Dustin Johnson

Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy are two of the most experienced golfers on their respective Ryder Cup teams. 

However, their results in the team event have been average at best. 

Johnson is 7-9 in Ryder Cup matches. He enters Whistling Straits as the most experienced American with four Ryder Cup appearances. Jordan Spieth and Brooks Koepka are the only other golfers with multiple Ryder Cup stars in their careers. 

McIlroy's five Ryder Cup appearances make him very experienced on the European squad, but that number pales in comparison to Lee Westwood and Sergio Garcia, who have 19 Ryder Cup starts between them. 

McIlroy has a better Ryder Cup mark than Johnson, but he is barely over .500 at 11-9-4 since he first appeared in the competition in 2010. 

Both players are the second favorites on the odds charts to earn the most points for their respective teams, but there could be better bets out there. 

The full odds breakdown for the Ryder Cup can be found here on DraftKings Sportsbook.

        

Betting Advice

Stay Away From Dustin Johnson To Start

Johnson posted one of the worst individual records at the last Ryder Cup in 2018.

The former No. 1 overall player in the world went 1-4 with his only win coming in the opening session of the weekend. 

Johnson won in the Friday morning four-ball round alongside Rickie Fowler, but then he lost in the Friday afternoon foursomes with the same partner. 

The two-time major winner then went on to lose twice on Saturday, once with Fowler and once with Koepka. 

Johnson stumbled on Sunday by losing two down to Ian Poulter, who has been Europe's Ryder Cup ace over the last decade. Poulter is 14-6-2 in Ryder Cup matches. 

The 37-year-old Johnson is not in his best form at the moment. He missed the cut at two of his last five PGA Tour events and produced a few rounds in the 70s. 

The United States needs Johnson to look better on the course at Whistling Straits on Friday and Saturday to provide some veteran experience while the six Ryder Cup rookies get acclimated to the competition.

At the moment, Johnson is listed as second to Justin Thomas to be the top American points-earner. Thomas went 4-1 in 2018, while Spieth and Koepka have better overall winning percentages at the event in multiple Ryder Cups. 

Johnson has the potential to be a top American performer, but his track record at the event suggests that you should not fire on any props involving him yet. 

         

Target Rory McIlroy In Team Rounds

In 2018, McIlroy teamed up with Poulter and Garcia to win a match each on Friday and Saturday. 

Team Europe captain Padraig Harrington could rely on a similar strategy to pick up some early points in the four-ball and foursome events on Friday. 

The European squad only has three Ryder Cup rookies, so Harrington does not have to worry about a lack of experience off the bat. 

It would be wise of Harrington to put his most experienced players together right away to take advantage of any nerves the six American Ryder Cup rookies may have on Friday. 

McIlroy and Poulter could form a lethal duo for Team Europe given their experience and Ryder Cup winning percentages. 

Even if McIlroy is partnered with someone else, he should be someone to bet on during the Friday and Saturday team rounds. 

In 2016, McIlroy formed a terrific partnership with Thomas Pieters that won three matches, two of which came against Johnson. 

McIlroy is worth a look as Europe's top points scorer at +450 and his play could help Europe cash in on the props to win the four-ball and foursome sessions on both days. Europe is at +200 to win either session on Friday. 

      

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The 2021 FedEx Cup playoffs begin Thursday with the Northern Trust at Liberty National Golf Club in New Jersey.

The tournament is the first of three over a three-week span that will determine the PGA Tour champion for the 2020-21 season, which began in September.

One hundred and twenty-five golfers will converge on Liberty National Golf Club. The players at the top of the standings are more likely to survive the two rounds of cuts. The field gets trimmed from 125 to 70 for the BMW Championship and then the top 35 players qualify for The Tour Championship.

