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THE BARCLAYS

August 27, 2016

Dustin Johnson

Farmingdale, New York

Q. Is a 67, what changed for you today?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I had three weeks off, so the first couple rounds, I was a little rusty. Starting to hit it a little better, knocking some of the rust out.

Today was just a little more solid. Hit better shots from the fairways and made a few more birdies today. That was just the difference.

Q. What's been the focus of your work on the range?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Just getting some rhythm back. I had three weeks off. I played a little bit. I didn't practice very much. I was just a little bit rusty, and then my driver, the driver I've been playing is cracked, so working on a new driver.

It's good, but it's just not the same. So you know, starting to figure it out a little bit. It will keep getting better.

Q. 17 today, talk us through this one.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, 7-iron. I think it was like 190 to the front. It was helping out of the left. Just hit a nice, solid 7-iron there. Hit a great shot in there.

Q. A dropped shot at 18 but overall, a very tidy round of golf. We know the season you've had, the breakthrough season, the major win. Some of your best results and obviously the hot stretch with the WGC, and then the PGA Championship. What happened and what do you focus on heading into these Playoff events?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Just didn't play that great. I never really got that comfortable off the tees there. Just didn't hit it very good. Didn't putt good. Didn't do anything very good. So it adds up to missing the cut. I played good for so long, and then just didn't hit it that great.

Q. Player of the Year honors up for grabs, as well as the FedExCup. What do the next few weeks mean for you?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Obviously the FedExCup is very important. There's quite a few really good tournaments left, including this one, and then we've got three more after this.

Yeah, I need to get the game ready and hopefully I'm FedEx Champion at the end of this year.

Q. Great round today, 4-under today, 4-under overall. What was working?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I just played a little bit better today. The first couple days, I was a little bit rusty. Three weeks off, coming right back in. So I knew I was going to be a little rusty and just so I've been grinding a little bit in the afternoons practicing. Starting to feel a little bit better. I hit some better shots today. Looking forward to tomorrow and the rest of the Playoffs.

Q. Is there anything in particular that really clicked and worked for you today or is it just all rust?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, my timing was just a little bit off the first couple of days. I hit some good shots but it's like my misses were really bad. Even today, I missed a couple that weren't too good. But the good shots were a lot better today.

Q. Let's talk about the final hole. You've bogeyed it every day, but you're not the only one, though, you know what I mean. It's a tough hole. Kind of tell people what makes it so tough.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: It's not, though. I just hit terrible tee shots every single day off the hole. So I mean, every day it's a 3-iron and like a 9-iron or 8-iron. I just haven't hit the fairway. But any hole out here, if you miss the fairway, they are tough. This golf course, the rough is pretty deep. It's long. You've got to hit fairways.

Q. But you've got to feel good about where you're sitting heading into Sunday now.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I need to go out and shoot another really good score tomorrow.

Q. So how was it today?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: It was better. It was better. I mean, the first couple days, just rust, real rusty. Even today, though, I still threw away a couple shots. But it's getting better. Just got to keep practicing. I mean, after three weeks off, I know the first week back is going to be challenging. I still feel like I'm right there.

Depending on what the leaders do, I don't know if I have a chance to win, unless I do something really special. But I'm pretty happy with my position after three rounds with the way I've played. Especially the first two days, I really just scraped it around. Today I hit a lot better shots. I had a lot more looks at birdies and played a little bit more solid.

Q. Reed says as the week goes on, the golf course gets closer to U.S. Open standards, crusty greens, rough is a little thicker.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: The golf course is tough. You've got to drive it straight. For me, probably the biggest thing is my driver that I've been playing that I've been driving so well with this year, it's got a few cracks on the top of the face. It's gone, so I've been using a new driver this week. So I'm trying to get used to that. I mean, it's good. It's not the same, but still, just one other thing I've got to deal with this week.

Q. When did you discover that it was cracked?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: It's been like that for awhile. Any swing now, it's going to go.

Q. How long had you had that in the bag?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Since BMW last year. Almost made it a year.

Q. What's the longest you've made it with a driver?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I have no idea.

Q. Is that kind of pretty standard, though, a year?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I don't know, like I've never had an issue with them breaking ever. This one, I guess I hit so many balls with it.

Q. You didn't think about changing it at the U.S. Open, did you?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: No. It was fine. It happened maybe at the PGA.

Q. So you're back to the beard. Can't make up your mind?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: I had some good success with the beard, so I think I'm going to keep it for a little while here.

Q. You won a major clean-shaven.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: No, I had the beard.

Q. First modern player to win a U.S. Open with the beard.
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Keep it.

Q. When Davis Love comes to you and says, who do you want to play fourball with, what are you going to say?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Fourball? It doesn't matter. I'll play with anybody. I mean, I'm trying to think who.

Q. Brooks?
DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, Brooks would be good. I know me and Jordan team well together obviously. And then I played with Kuch some. But Brooks is my buddy. We play a lot of golf together, so I think we'd be a tough team, especially I think both of us make a lot of birdies. But doesn't matter. I'll play with anybody.

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