Chat-World » a three-putt on the last hole at Chambers

TROON, Scotland -- As if Royal Troon isnt hard enough, what with the leaf-blower-strong Scottish winds, the sideways summer rains and the cheese-cracker-small Postage Stamp par-3, now comes a new, even more chilling threat.Dustin Johnson.Johnson has done what many of the other 155 players in the Open Championship field feared he would eventually do. He has figured it out. Or more precisely, figured himself out.We can talk about his prowess, [but] theres not many guys who can do what he does, said defending Open champion Zach Johnson. I just like watching him play golf. There are only so many guys you can watch. Hes one you can watch.There has never been much of a debate when it comes to which player on tour is the most physically gifted. That would be 32-year-old Johnson, who can dunk a basketball, do standing backflips and, oh, by the way, hit a driver that goes longer than some regional jet routes.The problem has never been Johnsons talent. His talent makes your knees wobble. It renders yardage books irrelevant. He looks at par-5s as long par-4s, and short par-4s as long par-3s.His longtime agent, David Winkle, remembers following Johnson during a college conference tournament shortly before DJ turned pro. Winkle stood off the fairway near the usual landing area of a 320-yard par-4, then turned back to watch Johnson on the tee box.He holds his finish, flies it over the other two guys, whose drives were about 60 yards short of the green, and the ball lands 15 feet, pin high, like a dropped bag of sand, Winkle said. He walks by, and I say, Man, Dustin, great shot. He says, Wink, you know, its just a perfect 3-wood today.A 3-wood ... 320 yards ... pin high.Hes a supreme athlete, and it just so happens that his sport -- for all of us, unfortunately -- is golf, Zach Johnson says.But until last month at Oakmont, Johnson had been unable to connect the dots between himself and a major championship. He would come tantalizingly and soul-crushingly close, but then something so DJ-ish would happen: an accidental bunker at Whistling Straits in the 2010 PGA Championship, a final-round 82 at Pebble Beach in the 2010 U.S. Open, out of bounds at Royal St. Georges in the 2011 Open Championship, a three-putt on the last hole at Chambers Bay in the 2015 U.S. Open.Now look at him. Johnson won a U.S. Open trophy in June, then backed it up two weeks later with a WGC-Bridgestone championship. He leads the tour in top-10 finishes this season, has moved to a career-best No. 2 in the world rankings and is one of the favorites to win this week at the 145th Open Championship.Hes as relaxed and confident on the golf course as Ive ever seen, Winkle said. I think hes got a lot more in the tank.You could say golf owed Johnson a major. But the truth is, Johnson owed golf. Nobody with those kinds of skills should go an entire career without slipping on a green jacket or kissing a Claret Jug, or raising a U.S. Open or Wannamaker trophy.There was no epiphany moment for Johnson. He and his game have evolved, matured. Maybe it began in 2014, when he took a self-described leave of absence from the tour to attend to personal issues. Maybe he has found a deepening stability and happiness with fiancée Paulina Gretzky and their 19-month-old son, Tatum. Or maybe, to borrow a line from Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon, he doesnt vibrate at the same frequency as others.At that 2011 Open Championship, Johnson emerged from the scorers trailer not in a funk after finishing T-2, but almost with a smile.How about that, he said to Winkle. My best finish ever in a major.And after each of those golf disasters, Johnson would never hide from the media. He might not say much, but at least he stopped and talked, even after he lost the U.S. Open because of a three-putt par on a Chambers Bay 18th green that had been reduced to glorified dirt.Everybody wanted him to wallow in disappointment, Winkle said. But with him, its nobody elses fault. Theres no pouting, no 30 minutes needed to cool down.The pre-Chambers Bay/Royal St. Georges/Whistling Straits/Pebble Beach version of Johnson might not have won at Oakmont. But Johnson kept it together, even as the USGA embarrassed itself in the final round with its comical penalty process.In retrospect, his previous majors failures prepared him for that exact moment, and he responded with a striped drive and then a 6-iron to 5 feet on a final hole, said Zach Johnson, that you dont hit a 6-iron to [5] feet... That was impressive.Will DJ win this week? Put it this way: He can neuter any course with his distance. His short game (especially his improved wedge play) is underrated. He has been freed from the pressures of winning his first major. And since 2010, he has two top-10s and four top-15 finishes at the Open Championship. So, yeah, I like his chances.Johnson makes his official Royal Troon media center appearance on Wednesday. Dont expect many revelations. As usual, his game is what speaks the loudest. Keyshawn Johnson Youth Jersey . LOUIS -- Lance Lynn was one of the more enthusiastic participants as the St. Quinnen Williams Womens Jersey . Burke is expected to miss two to three months after breaking a finger in the teams third preseason game. Tinsley, a 10-year veteran, spent the last two seasons in Utah, where the point guard averaged 3. http://www.authenticnyjetspro.com/Keyshawn-johnson-jets-jersey/ . LOUIS -- Valtteri Filppula assisted on three of Tampa Bays four goals, and the Lightning beat the St. LaDainian Tomlinson Jets Jersey . The Vikings announced Thursday that Priefer will be one of seven holdovers from the previous staff, along with offensive line coach Jeff Davidson, wide receivers coach George Stewart and others. Norv Turner will mark his 30th year of coaching in the NFL as the offensive co-ordinator, as widely reported for weeks, and George Edwards will be the defensive co-ordinator. LeVeon Bell Jets Jersey . Both players have lower body injuries that will keep them out of the lineup until at least January 31, which is the first game they can be activated from IR. ' ' '