                

FedEx Cup Standings

1. Collin Morikawa: 2,171 points

2. Jordan Spieth: 2,139

3. Patrick Cantlay: 2,056

4. Harris English: 2,039

5. Jon Rahm: 2,003

6. Abraham Ancer: 1,926

7. Bryson DeChambeau: 1,910

8. Louis Oosthuizen: 1,877

9. Justin Thomas: 1,759

10. Sam Burns: 1,721

Full FedEx Cup standings can be found on PGATour.com.

         

The points system within the FedEx Cup playoffs works differently than the regular season.

The winners of the Northern Trust and BMW Championship receive 2,000 FedEx Cup points, which is four times the amount earned for a regular-season victory.

The second-place finisher receives 1,200 points, third place is worth 760 points, fourth carries 540 points and fifth is worth 440 points. The full FedEx Cup points breakdown can be found here.

Collin Morikawa, Jordan Spieth and the other golfers on top of the FedEx Cup standings have a bit more wiggle room on the leaderboard for the first playoff tournament. Those golfers do not need to win the competition. As long as they finish in a reasonable position, they will make the cut to advance to the BMW Championship.

The real drama at the Northern Trust comes on the cut line for 70th place. J.T. Poston is 70th with Bubba Watson, Harold Varner III, Seamus Power, Brandon Hagy and Andrew Putnam directly beneath him.

PGATour.com broke down the scenarios for Watson and every golfer from 71st to 125th on the projected finish they will need to ensure a spot at the BMW Championship.

Of course, a victory changes everything in the bubble picture and would allow any golfer in the bottom tier of the rankings to move on to next week's competition. However, it could be hard for any of the bubble golfers to win the Northern Trust since it has typically been won by the game's top stars.

Dustin Johnson has two victories in the past four years, including last year's event at TPC Boston. Patrick Reed and Bryson DeChambeau won in the two years between Johnson's triumphs.

The FedEx Cup leaders see the winning points total as valuable as well since the top 30 players start on different levels at the Tour Championship. The leader after the BMW Championship begins the final event of the season at 10 under. If Morikawa, Spieth or any of the top players win in the next two weeks, they would enter East Lake in Atlanta with a valuable edge.

Kramer Hickok and Bubba Watson share the lead with 18 holes remaining at the 2021 Travelers Championship.

They finished Saturday with identical scores of 10-under par. Jason Day had a chance to make it a three-way tie for the top spot, but a bogey on the final hole moved him into a tie for second place.

Hickok opened the tournament in style with a seven-under par 63. He followed that up with a 69 on Friday and 68 on Saturday. 

After posting consecutive rounds of 66, Watson put up a solid 68 on Saturday. He missed a five-foot birdie putt on No. 18 that would have given him the outright lead. 

Dustin Johnson put together the round of the day on Saturday. The world's top-ranked player finished with a 65 to move up 49 spots into a tie for ninth place at seven-under par. 

2021 Travelers Championship Leaderboard

T1. Kramer Hickok (-10)

T1. Bubba Watson (-10)

T3. Jason Day (-9)

T3. Cameron Smith (-9)

T3. Russell Henley (-9)

T6. Harris English (-8)

T6. Brice Garnett (-8)

T6. K.H. Lee (-8)

T9. Dustin Johnson (-7)

T9. Matt Jones (-7)

T9. Bryson DeChambeau (-7)

Full leaderboard can be seen at PGATour.com

Hickok moved into sole possession of the lead with a birdie putt on No. 14. He followed it up with a second straight birdie on No. 15 that gave him a two shot advantage. 

Willed it in. 👊

Make that back-to-back birdies.

The lead is two for @KramerHickok. pic.twitter.com/M92Lcq9mVc

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 26, 2021

Every aspect of Hickok's game had been in lock step for the first 52 holes he played since Thursday. His driving accuracy (83.3 percent) and greens in regulation (79.6 percent) have been close to flawless. 

Once Hickok gets on the green, he's been averaging 2.02 strokes gained with the putter for the entire tournament. 

Things took a turn for Hickok once he got to No. 17 when his short game let him down. The native Texan looked to be in a good position after his tee shot landed in the fairway, but his second shot went in the fairway just beyond the green. 

