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Joaquin Niemann and Talor Gooch person mixed to triumph 11 LIV Golf individual titles. They participate Sunday’s last information of LIV Golf Korea successful nan champion position to pursuit different trophy.
Niemann, nan Torque GC captain, and Gooch, successful his first play arsenic nan OKGC captain, stock nan 54-hole lead astatine 9 nether astatine nan challenging Asiad Country Club. One changeable backmost is HyFlyers GC’s Scott Vincent, pinch Ripper GC Captain Cameron Smith and Crushers GC’s Charles Howell III tied for 4th astatine 7 under.
Crushers Captain Bryson DeChambeau, victor of past year’s LIV Golf Korea erstwhile it was held extracurricular Seoul, suffered 2 precocious bogeys to driblet into a stock of sixth pinch 4Aces GC Captain Dustin Johnson and RangeGoats GC’s Ben Campbell. Johnson produced nan lowest information of nan day, a 6-under 64.
On nan squad leaderboard, nan Crushers – winners past play successful Korea– are astatine 16 under, 1 changeable up of OKGC, which is playing conscionable its 2nd tourney since rebranding from their erstwhile Smash GC name. Ripper GC is solo 3rd astatine 12 under.
The individual leaderboard is stacked pinch winners, arsenic 8 of nan apical 10 person won astatine slightest 1 LIV Golf title. Niemann is nan league’s all-time individual wins leader pinch seven, including 5 past season. He’s yet to triumph this season, though, but that mightiness alteration if his putter remains arsenic basking arsenic it was connected nan backmost 9 Saturday erstwhile he rolled successful 3 agelong birdie putts, including a large breaker from 34 feet astatine nan 14th hole, to sprout a 4-under 66.
"Putter did behave a batch amended coming than nan first 2 days, truthful beautiful happy astir that," said nan 27-year-old Niemann, nan league’s youngest captain. "It did emotion maine a lot. I did emotion it a lot, too."
Gooch has 4 profession LIV Golf wins, including 2 astatine LIV Golf Andalucia, nan adjacent tourney connected nan 2026 schedule group for adjacent week successful Spain erstwhile he will take sides his title from past year. He entered Saturday arsenic nan solo leader aft a second-round 63 successful which he produced 8 birdies, but he started his 3rd information pinch 14 consecutive pars earlier posting his lone birdie astatine nan par-5 15th for a bogey-free 69.
"You've sewage to enactment diligent and conscionable hold for your clip and dream that it comes, and it unluckily didn't travel overmuch today," Gooch said. "But that's why we enactment patient. Maybe tomorrow it'll come."
Although some Niemann and Gooch person extended history playing successful nan last group successful a LIV Golf last information – this will beryllium Gooch’s 16th clip and Niemann’s 14th – Sunday will beryllium nan first clip they’ve been successful nan aforesaid last group successful astir 4 years, since LIV Golf Boston successful nan inaugural play successful 2022.
Vincent is nan 3rd personnel of nan last group, and he continues to thrive since joining HyFlyers GC arsenic a reserve filling successful for skipper Phil Mickelson. The Zimbabwean changeable a 3-under 67 and is now successful position to pursuit his first individual title.
"Winning retired present is not easy," said Vincent, who has vanished apical 10 successful each of his first 2 starts pinch nan HyFlyers aft starting nan play arsenic a Wild Card player. "I deliberation conscionable large picture-wise, conscionable putting myself successful this position is conscionable awesome for me, effort and get amended and create arsenic a player."
Howell was nan runner-up to DeChambeau past year, and he’s fixed himself different chance successful Korea, thriving connected this shot-maker’s course. He was a bogey-free 4 nether done his first 13 holes earlier suffering a double-bogey successful which he four-putted from 35 feet.
"Man, this spot is tricky," Howell said. "If you miss nan fairway, it is really difficult astir here. Hole locations are rather difficult present connected these corners. It's reliable to make birdies."
Johnson had six of them successful his bogey-free round. LIV Golf’s first season-long Individual Champion successful 2022 posted astatine slightest 1 triumph successful each of nan league’s first 3 seasons earlier going winless past year. He’s anxious to get backmost into nan winner’s circle.
So is Niemann, contempt each nan occurrence he had past season.
"Last twelvemonth was an exceptional year. Winning 5 times, it was beautiful cool," he said. "… It's evidently a bully emotion to win, and we're retired present for that. But I'm conscionable much focused connected what I'm doing now and nan measurement I'm hitting nan ball, conscionable trying to support chasing that trajectory that I'm seeing successful my head, truthful that's what I request to do."
TOP OF THE LEADERBOARDS
Individual Top 10
T1 (-9) – Joaquin Niemann, Torque (66-69-66); Talor Gooch, OKGC (69-63-69)
3 (-8) – Scott Vincent, HyFlyers (65-70-67)
T4 (-7) – Charles Howell III, Crushers (65-70-68); Cameron Smith, Ripper (67-68-68)
T6 (-6) – Ben Campbell, RangeGoats (69-69-66); Dustin Johnson, 4Aces (70-70-64); Bryson DeChambeau, Crushers (65-68-71)
T9 (-5) – Harold Varner III, OKGC (68-69-68); Marc Leishman, Ripper (69-68-68)
Team Top 3
1 (-16) – Crushers GC (DeChambeau 65-68-71, Howell III 65-70-68, Lahiri 68-73-70, Smyth 72-66-68; Rd. 3 total: -3)
2 (-15) – OKGC (Gooch 69-63-69, Kokrak 68-70-69, McDowell 68-71-73, Varner III 68-69-68; Rd. 3 total: -1)
3 (-12) – Ripper GC (Smith 67-68-68, Leishman 69-68-68, Herbert 71-66-69; Smylie 71-69-74; Rd. 3 total: -1)
ROUND 3 NOTES
TOP-HEAVY WINNERS’ LEADERBOARD: Of nan apical 10 players aft 54 holes astatine Asiad Country Club, 8 person won a cumulative 25 LIV Golf individual tourney titles – Joaquin Niemann (T1) pinch seven; Bryson DeChambeau (T6) pinch five; Talor Gooch (T1) pinch four; Cameron Smith (T4) and Dustin Johnson (T6) pinch 3 each; and Charles Howell III (T4), Harold Varner III (T9) and Marc Leishman (T9) pinch 1 triumph each.
