Graeme McDowell is looking forward to a top shelf bottle of wine after he made a second hole in one in as many weeks at LIV Golf Singapore.
McDowell’s second ace of the season came at the par-3 2nd when he launched a 9-iron towards the flag. It stopped quickly and rolled into the hole. His celebrations were muted as he didn’t see the ball disappear!
“I just missed a shorty on 1, was trying to stay nice and patient, and I hit a lovely 9-iron right at the hole on 2, shouting for it to go, and then some sweat came down and blurred my eyes and I didn’t even see it go in. It cost me a very expensive bottle of wine last week in Hong Kong, and I guess it’s going to cost me another very expensive bottle of wine, which I look forward to.”
McDowell had to settle for a one-under 70 to sit on three-under, seven shots behind Bryson DeChambeau.
Entering Friday, DeChambeau found himself tied atop a bunched leaderboard. After shooting the round of the week, a second-round 6-under 65, he sits at 10 under through 36 holes. The Crushers GC captain enters the weekend with a three-shot lead over a robust chasing pack.
After beginning his second round with back-to-back pars, DeChambeau birdied the third, fourth and eighth holes, making the turn in 32 strokes. His back nine was smooth-sailing until the par-4 15th, when he overdrew an iron off the tee into the harbor. After taking a drop, he scrambled for a hard-earned bogey, protecting his lead in the process. DeChambeau bounced back immediately, making a birdie on the 16th. For the round, he finished with a total of six birdies, an eagle and the lone bogey on 15.
“Focus on my golf, what I can control,” said DeChambeau of his mindset entering the weekend. “I know it’s cliche, but you can’t get too wrapped up with what everybody else is doing and making sure I’m starting it on my lines the way I need to and rolling the putts on my lines like I need to. Barring that, I think I can give myself a good chance.”
DeChambeau’s closest competitors are three shots back at 7-under and include Thomas Detry, Jon Rahm, Louis Oosthuizen, Lee Westwood and Richard T. Lee.
Detry of 4Aces GC is fresh off a runner-up finish at HSBC LIV Golf Hong Kong and has carried that momentum into the week in Singapore. His round included a chip-in eagle on the 18th hole (his 16th of the day) off the back of the green from 40 yards away.
The Belgian in embracing the tough golf course and remains confident heading into the final two rounds. “I’m up for the challenge,” he said. “It’s definitely a challenge out there, so anything under par is pretty good, and I managed to do that pretty well.”
Hong Kong winner Rahm continues to lurk dangerously on the leaderboard. The Legion XIII captain made 11 consecutive pars from holes 5 to 17 before finishing his round with a birdie on the par-5 18th to finish at 7 under.
“I played really good today. Felt like I played actually significantly better than yesterday, just little margins,” Rahm said. “Couldn’t really make many putts out there today. Made that one on 6 and from then on missed a lot of birdie chances.”
Oosthuizen shot a 4-under 67 that included six birdies and two bogeys. The Southern Guards GC captain has been fueled by a hot putter and ranks 5th in the field in Strokes Gained Putting at the halfway stage.
“I tried to give myself as many birdie putts as possible,” said Oosthuizen. “I felt I saw the greens really good today, the lines, and rolled the putter really good.”
Westwood, in just his second start after returning from a wrist injury, continues to play steady golf. The Majesticks Golf Club co-captain shot a 3-under 68 that included five birdies and two bogeys.
Lee, who’s looking to become the first LIV Golf Wild Card to finish better than 12th in a tournament, shot a 3-under 68.
Matthew Wolff, Marc Leishman and Charles Howell III all shot 3-under 68s as well and are four shots back of DeChambeau at 6 under.
On the team leaderboard, the Crushers GC surged to the top after carding a cumulative 10 under for the day. They hold a three-shot lead over the first-round leaders, Legion XIII. The champions from Hong Kong, 4Aces GC, are just one shot back of Legion XIII and four shots behind the Crushers.
Tom McKibbin is one-under after a 72.
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