Two shots later, Hickok missed a 10-foot par putt and had to settle for bogey. 

The same thing happened to Hickok on No. 18, right down to missing a 10-foot putt and taking a bogey that dropped him into a tie for the lead. 

Day followed up his second-round 62 with a decent performance on Saturday that kept him right in the mix. He made the turn at even par and stayed that way until making a six-foot birdie putt on No. 15. 

At one point in the day, the 15th hole had been bad luck for players trying to pick up a stroke. 

The par-4 15th (293 yards) is a beast today. 😳

🔘 52 players have gone for the green in Round 3
🔘 0 have been successful pic.twitter.com/O4kjyyd4Gc

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 26, 2021

Watson looked like he might be challenging Johnson for the low score of the day based on how he started the third round. The 42-year-old had three birdies on his first seven holes and made the turn at three-under par for the day. 

The back nine did cause Watson some problems. He finished with three bogeys and two birdies during that stretch to go into the clubhouse with a 68 for the day. 

Watson did find his rhythm on No. 17 with this 20-foot birdie putt that put him into a tie for the top spot. 

.@BubbaWatson is here to stay. 💥 pic.twitter.com/omeziY5LKv

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 26, 2021

Even though Johnson has work to do on Sunday to catch the leaders, he's gotten better as the tournament has gone on. The defending champion at this event followed up his opening-round 70 with scores of 68 and 65. 

Hickok is in uncharted territory in his quest to win on the PGA Tour for the first time. 

Watson has a great history at this tournament with three career wins. Day, Johnson and Bryson DeChambeau are among the notable players within shouting distance of the lead. 

Given how crowded the entire leaderboard is at this point, there's no clear-cut favorite heading into Sunday's final round. 

The National Lacrosse League announced that hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, Brooklyn Nets head coach Steve Nash, two-time golf major winner Dustin Johnson and Nets governor Joe Tsai have been announced as co-owners of its new Las Vegas franchise.

Jess Golden of CNBC relayed the news from the NLL on Monday.

Last season, the NLL had 10 active franchises from coast-to-coast in the United States in addition to three Canadian teams.

However, the box lacrosse league has since expanded to 15.

Panther City Lacrosse Club of Fort Worth, Texas, is the 14th team in the league, and the squad will pick its roster via an expansion draft on June 29.

Las Vegas is the 15th franchise, and it will begin play in the fall of 2022. The team will play at MGM Resorts International’s Michelob Ultra Arena. The team name, logo and colors have yet to be determined, although the team is soliciting team name ideas from fans via www.lasvegaslacrosse.com.

According to KLAS-TV (Las Vegas' CBS affiliate), the NLL awarded Las Vegas its 15th franchise spot on May 26. Tsai was announced as the owner, with a reported purchase price of $10 million.

Tsai's co-owners have impeccable athletic resumes.

Gretzky, a nine-time NHL MVP and the league's all-time goals, assists and points leader, is the unquestioned hockey GOAT.

Johnson, who set the Masters record by shooting 20-under at the tournament in November 2020, is the No. 2 golfer in the world. He is Gretzky's son-in-law.

Nash is a two-time NBA MVP and Basketball Hall of Famer. He just finished his first season coaching the Nets, whom Tsai bought in September 2019.

After posting his best round Saturday, Dustin Johnson had his worst round of the weekend on the final day at the U.S. Open.

The world No. 1 shot a three-over-par 74 to finish the 2021 U.S. Open with an overall score of two over at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego, Califonia. With a handful of players still on the course, he entered the clubhouse in a tie for 20th place.

Johnson was alongside Collin Morikawa, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Xander Schauffele and Kevin Streelman in a tie for ninth entering Sunday, with the group four strokes back from leaders Mackenzie Hughes, Louis Oosthuizen and Russell Henley.

It looked like he had finally found his stride after an inconsistent weekend when he hit a par on the first three holes followed by a birdie on the 481-yard par-four No. 4 hole. But he couldn't keep it together and logged a pair of bogeys on two of his next three holes.