The only 2 players wrong nan apical 10 without a LIV Golf triumph are Scott Vincent (solo 3rd) and Ben Campbell (T6).
Although Asiad Country Club has not been an easy people to people on, it whitethorn return an fierce mindset Sunday to triumph nan title. "You've sewage to support making birdies," Howell said. "You've sewage to support pushing forward. There are excessively galore bully players up there."
Gooch has ever leaned connected nan "rule of 67" erstwhile it comes to play occurrence – sprout 67 each information and bully things happen. But will 67 beryllium capable connected Sunday? "When you spot a leaderboard pinch guys for illustration this," Gooch said, "you consciousness for illustration you've sewage to do much than 67."
NIEMANN’S BIG BREAKER: Joaquin Niemann rolled successful a birdie putt astatine nan 14th spread from 34 feet that had astatine slightest 10 feet of right-to-left break. Even he knew it was a typical putt.
"14 was a beautiful putt," he said. "As soon arsenic I deed it, I benignant of knew. Every clip you've sewage that emotion of hitting a awesome stroke, you tin perceive nan sound, and instantly you cognize it's going to beryllium a large chance to spell in, and it was 1 of those that I was truthful into it, and I deed a bully putt. It was correct connected my line, and I saw it perfectly, I was conscionable stepping it in. There was obscurity other to go."
GOOCH TO WATCH THUNDER: Talor Gooch’s hometown NBA team, nan defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, are group for an epic Game 7 successful nan Western Conference finals against San Antonio, pinch nan victor moving connected to nan NBA Finals.
Thanks to nan clip area differences, Gooch will beryllium capable to watch nan crippled successful its entirety connected TV, since it originates astatine 9 a.m. Sunday successful Korea. The last information of LIV Golf Korea does not statesman until 1:05 p.m. locally.
"I decidedly get much tense for Thunder games, important Thunder games, than astir thing else," Gooch said. "Ironically tomorrow mightiness beryllium a bully point to watch nan Thunder and benignant of get immoderate of my nerves retired of my strategy earlier we tee it off. But I will beryllium watching each of it."
RAHM’S STREAK ENDS: Legion XIII Captain Jon Rahm, nan reigning two-time Individual Champion and existent points leader, saw his streak of consecutive rounds nether par extremity astatine 40 aft shooting a 1-over 71 connected Saturday.
Rahm suffered a bogey connected his last hole, nan par-5 fourth, to break nan streak. He enters nan last information tied for 25th astatine 1 under; he has ne'er vanished little than 11th successful immoderate LIV Golf tourney that he’s completed.
SMITH’S DRIVING ACCURACY: Cameron Smith deed 12 of 14 fairways connected Saturday, tying pinch Ian Poulter for nan champion percent successful nan section astatine 85.71%. It’s nan first clip nan Ripper GC skipper has ever classed first successful driving accuracy aft immoderate LIV Golf information and is different motion that his crippled is headed successful nan correct guidance aft his caller move to Claude Harmon III arsenic his plaything coach.
CONVERTING LEADS: Co-leader Joaquin Niemann will return nan lead into nan last information of a LIV Golf tourney for nan sixth time; he has converted 4 of nan erstwhile 5 into wins. His chap co-leader Talor Gooch enters nan last information pinch nan lead for nan seventh time; he’s converted 3 of nan erstwhile six into wins.
DECHAMBEAU LEVELS OFF: Bryson DeChambeau opened nan tourney connected Thursday by playing nan first 10 holes successful 6 under. He has since played nan past 44 holes astatine moreover par. He has recovered conscionable 50% of fairways and 61% of greens successful regularisation done nan first 3 rounds.
STATS LEADERS
Round 3
Driving Distance: Jon Rahm, 339.4-yard avg.
Longest Drive: Jon Rahm, 379.1 yards (11th hole). Official measured drives taken only connected holes 11 and 12.
Driving Accuracy: Cameron Smith, Ian Poulter, 85.71% (12 of 14)
Greens successful Regulation: Cameron Smith, Laurie Canter, Bubba Watson, 88.89% (16 of 18)
Scrambling: Nine players tied astatine 100%, led by Ian Poulter (8 of 8)
Fewest Putts: Danny Lee, 23
Bogey-free rounds: Dustin Johnson (64), Ben Campbell (66), Abraham Ancer (66), Bubba Watson (67), Cameron Smith (68), Talor Gooch (69)
Cumulative
Driving Distance: David Puig, 311.8-yard avg.
Driving Accuracy: Ben Campbell, 80.95% (34 of 42)
Greens successful Regulation: Joaquin Niemann, Laurie Canter, 79.63% (43 of 54)
Scrambling: Charl Schwartzel (15 of 18), 83.33%
Fewest Putts: Bryson DeChambeau, Thomas Pieters, Ian Poulter, Yosuke Asaji, Danny Lee, 80
Lowest Rounds: Rd. 1 – Bryson DeChambeau, Charles Howell III, Scott Vincent (65); Rd 2 – Talor Gooch (63); Rd. 3 – Dustin Johnson (64)
This portion is courtesy of Mike McAllister successful business pinch LIV Golf.
