Strokes Gained: DJ Drives to Victory

By Mark Broadie
Dustin Johnson came from four strokes behind Shane Lowry to win his first major, the 116th U.S. Open Championship at Oakmont Country Club.
Johnson was ranked first in strokes gained driving, gaining 2.4 strokes per round, representing 56 percent of his total gain on the field. He led the field in driving distance, averaging 25 yards longer than the field, and he was ranked No. 24 in driving accuracy, hitting 8 percent more fairways than the field average.
U.S. Open Final Results:
| Strokes gained per round (ranks in parentheses) | |||||
| Player | Position | Drive | Appr | Short | Putt |
| Dustin Johnson | 1 | 2.4 (1) | 0.9 (11) | 0.6 (24) | 0.4 (30) |
| Jim Furyk | T2 | -0.8 (60) | 2.5 (1) | 1.0 (8) | 0.9 (14) |
| Scott Piercy | T2 | 1.0 (10) | 0.8 (14) | 1.5 (2) | 0.3 (36) |
| Shane Lowry | T2 | 0.8 (15) | -0.1 (50) | 1.5 (2) | 1.4 (6) |
| Sergio Garcia | T5 | 1.2 (5) | -0.5 (62) | 2.1 (1) | 0.5 (29) |
| Branden Grace | T5 | 0.8 (15) | 0.2 (37) | 0.9 (11) | 1.4 (6) |
| Kevin Na | 7 | 0.3 (31) | 0.2 (37) | -0.3 (53) | 2.9 (1) |
| Zach Johnson | T8 | 0.3 (31) | 0.4 (30) | 0.7 (18) | 1.4 (6) |
| Jason Dufner | T8 | 1.5 (2) | 0.7 (20) | 0.7 (18) | -0.1 (46) |
| Daniel Summerhays | T8 | 0.6 (21) | 0.5 (28) | 1.1 (5) | 0.6 (27) |
| Jason Day | T8 | 0.6 (21) | 0.0 (47) | 1.1 (5) | 1.1 (10) |
| Total | Drive | Appr | Short | Putt | |
| Top 11 average | 3.3 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Mark Broadie is a Columbia Business School professor who developed the strokes-gained statistic to compare each player’s performance against the rest of the field.