Ending the front nine with two pars sent him onto the back nine at one over on the day.

While it wasn't an impressive first half, it was nothing compared to his start on the back nine. Johnson logged a triple bogey on the 450-yard par-four. It was his worst hole of the weekend.

https://twitter.com/DJTrackr/status/1406726089309831168

He recovered smoothly enough in the short-term with a pair of pars and a birdie on the par-five No. 13—the longest hole of the course at 616 yards—but the damage was done. Even five consecutive pars to end the afternoon weren't enough to launch him back toward the top of the leaderboard.

He missed a total of 11.65 strokes on fairways, a figure that ranked 66th in the field, though he did manage to hit 61.0 percent of greens, which was slightly more than the 55.0 percent average, per USOpen.com.

Though he recovered from a start that saw him come close to missing the cut, the U.S. Open was another weekend where Johnson struggled to impress as the world No. 1, a title that now may be in jeopardy.

Dustin Johnson turned in his best performance of the 2021 U.S. Open on Saturday with a 68 that moved his overall score to one under par in San Diego, California.

The world's top-ranked player came into the third round trailing the leaders by seven shots. He continued his recent dominance on the front nine with two more birdies today.

If not for a brutal stretch on the back nine in the second round, Johnson could have found himself among the leaders at this point. He hit five bogeys during that stretch to card a 40 in those nine holes.

In the 45 holes outside of that stretch, Johnson has played the Torrey Pines South Course at six under.

Johnson started his third round on a high note with a birdie on the 457-yard par four.

After the strong opening, Johnson did make things difficult for himself frequently throughout the round. He followed up a tee shot on No. 2 that landed in the rough by hitting his second shot over the green, though he was able to salvage par.

Johnson hit fairway bunkers on the fourth and fifth holes that had the potential to derail him in the early going. Instead, he was able to salvage par both times. The 36-year-old had a 60-foot birdie putt on No. 5 that stopped just short of the hole.

Teeing off on the 470-yard seventh hole, Johnson set himself up nicely with a 325-yard drive down the middle of the fairway. He made a birdie from six feet out to get back to even par for the tournament.

Following a run of five straight pars, Johnson ran into his first significant problem of the day on hole No. 13. The South Carolina native had to settle for a bogey after missing a 15-foot par putt.

The 17th was big for Johnson because it ended a run of 13 straight holes on the back nine without a birdie.

https://twitter.com/DJTrackr/status/1406363756255457285

Heading onto the 533-yard 18th hole, Johnson was able to cut loose off the tee. His first shot landed in the fairway after traveling 330 yards. His second shot put him on the green with a 30-foot putt for eagle.

Even though Johnson was unable to convert for eagle, he did finish the day with another birdie.

The green is where Johnson did most of his best work in the third round. He only hit five of 14 fairways and got on the green in regulation 50 percent of the time, but he made up for it by needing just 24 total putts and gaining 4.71 strokes on the green.

If Johnson can clean up his long game Sunday, he could potentially finish the tournament inside the top 10 for the second consecutive year.

After an uneventful first round at the 2021 U.S. Open, Dustin Johnson put his weekend plans in jeopardy Friday at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.

The world No. 1, who won the tournament five years ago, shot even par in the opening round with one bogey and a birdie to offset it. But Friday, he hit six extra-stroke shots, including four in a row.

With his U.S. Open future on the line, he closed with two straight birdies to enter the clubhouse at two over in a tie for 43rd, above the cut line (top 60).

Heading into the tournament, Johnson said he wanted to take advantage of the two par-five holes. While he did that, logging birdies on No. 13 in both rounds and pars on No. 9, he struggled everywhere else.

He also wanted to focus on hitting fairways with his drives. After Round 1 saw him hit fairways on 36 percent of his attempts—compared to the field's 48 percent rate—he was worse Friday, when he hit 29 percent. 

