were. I was like, I don't know, I just walked off the course.

Q. You said a couple times that you've been playing the same way all year. It's just a matter of rolling some putts in. Is it really that simple?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I mean, yeah. 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 in the fairway and I hit it -- hitting my wedges closer than I have been. Yeah, I mean, I just feel like the work I've put in with the putter is finally paying off.

But I mean, it still comes down to you've got to hit the shots so you can have those putts. But yeah, I mean, it's been better.

I feel like 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.

Q. It seemed like at Oakmont you were hitting a lot of fades off the tee. Was that a recent change in ball flight with the driver?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I've been fading it most of this year. Last year would have been -- I've been drawing it pretty much my whole career on TOUR, but this year a little bit, probably late in the year last year, and this year I've been fading it all year this year. It just -- I feel like I hit a lot more fairways. Maybe the stats don't say it, but I feel like I do, so I think that's the most important thing. I just don't feel like my misses are as bad.

Q. Was that you or Claude that saw you make that change in the off-season with the ball flight?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: No, that was me. Obviously my coaches, they like it, but they don't care which way I hit it, as long as I hit it straight.

Q. Was there a key shot today where you felt like today is going to be my day?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: The putt on 17 going in was nice. I knew then that I definitely had a chance. I mean, I felt like I had a chance when I birdied 13 and 14. I knew then I've probably got a good chance. I needed to finish with some good scores. But I knew I had a chance then.

Q. How good a golf was 66-66 this weekend here?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: It was solid. It wasn't like awesome, but it was pretty solid.

Q. And have you ever gone into a major feeling this confident in your game?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I mean, I've got a lot of confidence for sure. I mean, I've had a good couple weeks the last couple weeks. I've felt like the game is in pretty good shape. It can definitely get better, though.

Q. Not to pry too much, but you said Paulina was on the phone, on Facetime. Were you solo daddying it here this week?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, she went back Friday morning, left me with the little man. So yeah, just me and him hanging out this weekend. It's perfect.

Q. That's pretty tough to shoot 66-66 on the weekend plus playing dad off the course all by yourself, too, isn't it?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I've got a nanny, so that helps. (Laughter.)

Q. How has fatherhood helped your game do you think?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I mean, golf isn't the most important thing anymore. I don't know if that helps or hurts or what. But he's most important, and whether I shoot a good score or a bad score, when I see him, it doesn't matter.

Q. It looks like you go to No. 2 in the world. How is that, and how close do you think or how important would it be for you to take it one more step?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, that's the goal is to get to that No. 1 spot. But yeah, I mean, it's important. I've still got a lot of work to do to get there. It's not just getting there, you want to stay there. I'm looking forward to the challenge.

Q. And for the talk of 17 and 18, I'm just curious how important 15 was for you from that spot and what kind of shot you had and just not dropping one there.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I mean, the short game has been really good, and then, too, it helps when I'm rolling it well. I just need to hit a good chip and get it up there somewhere close to the hole.

Yeah, I mean, that was a big up-and-down because I hit a pretty poor tee shot. I hit a great chip to four or five feet and made it.

Q. What was your club on 13?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: 13, I hit a sand wedge.

Q. 14 was?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Sand wedge.

Q. You didn't have the best record here before this week. What was the biggest difference this week here from the past?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I mean, just the golf game is -- I felt like this week I definitely drove it better than I have in years past, and around this golf course it's very important to drive it well. You know, the fairways are narrow, rough is deep. It's like this every year. Just the driver was definitely the biggest improvement.

Q. And the fade, is it a swing thing, or is it a setup thing to get a left-right ball flight instead of the draw you were playing?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: You'll have to ask my coach. (Laughter.)

Q. Where do you put those trophies?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, they'll go in my new house once it's done. Right now they're in the rental. And the rest of them are in boxes.

Q. But they'll come out I take it, right?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, they'll come out.

Q. Are you building a trophy case in your new house?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I'm going to have kind of a golf room, locker room, trophy room kind of thing.

Q. How big did you build?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: What, the house?

Q. No, the trophy room.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I don't know, hopefully I've got to make it bigger.

Q. Earlier in the week I asked you kind of the theme after the Open was this is the beginning, Paulina said that in the magazine. Does this sort of make it feel even more like that now, now that you've got two in a row?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I mean, it's nice. It's the first time I've won two tournaments in a row. I know it wasn't like two consecutive tournaments, but consecutive tournaments that I played. I mean, that's big. I'm excited and looking forward to going over to the British with the golf game in good form.

Q. It was only a couple weeks ago that we were sitting in a room like this and asking when you're going to win your first major. Now you've won two in a row. Do you feel like your ability to win over your career is at all underrated?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I don't know. I feel like I'm doing okay. The press, I don't know, they can say whatever they want. But yeah, I mean, I could fly under the radar a little bit, which is fine with me. I just keep doing what I'm doing.

Q. Could you just go back, and the switch from the draw to the fade with the driver, did you have discussions with anybody? What was the actual process? Was it one day you said, hey, I'm doing this? How did it happen?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I was just struggling with the draw to get it in the fairway, so I said, I'm going to hit a fade, and I started hitting a fade.

Q. What do you do with your game going over to Troon?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Nothing.

Q. What adjustments do you make to your game?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: No, I mean, it's still a golf course. I like the kind of golf over there. I enjoy it. You've got to use a lot of imagination. It's generally windy, so you use the wind. You've got to use the ground. I mean, it's completely different than what we do here. I don't know, 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.

Q. Do you look at the course differently? You look at flags here. Do you find yourself --
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, it just depends on which course you're playing over there. I mean, obviously St. Andrews -- even at St. Andrews you've still got to use the greens, you've got to use the wind, use everything to get the ball close to the hole. It's the same pretty much at all the links courses. But the thing over there is you can run the ball up on the green on every hole pretty much. That's the big difference.

Q. What's your plan in terms of getting over there?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I'm going to go over -- I'll go over early. I'm not sure when, but I'll go over early and play some golf and hang out, and then I'll head over to Troon on Sunday.

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