In set two, Sandgren raised the power and intensity levels in his game to lead 4-2 before holding serve at love to reach 5-2.
However; serving at four all in the final set, Sandgren committed two backhand errors before sending an inside out down the line forehand wide to drop serve and trail 4-5.
With Johnson serving for the match at deuce, Sandgren netted an inside out crosscourt forehand to set up match point.
A final Sandgren error, a down the line backhand return struck long, ended the match.
“It means a lot [to win] here,” said the 28 year old Johnson who also won the Houston title in 2017.
“This is one of the best tournaments of the year. You get the atmosphere of the country club, everything that goes with it. The
people are awesome, everybody involved with the tournament makes it so special. Always happy to come back here and start my clay-court season.”
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