Dustin Johnson is +4 for the tournament.

He already holds the mark for most missed cuts in majors while ranked number 1 in the world, with four. Greg Norman had three.

— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) June 18, 2021

https://twitter.com/DJTrackr/status/1405961236601266182

He didn't get off to a good start Friday with a bogey on the par-four No. 10, his opening hole. While he recovered with a pair of pars and a birdie, he couldn't keep that momentum going.

He bogeyed four holes in a row before securing a par on No. 18 to head to the front nine at four over par.

https://twitter.com/DJTrackr/status/1405937140995956739

Johnson fans, who had been vocal about a lack of television coverage, were probably thankful for the absence of cameras. 

A birdie on No. 2 redeemed him briefly, but a bogey on the par-four No. 5 set him back again. 

Sinking birdies on No. 7 and No. 8, though, improved his chances at playing another round.

He sits seven strokes back of leader Richard Bland, who logged a four-under round to usurp the lead held by Russell Henley and Louis Oosthuizen entering the day.

Johnson had notable company near the bottom of the leaderboard.

Collin Morikawa and Phil Mickelson both entered their second rounds at four over, while Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama is in trouble at three over par.

Will Zalatoris, who placed second in his Masters Tournament debut this spring, is seven over through 36 holes.

Five years after winning the U.S. Open title, Dustin Johnson shot an even-par 71 to open tournament play at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego, California on Thursday.

Johnson stayed out to finish his round after play was suspended due to darkness. Sunset in San Diego was at 7:59 p.m. local time, but the marine layer in the area may have contributed to it being called a few minutes earlier.

Sunset is 7:59 pm (PT) ⁦@usopengolf⁩ but with the marine layer not sure we’re going to get there. pic.twitter.com/ZFacQPBci0

— Rex Hoggard (@RexHoggardGC) June 18, 2021

Russell Henley and Louis Oosthuizen were the clubhouse leaders after Round 1, shooting 4-under for a one-stroke lead over Francesco Molinari and Rafa Cabrera Bello. 

Johnson had +1600 odds to win his second U.S. Open and his third major championship as he opened play, via DraftKings. The low expectations are likely due in part to his having missed the cut at the 2021 Masters in April, right before he did the same the PGA Championship in May. 

Before play started Thursday, he told reporters that the key to success at Torrey Pines would come on his drives: 

"If I can drive it well, I feel like I’m going to have a really good week," he said. "Fairways are pretty narrow, the course is long. If I can hit the driver good, I like my chances." 

It turned out that Johnson was right with his assessment, but he couldn't execute on his first 18.

He ended up losing 3.20 strokes to the rest of the field for missed fairways, according to U.S. Open stats. While his driving distance was just ahead of the field average, at 307.60 yards compared to 304.33, he only found the fairway on 31 percent of his drives compared to 48 percent from the rest of the field. 

He shot an even-par through his first five holes but didn't exactly follow through on his goals. He didn't hit a fairway until No. 4., but he still managed to keep himself afloat. 

Johnson didn't face his first real test until No. 7, when he bogeyed the par 4.  That was his only misfire at the front nine, but it was enough to have him far down the leaderboard heading to the second half.

He had a strong start to the back nine, racking up the pars though he wasn't able to avenge his earlier bogey until No. 13, when he birdied the par 5. 

https://twitter.com/DJTrackr/status/1405703333722169345

He finished the round as expected, one of 17 golfers to finish even after 18 holes. 

Johnson tees off at 10:51 a.m. ET on Friday alongside Rory McIlroy and Justin Rose. 

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Chesson Hadley continued his string of excellent golf Saturday to take a four-shot lead at the 2021 Palmetto Championship.

Hadley is 14-under-par thus far, but he will have to play a little extra golf Sunday because of the inclement weather in Ridgeland, South Carolina. Hadley, Dustin Johnson, Harris English and Tain Lee still have one hole from the third round to finish before starting the fourth round.

