Dustin Johnson not satisfied with banking $35.6 million and sweeping LIV Golf's triple crown

DORAL, Florida — For Dustin Johnson, making more than $35 million in five months on the LIV Golf Series didn't quite reach his expectations.

"It was pretty good," Johnson said. "I feel like it should have been a lot better. My season, I played good. I didn't play my best."

Yet Johnson, one of the original defectors from the PGA Tour, won LIV's triple crown. He topped the money leaders list, won the individual championship and on Sunday captained 4 Aces to the team championship at Doral's Blue Monster.

Johnson, Patrick Reed, Talor Gooch and Pat Perez split the $16 million first-place prize money Sunday shooting 7-under, one stroke better than Cameron Smith's team.

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All of that equals $35.6 million for Johnson, including the $18 million bonus for winning the season-long individual title. Add to that a reported $125 million, four-year contract to defect from the PGA Tour and the $1.6 million he made for playing 12 events on the PGA Tour, and DJ pocketed $68.5 million this year. He made about $75 million in 15 years on the PGA Tour.

Not a bad year. Or lifetime … or multiple lifetimes even if it left Johnson feeling as if he left money on the green.

The weekend was a snapshot of LIV's inaugural season with the biggest purse ($50 million) in the history of the sport and a champagne celebration on stage with The Chainsmokers as the entertainment.

This was everything Greg Norman dreamed of coming together.

"All the pushback, all the negative comments we've gotten, I don't care," said Pat Perez, part of Johnson's team.

"I'm paid. I don't give a damn."

4 Aces won despite having a target on its back. Smith was asked Saturday if there were any rivalries developing in LIV Golf because of the team concept.

"I think everyone is out to beat 4 Aces," Smith said. "Personally, they are the one."

And the No. 3 ranked golfer in the world nearly pulled it off.

Going off in a twosome with Johnson, Smith carded a 7-under 65 for the low round among the 16 golfers remaining in the field. But it wasn't enough with his three teammates shooting a combined 1-over.

For 4 Aces it was a true team effort, Johnson, Reed and Perez were 2-under. Gooch one shot behind. The title essentially was clinched by Reed rolling in a long putt on his final hole with Johnson standing on the 18th green and watching his teammate's ball drop on a videoboard.

Johnson pumped his fist and grabbed his caddie/brother, Austin Johnson, knowing he just needed to two-putt with his team ahead by one stroke and Smith in the rough.

Johnson's final putt was about a 3-footer. But knowing the outcome would impact three other players increased the pressure.

"If that was an individual tournament it would have been no problem that putt, straight in from 3 feet," Johnson said. "Knowing I had to make that for the team to win, I didn't like it very much.

"My hands were not real steady."

But Johnson's game has been strong since joining LIV with five top-five finishes in seven events, including one win and twice the runner-up in individual play.

Johnson's team was the top seed entering the weekend having won the team championship in four of the seven events. All four players finish in the top 10 of the season money list with Reed ($12.2 million), Gooch ($10.4 million) and Perez ($8 million) trailing Johnson.

The team captained by Brooks Koepka was tied for the lead until the wheels fell off for the Koepka brothers on their back nine. Brooks was 4-over during a six-hole stretch with four bogeys and Chase had two double bogeys during a five-hole stretch.

Brooks Koepka finished the year seventh on the money list with more than $8.2 million in six events.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Dustin Johnson swept LIV Golf's triple crown but still wasn't happy