LIV Tulsa 2023 standings, scores: Dustin Johnson rallies late, beats Cameron Smith, Branden Grace in playoffs
The two best golfers in the LIV Golf league played against each other in Sunday’s playoffs at LIV Tulsa, and Dustin Johnson eventually scored a birdie on the first playoff hole to beat Cameron Smith and Branden Grace to win. won for the second time in LIV Golf history.
The DJ started 63-63 on Friday and Saturday with a respectable 67 on Sunday (with triple bogey) but was knocked out by Smith, who hit 61 in the final round to jump into the knockouts. next, where the DJ quickly scores him (and Grace) for the $4 million title.
“All wins are good,” said the DJ in a very DJ-like manner. “It will be the same [as my win in Boston, which came in a playoff over Anirban Lahiri and Joaquin Niemann. “I want to win as much as possible. But obviously winning in a playoff, too, for the second time, next time I’d like to win without going into a playoff would be a lot less stressful.”
The victory came on the other side of a rain delay at Cedar Ridge Country Club. Rain left the golf course soggy after some of the best players in the world tore it up for most of the week. There were 11 rounds of 63 or better over the course of the three-day event.
For D.J., it comes at a great time. He’s headed up to Oak Hill for the second major championship of the year on Sunday evening after his win. It’s the first top five he’s posted this year and the best he’s played since last September. He was below average (for him) at the Masters but takes a little juice to Oak Hill where he’ll try to collect his third major and knock off three-quarters of the career grand slam.
“Yeah, I think I did pretty well [at Oak Hill in 2013]”, he said of his T8 at that year’s PGA Championship. “Obviously it’s been a while, but yeah, I’m looking forward to it. Obviously it’s a really good golf course. It will be very difficult. I like tough golf courses. It will play hard, and from what I’ve heard, the raw is really deep.
“Yes, very much looking forward to it. I feel the game is going to be very good next week, so let’s see what happens.”
Johnson will likely benefit from the length of the stretch, the removal of tons of trees in Oak Hill and the opening of the entire golf course. It’s not crazy to think that he could win the league 20-1.
It’s also not crazy to think that Smith, who almost missed his second LIV win of his career, could also be a factor. His 61 on Sunday is tied for the best round of the week, and he’s three times in the PGA top 10 following a disappointing T34 at the Masters in April.
Other golfers who finished in the top 10 at LIV Tulsa and will play at Oak Hill include Brooks Koepka (T5) and Bryson DeChambeau (T5). Given how Oak Hill is likely to be set up, one of them could be a factor.
On the team side, Grace’s Stingers GC came close to leading DJ’s 4Aces -40 to -39 for the week.