The third round of the Palmetto Championship at Congaree was called for the day at 8 p.m. ET with four players left on the course.

R3 will resume at 7:30 a.m. ET Sunday.

R4 tee times will be 8:05 a.m. - 1:50 p.m. ET off of 1 tee.

— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) June 13, 2021

There was plenty of movement behind Hadley on the leaderboard. Harris English moved up two spots into sole possession of second place at 10 under.

Things didn't go as well for Dustin Johnson, though he is still tied for third. The world's top-ranked player started the day two shots off the pace, but he was one-over for the round through 17 before play was suspended.

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Palmetto Championship Saturday Leaderboard

1. Chesson Hadley (-14)

2. Harris English (-10)

T3. Garrick Higgo (-8)

T3. Dustin Johnson (-8)

T5. Bo Van Pelt (-7)

T5. Tyrrell Hatton (-7)

T7. Seamus Power (-6)

T7. Tain Lee (-6)

T7. Danny Lee (-6)

T7. Luke Donald (-6)

T7. Jhonattan Vegas (-6)

T7. Doc Redman (-6)

T7. Pat Perez (-6)

Full leaderboard via PGATour.com.

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Hadley played perhaps his most efficient round of the weekend Saturday. He got off to a shaky start when his tee shot on No. 1 landed in the native area. The North Carolina native hit his second shot 39 yards to get back on the fairway but leaving him 110 yards away from the green.

After taking a bogey, Hadley settled in with eight consecutive pars to close out the front nine at one over.

The back nine is when Hadley did damage to put some distance between himself and the rest of the field. He had a run of four birdies in five holes from Nos. 12 to 16. His first birdie was a par-five save when his second shot landed in the bunker.

32-foot birdie and a snap. 👌

Three straight birdies and @ChessonHadley leads by 3. pic.twitter.com/ROn6w6iwYJ

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 12, 2021

This weekend marks an incredible turnaround for Hadley. The 33-year-old missed the cut in nine of his previous 11 events, including four straight, with no top-10 finishes all season. He's chasing his first PGA Tour win since the 2014 Puerto Rico Open.

One of the players who will attempt to put pressure on Hadley in the final round is English. He looked to be on his way to a near-perfect day, but a mistake off the tee on No. 17 led to his only bogey.

English started his day with five birdies through 16 holes, including two on par-threes. He sank a 38-footer on No. 10 that dropped his total to 10 under.

From 38 feet. 🕳@Harris_English is -4 today and now T2. pic.twitter.com/78mVcGCveN

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 12, 2021

Looking ahead to Sunday, English will need to reverse a seasonlong trend if he wants to catch Hadley. The 31-year-old's 70.15 scoring average in the final round is his second-worst average (71.18 in the first round).

Johnson will attempt to get back on track after a disappointing day on the course. He struggled to find any consistency or rhythm from hole to hole. The two-time major champion began to see his round fall apart on No. 5 when he bogeyed the par-three hole.

Another bogey on eight moved Johnson to one over for the day. It looked like he put things together with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 15 and 16, but a bogey on the following hole put him over par once again.

Tain Lee, who only made it into the field through qualifying Monday, continues to be one of the best stories of the tournament. He got off to a fantastic start in the third round with four birdies through five holes.

Tain Lee’s start today:

Birdie
Birdie
Par
Birdie
Birdie

The Monday Qualifier is the sole leader at Congaree. 👀 pic.twitter.com/BSsUFHy3UM

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 12, 2021

The back nine turned out to be a problem for Lee. He had a stretch of three bogeys and one double bogey from Nos. 13 to 17 that pushed his third-round score over par (72).

Lee is still part of a seven-way tie for seventh place and is in position to finish in the top 10 if he can close strong Sunday.

The No. 1 golfer in the world is once again sitting close to the top of the leaderboard heading into the weekend.

Through two rounds of play at the Palmetto Championship, Dustin Johnson finds himself nine under par and in second place for consecutive days. He trails current leader Chesson Hadley (11 under) by just two strokes. 

