Dustin Johnson celebrates with Paulina Gretzky and son Tatum on the 18th green after making a birdie putt and winning his first major championship in the final round at the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on June 19, 2016. Johnson won with a score of 5 under par. Photo by Pat Benic/UPI |
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AUSTIN, Texas -- World No. 1 Dustin Johnson, crowd favorite Phil Mickelson and surprising Soren Kjeldsen of Norway were among the easy winners Saturday morning in the round of 16 at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play in cool and sun-splashed conditions at Austin Country Club.
That threesome was joined by No. 21 Jon Rahm of Spain, No. 47 Ross Fisher of England, No. 42 Bill Haas, No. 54 Hideto Tanihara of Japan and No. 8 Alex Noren of Sweden in the quarterfinals, which teed off early in the afternoon.
Dustin Johnson blew past No. 44 Zach Johnson, 5 and 4, thanks to five birdies in 14 holes and Zach Johnson's uncharacteristically poor wedge play.
Dustin Johnson, who won his last two tour events, has yet to have a match reach the 16th hole this week. He will play Noren, a 3-and-1 winner over No. 20 Brooks Koepka, in the quarterfinals.
Mickelson, seeded 14th, also continued his torrid play in central Texas, blitzing the overwhelmed Marc Leishman of Australia, 4 and 3.
Mickelson had three birdies on his round while Leishman, the winner last week at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, conceded three holes after poor shots left him out of position.
Mickelson will play Haas in the quarterfinals.
Only two of the top 10 seeded golfers, Johnson and Noren, advanced to the single elimination round of 16, but if there have been any true surprises here this week, it's been the play of the 62nd-ranked Kjeldsen and No. 54 Tanihara.
Kjeldsen emerged undefeated from a group headed by world No. 2 Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland, who the diminutive Norwegian beat in the first round of pool play, and easily dispatched No. 48 William McGirt, 5 and 4, in the round of 16.
Tanihara, meanwhile, won his group thanks to an easy win over hometown favorite and world No. 5 Jordan Spieth, and on Saturday morning outlasted Paul Casey of England, 2 and 1, after stunning shots on the par-5 16th and the par-4 17th that netted birdies.
Fisher, one of the streakiest players on Tour, upset No. 13 Bubba Watson, 4 and 3, punctuating the win with a birdie out of the sand on the 15th hole to close out the match.
Rahm, a barrel-chested, 22-year-old rookie out of Arizona State, waylaid No. 61 Charles Howell III, 6 and 4, while Haas parred the 18th hole to finish off No. 46 Kevin Na, 1-up.
The other two quarterfinal matches were Rahm vs. Kjeldsen and Tanihara vs. Fisher.
The four winners from Saturday afternoon's quarterfinals play Sunday morning in the semifinals to determine the participants for the ensuing championship and third-place matches on Sunday afternoon.
NOTES: Eight players advanced out of Group Play undefeated -- Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Soren Kjeldsen, Jon Rahm, Alex Noren, William McGirt, Phil Mickelson and Paul Casey. ... En route to a 3-0 record in group play, McGirt hit only 52.83 percent of greens in regulation but scrambled to save par on 22 of 25 occasions. Contrast that with Koepka, who also advanced with a 3-0 record after hitting 79.55 percent of greens in Regulation. ... Of the nine players making their Dell Technologies Match Play debuts, three players -- Hideto Tanihara, Rahm and McGirt -- advanced to the round of 16. ... Although he didn't advance, Ryan Moore was the only player in the field to halve all three matches in group play.
