UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – Dustin Johnson 2.0 certainly has all of the characteristics of the original – tall, athletic, powerful and subtly confident – and his display on Thursday at the new-look U.S. Open checked off all of the familiar boxes – booming drives, fearless lines, effortless results.
But as the nine-time PGA Tour winner put the finishing touches on an opening-round 65 at crispy Chambers Bay there was no mistaking the fact that this guy is different.
With his signature economy of words, Johnson made that point clear when the subject turned to the last time he found himself in the mix at his national championship.