The 2021 PGA season hasn't been too kind to Johnson.

After the 36-year-old finished the Sentry Tournament of Champions tied for 11th—and the following month's Genesis Invitational tied for eighth—Johnson began to struggle. 

He tied for 54th at the WGC-Workday Championships, tied for 48th at The Players Championship and then missed the cut at the Masters and the PGA Championship. Only once since February has Johnson finished a weekend in the top 15 (T13 at RBC Heritage). 

Johnson may finally be correcting course at Congaree Golf Club in his home state of South Carolina. 

Palmetto Championship Friday Leaderboard

1. Chesson Hadley (-11)

2. Dustin Johnson (-9)

3. Tain Lee (-7)

T4. Harris English (-6)

T4. Chez Reavie (-6)

T4. Erik van Rooyen (-6)

T4. Pat Perez (-6)

T4. Seamus Power (-6)

T4. Wilco Nienaber (-6)

T10. Garrick Higgo (-5)

T10. Rob Oppenheim (-5)

T10. Doc Redman (-5)

T10. Patrick Rodgers (-5)

Notables: T20. Ian Poulter (-2), T29. Matt Fitzpatrick (-1), T44. Brandt Snedeker (E), T53. Tommy Fleetwood (+1).

Full leaderboard available via PGA Tour

Recap

Johnson followed up his opening round of 65 with a second-round 68, but it was really just one mistake that held him back Friday.

A double bogey on par-four No. 18 following a drop penalty off the tee took Johnson from five under on the day to three under. It was just the second bogey on the day for Johnson, who sank two birdies to open the round before picking up four more on the back nine.

When you’re on, you’re on. 🔥@DJohnsonPGA with a ridiculous shot. pic.twitter.com/BAHkXi7S4x

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 11, 2021

A bogey on par-four No. 13 was the only setback before Johnson reached the 18th. 

He'll enter Moving Day looking to gain ground on Hadley and stay in position to win his first tournament since he claimed The Masters in 2020. 

344-yard par 4.@DJohnsonPGA drives it to 20 feet. pic.twitter.com/ZaMGDu54Wl

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 11, 2021

Contending with one of the best golfers on the planet is the PGA's newest member, Wilco Nienaber. The 21-year-old from South Africa has been an absolute force with the driver this week, ranking first in shots off the tee this weekend at 340.3 yards in his tour debut. 

Average Driving Distance (All Drives) this week:

1. @WilcoNienaber 340.3 yards
2. @JhonattanVegas 326.3 yards
3. @DJohnsonPGA 324.9 yards
4. @Garrick_Higgo 322.8 yards
T5. @K_M_Mitchell 321.8 yards
T5. @JohnnyDPak 321.8 yards
T5. @ScottPiercyPGA 321.8 yards pic.twitter.com/NKy3287rsx

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 10, 2021

Nienaber shot back-to-back rounds of 68 to begin the weekend and put himself inside the top five heading into Saturday. An eagle on Friday paired with five birdies helped erase four bogeys on the day as the rookie moved up 15 spots on the leaderboard. 

Only four players have earned a victory in their tour debut with Emiliano Grillo's 2016 Frys.com Open serving as the most recent. Nienaber is looking to join Russell Henley (2013), Henrik Stenson (2007) and Garrett Willis (2001) as the only other golfers to achieve the feat. 

He'll have to get past both Johnson and Hadley to make that happen. The latter certainly isn't making that task any easier. Hadley put together seven birdies on two bogeys Friday while hitting 72.22 percent of his greens in regulation. 

Impressive birdie from @K_Kisner to get back to even. 🐦 pic.twitter.com/QbZ4z3yONj

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 11, 2021

Fortunately for the leaders, the one-over-par cut line took a number of tour veterans out of play for the weekend. Kevin Kisner (+2), Padraig Harrington (+3), Brooks Koepka (+3) and Harold Varner III (+5) all failed to make it to the weekend.