Source :- PERTH NOW NEWS
Lucas Herbert is enjoying a purple patch in his career and once again the Australian has taken advantage of his red-hot form to be in contention at LIV Golf New York.
The 30-year-old fired a five-under 66 in Bedminster on Friday to move within two of leader Joaquin Niemann after the opening round.
In spite of finding the rough with his drive at the last, Herbert birdied the par-five 18th to close in on playing partner Niemann who made par.
It was a warning signal to 2023 Australian Open winner Niemann about the rich vein in form Herbert is experiencing, as the Bendigo-born star added another bogey-free round to his resume.
Herbert has gone an amazing 62 holes in LIV Golf without dropping a shot – a stat that helps underline his recent dominance in the series and explains his record-breaking 30-under total to win LIV Golf United Kingdom.
Before that he finished tied sixth at the Open, his best finish in a major where he also shot a 62 in the second round to tie the low round in major championship history, and won LIV Golf Virginia with a 24-under score.
Niemann, 27, is chasing his ninth LIV Golf individual title and his second of the year following a five-win season in 2025.
“(My putter) worked out pretty well today,” Niemann said. “Yeah, feel good. Just keep doing my routine. I feel like every time I keep doing the same thing, just seeing my lines, sticking to my routine, and then see if it goes in. It went in today.”
Veteran Ian Poulter joins Herbert in second spot at five-under, the 50-year-old Englishman still chasing his first LIV win.
“I’m hitting good golf shots,” said Poulter. “I feel like I’m rolling the ball really well. You need to shoot these scores on these type of golf courses. This is a long golf course for me.”
Brendan Steele and Thomas Pieters of Belgium are tied for fourth at three-under 68. Bubba Watson, Harold Varner III, Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe and Lee Westwood of England are another shot back in a tie for sixth.
Travis Smyth and Marc Leishmann are the next best Australians at even par.
Niemann’s 64 anchored the team he captains, Torque GC, which tops the standings at four-under. They lead by three the all-Australian Ripper GC and HyFlyers GC.
Team Ripper captain Cameron Smith – the individual winner the last time Bedminster hosted a LIV event in 2023 – struggled to a four-over 75.
Bryson DeChambeau imploded for a five-over 76.
with Reuters
