3 eagles highlight Johnson's best Masters round

There’s only one thing more surprising than Dustin Johnson’s record three eagles in one round at Augusta National Golf Club on Fri­day:

He’s pretty sure that’s never happened on any course, at any level of golf, although he’s been among the longest hitters in almost every tournament he’s played in since junior golf.

Not even a casual round with friends in his home town of Myrtle Beach, S.C.?

“I think that’s the first time,” he said. “It was pretty special and a lot of fun.”

Johnson more than offset an opening double bogey with his first eagle at No. 2, and went on to eagle the eighth and 15th holes and mix in a birdie at the 13th to get into contention with a 67 that matched his best Masters round in six starts.

Johnson’s 36-hole total of 7-under-par 137 earned a tie for third with Justin Rose and Paul Casey, seven shots behind leader Jordan Spieth and two behind second-place Charley Hoffman.

Johnson will be in the second group from the last in today’s third round, playing with Rose.

Johnson has two rounds and eight chances to tie his own 2009 record of four eagles in one tournament that he shares with Tiger Woods (2010) and Bruce Crampton (1974). Johnson is 9-under on the par-5s this week and is a cumulative 38-under on the par-5s in 20 rounds at the Masters. It all adds up to his best position entering the third round in his career at Augusta. His previous best was 15th in 2010.

No. 2 was the only par-5 that Johnson had not yet eagled. He has two at No. 8 and two at No. 15.

He also didn’t have to sweat over any cross-country putts. The total distance of his three eagle putts was 31 feet: an 18-footer at No. 2, an 11-footer at No. 8 and a 2-footer at No. 15.

The shortest distance that Johnson had into any of the par-5s was the 13th hole, when he had 171 yards to the hole. He hit an 8-iron too strong and over the green, but chipped on and made a 6-footer for birdie.

His eagle at No. 2 also quickly erased a double bogey at No. 1 in which he needed three shots to get on the green and three putts from 32 feet.

“Walking off (No.) 1, I was just thinking to myself, ‘It’s better doubling the first hole than the last hole,’ ” he said. “I wasn’t too upset. I knew I had a lot of golf to go and came right back and made up for it at No. 2.”

Johnson added two impressive birdies on a 9-foot putt at No. 5 and a 38-foot putt at No. 16.

He needed a birdie at No. 18 for sole possession of third place but pushed his drive into the trees on the right, punched out, lobbed his third shot onto the green and missed an 8-foot par attempt.

A winner earlier this season at the World Golf Championship tournament at Doral, Johnson said he’s due to contend on the weekend at Augusta. His best finish was a tie for 13th in 2013. He opened that tournament with a 67 but then shot 4-over the rest of the tournament.

“I always feel good at Augusta,” he said. “I think the golf course sets up well for me. I just never really played that well here. But coming in this year, I felt really confident in my game. I’ve been playing good golf and I’m continuing to play good golf. Hopefully it’s going to keep getting better.”