THE 152ND OPEN

July 19, 2024

Dustin Johnson

Mixed Zone

Q. You told me on Wednesday you've been playing real well lately. Is this more what you had in mind than yesterday, I guess?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, yesterday I didn't play bad. A couple of bad drives on the back nine is what cost me. Didn't hit many fairways. Today hit a few more fairways.

I feel like I'm swinging the irons good, rolling it good. I gave myself a lot of chances. Missed a couple of short ones, but I rolled the putter really nice. Like I said, the short game feels -- everything feels really good. Just need to get in the fairway a little bit more. I drove it a little better today, though.

Q. When you were 3-over yesterday, did you ever think to yourself, well, I could miss the cut here. Or were you pretty confident you were going to bounce back?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, I've been playing good. Never really think about that. Just try to hit a good score.

Obviously the wind is going to pick up this afternoon, never know what's going to happen. Obviously I would have liked to get one more in there and get it back to even, but still as I sit now, it's not too bad. Probably not going to be too far off. With a good weekend, you never know.

Q. Tell me about the eagle.

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I hit two really good shots. I hit 7-wood off the tee, and I hit a 5-iron in from 265 or something, 267, something like that. Downwind, I was just trying to hit kind of a flat one and chase it up between the bunkers and hit a nice shot.

Q. How far was the putt?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Probably 20 feet, something like that. Nice putt, though.

Q. Overall, you talked a little bit about it, but is there one primary difference maybe hitting more fairways today than yesterday?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, I just didn't drive it in trouble really. The only one -- I even hit a good shot on 10. I made bogey there. I had a really nice look at par, just missed a short one. I thought I hit a good shot on 10, and it chased halfway up the mound on the right. Then I thought I hit a good second shot, and it fell just off the right. Hit a good chip and a good putt, easy 5.

Other than that, I drove it pretty good, kept it nice on the right side of the fairways. Didn't hit any bunkers, which is --

Q. Out here is something.

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Yeah, kind of what you've got to do.

Q. How would you assess your form coming into this week, especially in some of the majors?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: I haven't played great in them, but I feel like I'm playing better golf than my scores, if that makes any sense. I feel like I'm swinging well, I'm doing a lot of things really well. I'm just not getting the scores out of it.

Obviously today got a little bit better score. Yeah, I feel like the last few months I've been playing better than what the results have been.

The U.S. Open, I felt like I was playing really good going into there, and unfortunately I got sick. I don't know if I had the flu or whatever. Trying to play that golf course in the heat with not feeling good was not fun.

I didn't play that bad. It was just really hard to play.

Q. I remember you telling me at the Masters (indiscernible).

DUSTIN JOHNSON: That's what I'm saying. It's been like that for the longest I can remember in my career really where I'm playing good golf, just not shooting good scores. But it's golf. It's frustrating. It's always going to be that way, but it turns around really quick usually.

I feel like I'm doing all the right things and some good scores are to come for sure.

Q. Have you felt like the scores these first two rounds have been more reflective of how you're playing?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: No. Yesterday still just kind of missed one drive, but I made a good 5 on 13. Obviously lost the ball on 15 again.

It's just like the misses, they were just barely off where generally when you're playing good, those misses you turn into pars instead of make a couple bogeys, and then bogeying 16 from the middle of the fairway, just you don't do stuff like that.

It was a day where I should have probably shot even in the tough conditions. That's how I played. Then I shot a few over. Yesterday was a little more of the same. Today was a little bit better.

Q. What's your attitude or approach going into tomorrow? Moving day and all that sort of thing.

DUSTIN JOHNSON: You can't -- this golf course, you've just got to take what it gives you. I think the wind is going to be generally -- it's supposed to be blowing pretty much the same direction. A lot of fairways, a lot of greens, hopefully you can roll in a 10 or 20-footer.

Q. Now you're six back, but that could come back down. What's reasonable on this golf course as a comeback? How far back can you come from to challenge?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: It all depends. It just depends on the weather really. Tough conditions, you don't need to be -- you can be pretty far behind as long as you play well.

Q. You feel like you're a good player in these kind of conditions?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: I like it. You've got to hit good shots, and you've got to hit quality shots all day, no matter off the tees, into the greens. Obviously when it's this windy, it even affects the speed of the putt, so you've got to play the wind on the putts, and it's difficult.

Q. Any family members, any friends here for you this week?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Well, my brother's here.

Q. Yeah, I hope so. If he's not --

DUSTIN JOHNSON: No, my wife, her and a couple of friends are in Saint-Tropez. I'll meet her on Sunday.

Q. She doesn't like this weather?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: I don't blame her.