Over his career on the PGA Tour, Dustin Johnson had raked in over $41 million on the course alone. Engaged to hockey legend Wayne Gretzky’s daughter, Paulina Gretzky, DJ is set for life. When asked if his wedding to Paulina would be more extravagant now that he’s a US Open champion, Johnson smiled and said, “Don’t matter to me. That bill is going to Wayne.”
Sure, Daddy Gretzky doesn’t mind picking up the tab, but Johnson could probably drop a few dollars himself.
Dustin Johnson Net Worth as of 2019: $20 million
2008 – 2010
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Johnson turned professional in late 2007 and earned his 2008 PGA Tour card by finishing in a tie for 14th place at the 2007 qualifying school in December. He won his first PGA Tour event, the Turning Stone Resort Championship in upstate New York and finished his first season with $1.7 million in winnings.
The following year, he finished the season ranked 15th on the PGA Tour Money List, and bringing home $3 million in prize money.
In 2010, Johnson was off to a bad start. But he broke the streak at the BMW Championship at Cog Hill in September. He finished the 2010 season ranked 4th on the PGA Tour Money List, a leap from 15th just the year before, and banked $4.5 million.
2011 – 2013
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In 2011 and 2012, Johnson raked in $4.3 million and $3.3 million respectively. But in 2013, his winnings went down to $2.9 million. Seems like Johnson’s onto a downward spiral. But that was when Paulina Gretzky came into the picture.
Paulina first appeared in Johnson’s gallery at the 2013 PGA Tour opener in Hawaii. Sparks flew, DJ won, and the rest was history. There was a slight controversy when DJ withdrew the next week with “the flu,” but we can all guess what that meant.
In January 2013, DJ dined with his future in-laws, hockey legend Wayne Gretzky and Janet Jones. DJ and “The Great One” bonded further when they played together at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am. Taking Beyonce‘s advice “if you liked it, then you shoulda put a ring on it,” seven months later, DJ put a ring on Paulina Gretzky, whose rich father is estimated to be worth $200 million.
Not such a bad year for Dustin Johnson after all.
2014 – 2017
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But 2014 was the year when it all went south. In July, Johnson announced he was taking the rest of the season off to seek professional help for “personal challenges.” Golf Magazine reported the real reason behind his “break” was drugs. DJ has three times tested positive for recreational drug use. Cocaine in 2014, marijuana in 2009, and cocaine again in 2012.
On the home front, despite having a sizzling fiancee in the form of Paulina Gretzky, pregnant with their first child, DJ was rumored to have had affairs with two women married to his colleagues on the road, just to prove he has learnt precisely nothing from Tiger Woods. As Rick Reilly famously remarked: “Dustin is so dense, light bends around him.”
By November of the same year, DJ sold his Jupiter, Florida home for $6.25 million, according to the Los Angeles Times. He bought the six-bedroom waterfront home in 2011 for $3.7 million. Pretty good return on investment. Which would be well used for therapy.
Perhaps seeking “professional help” really did help. DJ came back to golf in 2015, that became the best year of his career, banking a whopping $5.5 million. In 2016, he won the U.S. Open and was named the PGA Player of the Year. He’s been rolling in 2017 too, as of February 23, Johnson is ranked the number one golfer in the world.
2018
Golfer Dustin Johnson hopes to carry forward his impressive run last year onto 2018 as he sets sight on retaining his number one ranking.
2019
In the Tournament of Champions, Dustin Johnson picked up the first penalty of 2019 for violating the rule “A player must not make a stroke at a wrong ball.”
