Zach Johnson has had many big wins in professional golf.
He won 12 titles on the PGA Tour, including the 2007 Masters and 2015 Open. He also won championships in two of his first eight events on the PGA Tour Champions circuit.
advertisement
But until this week, Johnson had never won at Firestone Country Club. That’s what made the Kaulig Companies Championship on July 12 especially special.
“I’ve loved it since the first time I walked in,” Johnson said of Firestone. “I just think it suits me. It suits me in my eyes, but it suits me in the sense that I can’t fake it here — it might have looked a little like that today — but I have to execute the shot. For me, it has to turn on every aspect of my game, and I love it.”
How Zach Johnson Overcame Obstacles in the Final Round of the Kaulig Companies Championship
Golf leaderboards rarely tell the whole story. That wasn’t the case on a scorching Sunday at Firestone Country Club.
advertisement
If you look at the leaderboard, it’s very easy. Johnson started the final round with a four-shot lead and finished the final round with a six-shot lead.
But there was a lot of drama in between. After a near-picturesque (and bogey-free) third round that put him in the lead, Johnson was forced to battle three bogeys in the final round. After finding many greens in the first three rounds (including 16 of 18 legal greens in the third round), his legal green percentage dropped to 38.9 (7 of 18) in the final round.
“After that (second hole), I don’t think I hit the fairway until the 13th,” Johnson said. “That’s one of those situations where I’m hedging my bets off the tee. Like, I can’t find the fairway. I’m hitting the middle of the face for the most part, but I can’t find the fairway. So I was hedging my bets in the sense of, OK, that pin, the right side of the fairway sucks, stay to the left. All of those emotions and mental emotions were going through my brain.”
Simply put, Johnson was fighting more than just the sun.
Zach Johnson reacts to the final round of the Kaulig Companies PGA Championship at Firestone Country Club on July 12, 2026 in Akron, Ohio.
But the PGA Tour Champion rookie delivered.
advertisement
He bounced back after his first bogey with a birdie on the second hole. He made a great make out of the short rough on the 11th hole to gain an advantage over last year’s champion Miguel Angel Jimenez.
“It dripped down,” Johnson said. “I was trying to put the ball in a six-foot circle and it dripped down. It was pure accident.”
And as Boo Weekley and Rory Sabatini surged toward the lead in the final round, Johnson responded in style after back-to-back bogeys on the 12th and 13th holes. He bounced back with some pars on the 14th and 15th, followed by three straight birdies to close out the tournament.
“I made two good par putts on the 14th and 15th,” Johnson said. “There were some really great shots after that. A lot of solid shots, shots in the middle of the face, good golf. Obviously the scorecards showed it worked.”
advertisement
On the 16th hole, Johnson set up for success with a nice wedge shot from about 99 yards out, not only over the hole but also over a treacherous water hazard, but it rolled perfectly and made an easy putt for birdie.
“All I have to do is stay to the left of the pin. I know what the hill is going to be,” Johnson said. “I try to hit (the ball) 104 (yards), 105 yards. It went 105 yards, and the rest is history.
“I remember Tiger Woods almost going 2 or 3 on that pin. It’s a shot that I feel like if you had the right number, you could be a little bit more aggressive given the windless conditions and the easy green conditions. It wasn’t easy, but let’s just say it was a shot that I felt I executed properly. It gave me a lot of confidence going into the 17th.”
After a birdie on the 17th hole, he hit a perfect shot from the short, rattling rough on the 18th hole and ended the tournament with an incredible birdie.
advertisement
“It felt great,” Johnson said. “Most of the time, especially during off weeks, but also during tournament weeks, my focus is on my body. I feel like if I have my body in basically a pain-free position, posture, and height, I can do a good job.”
Contact Jonah L. Rosenblum at jrosenblum@recordpub.com and follow him on Twitter. @JLR Sports.
This article was originally published in the Akron Beacon Journal. Zach Johnson wins Kaulig Companies Championship, first Firestone title
