WGC-Dell Match Play 2017: Leaderboard Scores, Prize Money Payouts

Dustin Johnson's red-hot start to the 2017 season continued when he defeated Jon Rahm in the final of the 2017 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play at Austin Country Club in Austin, Texas.   

With a par on No. 18, Johnson earned a 1-up victory. Earlier in the day, Bill Haas beat out Hideto Tanihara 2 and 1 to claim third place.

Match	Result	Score
Final	Dustin Johnson def. Jon Rahm	1 UP
Third Place	Bill Haas def. Hideto Tanihara	2 & 1

Johnson earns $1.66 million by winning the Dell Match Play, while Rahm will take home $1.045 million, per SB Nation's Brendan Porath. Haas and Tanihara stand to make $678,000 and $545,000, respectively.

Sergio Garcia congratulated Johnson and Rahm for reaching the final:

According to ESPN.com's Jason Sobel, Johnson is the first golfer to win all four of the WGC events.

Johnson built a commanding five-hole lead before heading to the ninth tee box, and it looked like he'd have the final wrapped up in short order. GolfChannel.com's Rex Hoggard noted how fast starts were a trend for Johnson at match play events:

However, Rahm fought back and claimed the ninth and 10th holes to eat into Johnson's advantage. Johnson gave himself some breathing room with a birdie on No. 12 to go 4 up again, but Rahm continued his comeback, closing the deficit to one hole with a birdie on No. 16.

The PGA Tour shared a replay of his 31-foot birdie putt:

Rahm couldn't make up any more ground on the 17th hole, forcing him to come up with something special on No. 18.

Rahm did himself no favors by launching his drive past the green and onto a water drain. After taking a drop, he chipped to within six feet of the cup and sunk his par putt.

Johnson opted for a more cautious approach, which made sense since the onus was on his opponent to win the hole. Johnson needed three shots to get onto the green, but he left himself with an easy par putt to take home the title. The PGA Tour provided a replay of the championship putt:

"

 That’s a winner 

Dustin Johnson defeats Jon Rahm 1UP to win the @DellMatchPlay for his third consecutive victory. pic.twitter.com/at1GgFeqkA

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2017"

The PGA Tour shared Johnson's post-round interview:

Since Johnson joined the PGA Tour officially in 2008, he has won 15 events. Only Tiger Woods (18) has more during that span, according to Golf Channel researcher Justin Ray.

After missing the cut at the Farmers Insurance Open, Johnson finished third at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am and earned victories in the Genesis Open and WGC-Mexico Championship.

With each tournament, the 32-year-old strengthens his argument to be the favorite to win the 2017 Masters. He has top-10 finishes in each of his last two trips to Augusta National Golf Club, and his 2016 U.S. Open triumph relieved him of the burden of never having won a major tournament.

OddsShark gave Johnson the second-best Masters odds (7-1) behind Jordan Spieth (13-2), but that may change after Sunday.