Johnson finishes T46, more work to do to keep job

After finishing up his week in Washington with a bogey on the par-3 9th at TPC Potomac, Kevin Johnson headed for the scorer's tent to sign for his final-round 74.

And with the 74, a four-day total of 9-over and another middle-of-the-pack finish, this time T46. The result earned him just over $2,000, and allowed him to maintain his position at No. 85 on the Web.com Tour money list. Nothing more.

Johnson put it simply after his round.

"Not good enough."

Johnson is running out of time to ensure himself of keeping his job for next year, and he knows it. Although the week in D.C. marked his fourth made cut in five events, he has only notched one top-40 finish over the stretch, a T9 last week in Charlotte.

Without high finishes, Johnson is finding it hard to make a move up the money list. At a course like TPC Potomac, the problem was length - Johnson averaged 260.4 yards for the week off the tee on measured driving holes, 58th of the 66 players who made the cut.

When a course plays long due to wet conditions, combined with a series of long and demanding par-4's, the situation hurts a player like Johnson. Forced to hit long-iron approaches time and time again, he found it hard to avoid bogeys, or to make enough birdies to counter the bogeys.

So the result was another mediocre finish, which simply isn't good enough at this point in the season. Johnson played well at times throughout the event - like when he grinded to make the cut by making eight pars on his final nine Friday - and hit a number of good shots, like his long-iron approach to inside 5 feet on the demanding par-4 15th on Sunday.

But in the end, his lack of length caught up to him.

Johnson would have needed to chip and putt nearly flawlessly to finish under par for the week, and all things considered he performed just fine around the greens. But as his caddy Smiley said on Friday, the course 'wears him out'.

By Sunday, the conditions were enough to wear anyone out, with morning temperatures hovering around 50 degrees and a steady combination of mist and rain. With an 8:33 tee time, Johnson was faced with the challenge of playing in the heart of the cruel conditions. Not a promising prospect for anyone, much less someone who is struggling to generate distance.

Johnson hung in there as well as he could, birdieing his 5th and 6th holes of the day (his 14th and 15th) to fight back to even on the day, 5-over on the event. But from there, he failed to make another birdie - or even give himself a promising look at birdie - and steadily drifted down the board with four bogeys the rest of the way.

The final verdict wasn't for lack of effort, or lack of enthusiasm. Johnson maintained a positive outlook the whole week, joking with his caddy and the gallery (when there was one). It was just a difficult situation.

Johnson made the best of it. But considering the context of his situation, it wasn't enough.

He has two more events to make enough money to secure a position in the top 60. He likely needs two top-10 finishes, with maybe even a top-5 sprinkled in.

We'll see what he's got.