Dustin Johnson wins 2016 BMW Championship

It’s another big win for Dustin Johnson.

After picking up wins in back-to-back starts at the US Open and Bridgestone Invitational over the summer, DJ picked up his third big win of 2016 with a dominant weekend performance at the BMW Championship in Carmel, Ind.

After firing a third-round 68 to start Sunday with a three-shot lead over Paul Casey, Johnson looked human through the first three holes of the round -- making two bogeys to allow Casey to pull even with him at 17-under par. Then the switch flipped. Four birdies in the next six holes gave Johnson a lead he wouldn’t relinquish. He fired a 3-under 33 on Sunday’s opening nine with two bogeys, four birdies and only two pars -- plenty good enough to suck most of the drama out of the event for the huge crowds that filed into Crooked Stick for the first time in four seasons.

The back side was mostly without drama until Johnson came to the par-5 15th with a three-shot lead over Casey. On yet another pick-and-place day at the Stick, both players reached the rather-short par-5 in two, but Johnson was closer. An eagle bomb dropped for Casey and brought him within one. For a moment.

That re-upped Johnson’s three-shot lead heading into the final three holes of the tournament -- and it was all downhill to the win for the World No. 2. And his putter that’s held him back for part of his career helped him across the finish line.

“I’ve got a lot of confidence in every part of my game,” Johnson said. “Especially all of the work I’ve put in on my wedges, it’s really paid off this year. And this week the putter really worked.”

Casey finished just one spot behind the leader for the second straight week, while Georgia Tech grad Roberto Castro just nearly missed out on advancing to the Tour Championship in Atlanta with a third-place finish. With Davis Love III set to announce three of his four US Ryder Cup spots after the event, J.B. Holmes likely did himself some favors with a top-five finish. Rickie Fowler brought up the rear for the captain’s pick candidates, finishing in a tie for 58th and failing to qualify for the Tour Championship.

Johnson will take the FedExCup lead heading to East Lake in a couple weeks, but he’ll have plenty of competition to take home the title. The format was revamped a few years back so the title couldn’t be clinched before the end of the Tour Championship, and each player in the top five of the standings can win the $10 million Cup prize with a East Lake win.