New Game, New Thinking: Dustin Johnson profile

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As part of the New Game, New Thinking series, Dustin Johnson, one of 25 rookies on the PGA TOUR this season, recently spent some time with PGATOUR.COM freelance writer Rudy Klancnik:

PGATOUR.COM: Let's face facts, it's not easy making a living out here. The downhill five-footers for par on No. 18 when you're a shot either way of making the cut can't be much fun. Isn't there another sport you could have tried instead?

DUSTIN JOHNSON: Wakeboarding. Yeah, wakeboarding. I love being on the water. I'm into anything on the water, but I'm a big fan of wakeboarding. I don't know what type of living I could ever make doing that, but it would be fun trying. But I don't mind the five-footers for par either. That's why I'm out here.

PGATOUR.COM: A lot of guys out here relish the chance to face the pressure. How do you best deal with the pressure shots?

JOHNSON: I've been playing competitively for a while and it's important to stay within yourself on each and every shot. Not that I do that every time, but I'm getting better in my approach to each shot and each round. It's a challenge not to look up at the scoreboard in the middle of your second round to see where the cut line is going to be. I try not to, but it creeps in again and again.

PGATOUR.COM: Making the cut seems like a ton more pressure than sinking a putt to win a title, would you say?

JOHNSON: Absolutely. The competition out here is unbelievable. I've been amazed at how high the bar is set from week to week. Making the cut is a huge deal. My focus has to be more on each single shot instead of scoreboard watching, though.

PGATOUR.COM: How much scoreboard watching did you do at the 2007 PGA TOUR National Qualifying Tournament?

JOHNSON: Now that's pressure. I finished 14th so I was pretty safe, but you just never know on that thing. It's a grinder. I've never experienced anything more pressure packed than that.

PGATOUR.COM: I notice that you were born the same year I graduated from high school (1984). I don't really have a question here, but I just bring it up to point out how freaking old I am now. Seems like yesterday that I was a single guy like you just starting my career. Must be nice.

JOHNSON: I do love being out here and competing on the TOUR. The people I meet and the places I've already gotten to visit have been very memorable. Now I just need to start playing better for longer stretches and it'll all come together.