Imperious Dustin Johnson Produces Exhibition Display to Secure the BMW Title

DUSTIN JOHNSON recovered from a shaky start to win the BMW Championship at Crooked Stick and take the lead in the FedEx Cup standings with only the Tour Championship standing between him and a $10m bonus cheque.

The US Open champion birdied the opening hole and found himself four shots ahead of Paul Casey but as the Englishman birdied the second and third, Johnson dropped a couple of shots and they went to the fourth tee level on 18 under par. After failing to close the deal at the Deutsche Bank Championship, Casey was determined that history was not going to repeat itself seven days later - and had he holed a couple of short-ish putts on the fourth and fifth holes then he would have been ahead of Johnson.

Those misses would come back to haunt him. Johnson got back on track with birdies at the fifth, seventh and eighth. He picked up another at the 11th but then dropped a shot at the 13th and was back in control, three in front of Casey.

At the 15th, a par five, Casey found the green in two with an iron from 250 yards and holed the putt for an eagle to move to 20 under par. He was now only one behind Johnson, but the American had also reached the same green in two and had a shorter, left to right putt for an eagle of his own - and wouldn't you just know it, he holed his two to go 23 under par and lead by three with three holes to play. 

They each parred the 16th and 17th holes and came to the final hole with Johnson still leading by three. Casey struggled in the final round of the Deutsche Bank but this time he could hardly have done more. They both parred the final round for matching rounds of 67.

"I played really solid all week," said Johnson. "I drove the ball well, putted well and wedged the ball well. All the work I have put in on my wedge game has paid off for me and this week I putted really well too."

It is hard to believe that just over two years ago a troubled Johnson walked away from the game to sort out his personal problems and now he is challenging Jason Day for top spot in the world rankings, with his first major in the bag.

Make no mistake, despite the incredible scoring of the top two, this is an incredibly difficult golf course, with trouble waiting around every corner.

Robert Castro, who started the tournament in 53rd place in the FedEx Cup standings, finished third on 17 under and it was good enough to take him from 53rd to 21st place and secure  one of the 30 spots on offer at the Tour Championship at East Lake..

Before the start, all eyes were on JB Holmes. He was four behind Johnson and knew that a good finish would almost certainly secure him, one of Davis Love's Ryder Cup wildcards, but he dropped shots at the sixth, seventh and eighth and although he found some birdies, his challenge ended with a double-bogey six at the 14th. He still managed to finish on 12 under, in a tie for fourth place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJXVYGSnDbw

At least Holmes had the satisfaction of knowing that  he had managed to scrape through to East Lake in 28th place. But there were some high-profile casualties and they included Justin Rose, Luke Donald, Brooks Koepka and Rickie Fowler. Charl Schwartzel, meanwhile, squeezed through in 30th place thanks to a fabulous final round of 64, having begun the week in 43rd position.

Jason Day, the world No1, had to withdraw because of a back injury. It meant he slipped to fourth in the rankings and may not even start at East Lake. Johnson leads the way, Patrick Reed is second, Adam Scott fourth, Casey fifth and Rory McIlroy sixth.

They get next week off, and then the top 30 head to East Lake in Atlanta to bring the curtain down on the 2015-16 PGA Tour season - and then comes the Ryder Cup.

In Johnson's Bag at the BMW Championship

• M1 Special Edition Driver / 10.5* / Fujikura Speeder Evolution 2.0 Tour Spec 661X shaft (D4 swingweight)
• M1 Fairway / 17* / Aldila RIP Alpha 90X M1 Fairway / 19* / Aldila RIP Alpha 90X 
• Tour Preferred MB ('14) Irons / 3-9, PW / True Temper Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 
• Tour Preferred EF Wedges / 52* & 60* (Tour Grind) / KBS Tour Wedge 130X Black Nickel 
• Spider Limited Putter / 35 inches, 2.5* loft , 69 lie angle w/ 80/20 Pure Roll insert 
• Tour Preferred X Golf Ball (#1) 
• Tour Preferred Glove 
• New Era 9Fifty Snapback Hat 
• adidas Golf Tour360 Boost Footwear 
• adidas Golf apparel

KLM Open

JOOST LUITEN is the toast of Holland after producing a stunning final round on his home course to win the KLM Open in front of a huge and adoring crowd.

Luiten appeared to have lost momentum in the third round and declared that he was going to go out and attack The Dutch, at Spijk. And boy, did he ever. He shot a blistering final round of 63 for a 19-under-par finishing total to beat Bernd Wiesberger by three shots.

You have top feel sorry for Wiesberger, who shot a last round of 65 but lost ground on Luiten. Ben An, of South Korea was third on 13 under after also shooting a 65.

The thing that struck you was the noise. With every stunning iron shot and every holed birdie putt from Luiten the roars resonated around the golf course, leaving nobody in any doubt whatsoever that the huge Dutch crowd were cheering on one of their own. It is the second time that Luiten has won his national open, but this victory will give him greater satisfaction both for the quality of his play and the fact that he was ending a victory drought of two years.

The 30-year-old won for the first time in 2011, added two more victories in 2013 and then again in 2014 at the Wales Open. He has come close many times since without being able to finish the job, so this victory really matters to him.

Naturally, he was thrilled with his performance. "I can't believe it, it has been a special week," he said. "I was in the zone today, holing putts and hitting great iron shots. This is the best round of golf I have played as a professional. The fans make it even more special for me - they were just amazing. I am a member of this course and know it well but you never know how that is going to work out for you."

Luiten made a dream start with birdies at the first and second holes. He also birdied the sixth and seventh and although he dropped a shot at the eighth, he bounced straight back with another birdie at the ninth to reach the turn at 31. By then, we all knew that we were watching something pretty special. But could he maintain it? Of course he could. More birdies followed at the 10th and 11th and by now he was cruising. However, it wasn't all over yet. He hit his ball in the water at the 13th and it cost him a bogey. On another day, that might have stopped the momentum, but not on this day. He birdied the 14th and 15th and after a stunning approach to the 17th he picked up another to move to eight under for the day.

He stood on the 18th tee with a three-shot lead and was able to enjoy his stroll down the final fairway, with the Dutch fans going crazy every step of the way. A safe par at the final hole and it all added up to a course record-equalling 63 and a fabulous winning total of 265.

Wiesberger made a stunning start of his own with birdies at the fourth and fifth followed by an eagle at the sixth. Like Luiten, he reached the turn in 31, and picked up further shots at the 12th, 13th and 15th. But his challenge ended at the 17th - he bogeyed the hole while Luiten birdied it and that two-shot swing was enough to secure the victory for the Dutchman.

Ben Evans, of England, began the week in 143th place in the Race to Dubai, but secured his card for next season with a final round of 70 and a share of fourth place. "I am really happy, although I have to do some work on my iron play," he said. "I was lucky enough to play with Joost and it was fantastic to watch him. Every shot he hit was as straight as an arrow, right at the hole. He played some superb golf despite all the pressure of playing in front of a home crowd who were willing him on."

Scott Hend, the 54-hole leader, missed out for the second week on the trot. He shot a disappointing 73 to finish on 12 under.