Dustin Johnson takes four-shot lead into final round of the Masters

The Masters is Dustin Johnson’s to lose. And he could go to bed Saturday night knowing that his pursuers understand he never has been able to finish the job after sleeping on the 54-hole lead in a major championship.

Johnson is 0-for-4 in that situation, including a loss in the PGA Championship in August at Harding Park in San Francisco, where he actually played quite well with a 2-under 68 in the final round but still lost to Collin Morikawa, who had a lights-out 64 to win by two.

But going into Sunday’s final round at Augusta National Golf Club, Johnson looks like the kind of frontrunner who is going to wire the field this time around.

Johnson, the world’s No. 1 player, recorded a 7-under 65 in the third round to tie the 54-hole record of 16-under 200 set in 2015 by Jordan Spieth. It matched Johnson’s first-round 65 and made him the first player in Masters history to record two scores of 65 in the same year. He holds a four-stroke lead over Sungjae Im, Cameron Smith and Abraham Ancer.

"I have put myself in this situation a lot of times," said Johnson, whose only major title came at the 2016 U.S. Open at Oakmont, where he came from behind. "I know what it takes. I know how to respond in this situation. I’m very comfortable with having the lead going to [Sunday]. I’m going to have to play well if I want to get it done.

"I just have to make sure I just worry about what I’m doing, not worrying about what everybody else is doing. I just need to be patient. I feel like I’ve done a good job of that the first three rounds, and tomorrow’s going to be more of the same."

Johnson completed his second round on Saturday morning with a 2-under 70 that left him in a five-way tie for the 36-hole lead at 9-under 135 along with No. 2 Jon Rahm and No. 3 Justin Thomas plus Ancer and Smith. That marked the first time ever that the top three ranked players in the world were tied for the lead after any round of a major.

But neither Rahm, who shot a third-round 72 to remain at 9-under in a group with 2018 champion Patrick Reed and Sebastian Munoz, nor Thomas, who shot a 71 to finish in sole sixth place at 10-under, one shot behind fifth-place Dylan Frittelli, could keep up with Johnson.

Rahm was upset with himself. "The golf course was there for scoring," Rahm said. "I was playing good and couldn’t take advantage of anything. I’m really far back to start tomorrow. I’ve got to shoot a miracle score to have a chance."

Thomas admitted his disappointment about making four bogeys on the back nine of his third round, including one at the finishing hole to drop six strokes behind Johnson. "I played beautifully today," Thomas said. "What’s most frustrating is I hit the ball so flush. I hit a lot of shots exactly how I wanted. Just one of those days where stuff didn’t go my way."

The absence of fans, aside from a few Augusta members, because of the COVID-19 pandemic actually might reduce the pressure on Johnson. "I think it’s a really big deal there’s no patrons here," Thomas said. "That would have really played to my advantage or other guys trying to chase D.J. It makes it harder when you can hear the birdies and eagles and putts being made. Unfortunately, that won’t be the case…I just need to get over my finish and just come out and be ready to try to shoot a really low one."

Despite his track record as the 54-hole leader of a major, Johnson heads into the final round playing the best golf of his life. In his previous six starts before the Masters, Johnson had two wins, three second-place finishes, including the PGA, and a sixth-place finish at the U.S. Open in September at Winged Foot.

So, he has good reason to feel confident about improving his 0-for-4 streak. "I would say the game is in really good form right now," Johnson said. "I’m very comfortable standing over the golf ball now, and that’s a really good feeling…If I can play like I did today, I think I will break that streak."

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.