Over the last three decades, legendary golf coach Butch Harmon has been the key figure behind some of the sport’s most talented players. Known best for having worked with Tiger Woods from 1993 to 2004, the now 77-year-old instructor has had the opportunity to watch many of the game’s best up close.
Few players will ever hold up against Woods, who won his 15th Major Championship at the 2019 Masters, snapping a nearly 11-year-old drought since winning his last at the 2008 U.S. Open. The 45-year-old ranks second in major titles, behind only Jack Nicklaus.
Golf may never see another player like Tiger, at least not for a while. However, Harmon is fairly confident about which current PGA Tour competitor has come the closest to looking like Woods: Dustin Johnson.
The longtime golf instructor also mentioned Rory McIlroy as a potential challenger to Johnson but gave the nod to the 2020 Masters champ for his dominance when healthy.
“If he’s on his game, nobody can beat him,” Harmon said of Johnson to Claude Harmon III on the “Off Course” podcast, via Golf.com. “If they’re all on, and Dustin Johnson is 100 percent, they can’t beat him. And that’s not a put down to Rory, because he’s a phenomenal player…but Dustin Johnson, when he’s on, is the closest thing I’ve seen to Tiger Woods.”
Butch says this pro has the kind of Tiger-level confidence that makes him impossible to beat when he’s on.https://t.co/75QeSCgTYb
— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) June 16, 2021
Johnson, 36, showed off his unquestionable talent just last fall when he ran away with the 2020 Masters. The win marked just his second major title compared to McIlroy’s four, but Harmon lauded Johnson’s willingness to take risks in order to play the best shot.
“I tell people, because he takes his balls with him in a wheelbarrow to the first tee,” Harmon said. “He’s not afraid of anything. He’s not afraid of any shot. He’s not afraid to try the right shot, even if it’s a difficult shot.”
Both Johnson and McIlroy will be at Torrey Pines this weekend for the 2021 U.S. Open. Perhaps one of the golfer’s performances will change their standing in the eyes of the legendary Butch Harmon.
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