Johnson Leads "PO 2 Consecutive Wins GO~"... What About Woods?

'PO Round 2' BMW Championship Day 3: Matsuyama Tied for Lead, Rahm and McIlroy Tied 6th, An Byeonghun Tied 21st

World No. 1 Dustin Johnson is teeing off on the 16th hole during the third day of the 'PO Round 2' BMW Championship. Olympia Fields, Illinois, USA = Getty Images / Multivitz

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] The probability of Dustin Johnson (USA), world No. 1, achieving 'PO 2 consecutive wins' has increased.

On the 30th (Korean time), at Olympia Fields Golf Club in Illinois, USA (par 70, 7,366 yards), during the third day of the second round of the PGA Tour Playoffs (PO), the BMW Championship (total prize money $9.5 million), Johnson reduced his score by one stroke to rise to a tie for first place (1-under 209). Hideki Matsuyama (Japan) joined the tie for first, while Joaquin Niemann (Chile), Mackenzie Hughes (Canada), and Adam Scott (Australia) are chasing from a tie for third place (1-over 211).

Johnson achieved a remarkable 11-stroke victory (30-under 254) at the first round of the PO, The Northern Trust, which ended on the 24th, securing not only first place in the PO but also the world No. 1 ranking. It is noteworthy that he displayed tremendous firepower, including a maximum drive of 327.2 yards on the second day, shooting 11-under. Following his win at the Travelers Championship in June, he has reached his second victory of the 2020 season in just two months, now challenging for his third win and 'PO 2 consecutive wins.'

In this tournament, his consistency stood out as he posted 1-under par for two consecutive days on a difficult course. The previous day, he had 4 birdies and 3 bogeys, and today, 2 birdies and 1 bogey. Although he started shakily with a bogey on the 1st hole (par 5), he recovered with a 2-meter birdie on the 3rd hole (par 4), and the bogey on the 5th hole (par 4) was offset by a birdie on the 8th hole (par 3). After maintaining pars, he finally made an under-par score with a birdie on the 15th hole (par 4) near the end. He expressed his hunter instinct, saying, "I want to enter the third round as the PO leader."

The actual No. 1 seed is important for Johnson. The PGA Tour introduced a new 'PO system' last year, awarding 'stroke bonuses' immediately after this tournament, such as 10-under for first place. The system applies different bonuses: 8-under for second place, 7-under for third, 6-under for fourth, 5-under for fifth, 4-under for sixth to tenth, 3-under for eleventh to fifteenth, 2-under for sixteenth to twentieth, 1-under for twenty-first to twenty-fifth, and even par for twenty-sixth to thirtieth. The higher the seed, the more advantageous it is to win the third round.

'Number 2' Jon Rahm (Spain) and Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) are tied for sixth place (2-over 212). Rahm recorded a daily best 4-under but made a regrettable mistake by picking up his ball without marking it on the green at the 5th hole (par 4), resulting in a one-stroke penalty. 'The returned golf emperor' Tiger Woods (USA) is tied for 55th place (10-over 220), and the red light is on for securing a ticket to the third round, which only 30 players advance to. For Korea, Byeong-Hun An (29) is tied for 21st place (5-over 215), and Sungjae Im (22, both from CJ Logistics) is 65th (13-over 223).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.