Dustin Johnson grabs lead in final stretch bid to claim his first PGA of America Player of the Year award & Vardon Trophy

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. – Dustin Johnson, the reigning U.S. Open Champion and winner of last weekend’s BMW Championship, has taken the lead in the race for the PGA of America Player of the Year Award and the Vardon Trophy. The season-ending awards are presented by the PGA of America for excellence by a PGA TOUR professional.

Johnson, the world’s No. 2-ranked player, owns a 90-76 point lead over World No.1 ranked Jason Day with the Tour Championship, Sept. 22-25, remaining to close the 2015-16 season. Day lost his bid for the Vardon Trophy due to a back injury, which forced him to withdraw after completing eight holes last weekend at the BMW Championship.

Johnson and Day are trailed by two-time event winners Adam Scott, with 50 points and Jordan Spieth, the 2015 PGA Player of the Year/Vardon Trophy winner, who has 48 points.

In one of the closest Vardon Trophy races in many years, Johnson owns an adjusted scoring average of 69.172 through 83 complete rounds. Spieth is next at 69.472, and is followed by Scott (69.474) and Phil Mickelson (69.519).

Overall, Johnson has earned 30 points by winning the U.S. Open, and 20 combined points for wins in the Bridgestone Invitational and the BMW Championship. He also has 20 points for leading the money list and 20 for leading the Vardon Trophy standings.

Day has 40 overall victory points, including 20 for winning The Players Championship and 20 combined points for the Arnold Palmer Invitational and the Dell Match Play Championship. He also is second in money earnings and has 18 points in scoring average, despite being penalized .10 for the incomplete round.

Since 1948, the PGA of America has honored the game’s best players with the PGA Player of the Year Award. It is presented to the top TOUR professional based on a point system for tournament wins, official money standings, and scoring averages. Points for the 2015-16 season began with the Frys.com Open on Oct. 18, and conclude Sept. 25 with the TOUR Championship.

Since 1937, the Vardon Trophy, named by the PGA of America in honor of legendary British golfer Harry Vardon, is awarded annually to the touring professional with the lowest adjusted scoring average. It is based on a minimum of 60 rounds, with no incomplete rounds, in events co-sponsored or designated by the PGA TOUR. The adjusted score is computed from the average score of the field at each event.

The PGA TOUR also recognizes its annual Player of the Year, with the winner announced in early October, determined by a vote of the membership.

 

2016 PGA Player of the Year Standings (through 9/11/16)
Player	Victory Points	Money Points	Scoring Points	Bonus Points
					Total Points
1. Dustin Johnson (U.S. Open, WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, BMW Championship)	50	20	20	--	90
2. Jason Day (Arnold Palmer Invitational, WGC-Dell Match Play Championship, The Players Championship)	40	18	18	--	76
3. Adam Scott (Honda Classic, WGC-Cadillac Championship)	20	16	14	--	50
4. Jordan Spieth (Hyundai Tournament of Champions, Dean & Deluca Invitational)	20	12	16	--	48
5. Jimmy Walker (PGA Championship)	30	6	--	--	36
T6 Henrik Stenson (Open Championship)	30	--	--	--	30
Danny Willett (The Masters)	30	--	--	--	30
Russell Knox (WGC-HSBC Champions, Travelers Championship)	20	10	--	--	30
9. Rory McIlroy (Deutsche Bank Championship)	10	8	10	--	28
10. Patrick Reed (The Barclays)	10	14	--	--	24

 

2016 Vardon Trophy Standings (through 9/11/16)
1. Dustin Johnson	83	69.174
2. Jordan Spieth	76	69.472
3. Adam Scott	69	69.474
4. Phil Mickelson	71	69.519
5. Rory McIlroy	65	69.802
6. Matt Kuchar	96	69.831
7. Brooks Koepka	75	69.956
8. Charl Schwartzel	69	70.010
9. Paul Casey	73	70.053
10. Hideki Matsuyama	72	70.100

 

Points are distributed based upon the following:
A) Tournament victories
	Points
PGA Championship	30
U.S. Open	30
Open Championship	30
Masters	30
The Players Championship	20
All other PGA TOUR events, including World Championship events	10
B) Money winnings: PGA Tour official money list
	Points
1st	20
2nd	18
3rd	16
4th	14
5th	12
6th	10
7th	8
8th	6
9th	4
10th	2
C) Adjusted scoring average: min. 60 rounds
	Points
1st	20
2nd	18
3rd	16
4th	14
5th	12
6th	10
7th	8
8th	6
9th	4
10th	2