Golf’s king of swagger and nonchalance on playing and living the LIV Golf life

Two-time major winner Dustin Johnson carried his trademark ultra-cool vibe as he sat down with Australian Golf Digest during LIV Golf Andalucia at Valderrama in Spain recently. As one of LIV’s inaugural signings, Johnson has stayed true to himself during the past two years, reiterating that his departure from the PGA Tour was only a business decision he made to benefit his family. Johnson detailed his journey to LIV Golf, and why PGA Tour stars from Rory McIlroy to Justin Thomas and even newly appointed Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley have nothing but love for the big-hitting South Carolinian.

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On why PGA Tour pros admire him: I love the PGA Tour and I always will. Coming over to LIV was the best decision for me and my family. This is a job and I do this to support my family. It made the most sense. I love playing out on LIV. I like the events; I think they’re fun and a little more laid back. They do a great job of the fan experience and I like the team aspect. I’m still buddies with all the guys on tour.

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On seeing McIlroy, Thomas and Bradley at Michael Jordan’s golf club, The Grove, and other tour pros who live in the Jupiter area of Florida: We see each other and talk pretty much most days at The Grove or wherever we practise. I see them all the time.

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On 2011 PGA champion, Bradley, being named captain of the American team for the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage: I was so happy for him. I messaged him straightaway. He’ll be a great captain. I’ve played on team events with him and he’s fully into it. He loves it. I really like what he said about taking the 12 best players [for the US team] regardless of what tour they play on. If you want to win, you have to take the 12 best because the European team is so good. [For the American team at the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome] there were quite a few arguments you could have made for certain players [who missed out], but it’s neither here nor there. Obviously, it was an odd time within the world of golf.

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On being one of those omissions from the US team and whether it was tough watching the Cup from home: For sure. I love playing the team events. The Ryder Cup is one of the best events in the world and the most fun. It is what it is, and hopefully I’ll be on the team for Bethpage next year. I need to play a little bit better, especially in the majors. But I feel like my game’s in good shape, even if the results aren’t showing it. It’s close. I’m swinging it nicely and my putting is coming around.

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On having only two top-10s from 10 majors since joining LIV: My results in majors haven’t been as good as I’d like, obviously. But it has nothing to do with being on LIV. For the past three years, I’ve prepared just as well as I always prepared on the PGA Tour. I’m just not getting the results, which happens. When I think about 2020 [on the PGA Tour], at the start of that year, I played probably some of the worst golf I’ve ever played. I shot 80-80 at Memorial [and a few starts later] won the Northern Trust and the Tour Championship/FedEx Cup. Then I won the Masters. For me, that’s how golf goes. There are ups and downs. Sometimes, I get into some bad habits and as soon as I get out of them it’s right back to playing the golf I know I can.

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On his confidence at winning a third major title to go with his 2016 US Open and 2020 Masters: My game is good enough to do it. I’m looking forward to it. I just need to put all the pieces together.

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On the highs and lows of golf: For me, it’s never been something I’m afraid of. Even when I’m playing bad, I trust that my swing and game are really close to turning around. I’ve always been confident in my potential. Playing bad golf doesn’t bother me, I do it all the time [laughs].

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On what bad golf looks like for a top player like him: Well, when you’re playing really well, you seem to always miss it in the right spots. That means you’re always getting it up and down for par. When you’re struggling, it’s funny how the misses are almost always in the wrong spots and you don’t get it up and down. It’s a fine line. You’re still going to hit really good shots, but golf is about the misses. No one’s going to hit it perfect every day, for four days… Lately, I’ve just been struggling a little [with that exact problem].

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On the work-life balance LIV offers: I’m playing almost the same number of tournaments, but it’s a little more compacted. It’s nice to get a longer offseason and be at home with the kids, coaching baseball and basketball teams for my kids. Things that I hadn’t been able to do in the past, I can now. I do normal dad things. How do I go as a coach? Well, I’m usually assistant coach [laughs] because even when we’re home, I can’t always be there, but we love it.