Fireballs, Garcia claim wins at LIV Golf Hong Kong
HONG KONG: Sergio Garcia and his red-hot Fireballs GC team captured both trophies on Sunday at LIV Golf Hong Kong, while HyFlyers GC Captain Phil Mickelson appears to have recaptured his Hall of Fame form.
For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport
Led by their captain Garcia, the Fireballs have now won back-to-back tournaments, having claimed LIV Golf Adelaide last month. They will head to next week's LIV Golf Singapore presented by Aramco seeking to become the first LIV Golf team to win three consecutive tournaments since the league expanded to a full 14-tournament schedule in 2023.
Garcia shot a bogey-free 7-under 63 to finish at 18 under and claim the individual title by three shots over hard-charging Dean Burmester, whose 62 was the low round of the day. Garcia, who finished third in the season-long Individual Championship race last season, moved atop the points standings after the first three events in 2025.
The 45-year-old Garcia played the final hole on Sunday with a comfortable individual lead but needed to make par to avoid dropping into a team playoff with Burmester's Stinger GC. Facing a lengthy birdie putt, he rolled it to within tap-in range to seal the Fireballs' sixth LIV Golf team title in club history. They climbed atop the season-long team standings by 10 points over Legion XIII.
'It was nice to see not only that I was doing well and leading the tournament, but my teammates were playing great,' said Garcia, who follows teammate Abraham Ancer as individual champions in Hong Kong. 'They were keeping us there with a chance to win. Obviously when you can pull the double, it's a lot sweeter than if it's just one of them. Very proud of them.'
The Fireballs and Stingers appeared headed for a playoff until Luis Masaveu, the 22-year-old Spaniard signed by Garcia in the offseason, birdied his final hole, the short par-4 10th. 'It feels incredible,' said Masaveu. '… Very happy for the team to be able to hole that putt and help them.'
Masaveu shot an even-par 70, with Ancer shooting 65 and David Puig a bogey-free 67 for a three-day team total of 37 under. The South African Stingers shot 17 under as a team Sunday to finish one shot back. Mickelson's HyFlyers GC tied for third at 34 under with Cameron Smith's Ripper GC, the reigning Team Champions. It was the HyFlyers' third podium result in team history.
Individually, Mickelson finished solo third after his 64 left him at 14 under. It is the first podium finish for the 54-year-old Mickelson since joining LIV Golf as an original member in 2022, and it could not have come at a better time with golf's first major just a month away at the Masters.
'The fact is, I'm hitting a lot of good shots. I'm playing some good golf,' said Mickelson, who has won three of his six majors at Augusta National. 'This is a building week as I continue to build into LIV and my goal of accomplishing a win in LIV as well as winning another major or getting ready for Augusta.'
Garcia is also a past Masters champion, and his form has been superb for more than a year. Since the start of the 2024 LIV Golf season, he has two wins, three other runner-up finishes, and 13 top 20s in the last 16 LIV Golf regular season events, including 10 straight after Hong Kong.
He entered Sunday's final round with a share of the lead but made an early statement by holing a lengthy eagle putt at the par-5 third after finding the green in two with a 6-iron. That gave him a two-shot lead, which he never relinquished.
'It really got me in a good mood,' Garcia said of the eagle. 'I was very focused on what I wanted to do. But obviously when that happens, it gets you going even more.'
Always one of golf's best ball-strikers, Garcia's putting was dialed in at Hong Kong Golf Club, as he ranked third in the field in fewest putts during the week after switching to one of his old putters.
'I played with him yesterday,' Masaveu said. 'He's a machine.'
Asked if Garcia with a hot putter is as good as it gets in professional golf, Ancer offered a one-word response: 'Yes.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Arab News
3 days ago
- Arab News
Bryson DeChambeau chips his way into tie for lead at LIV Golf Virginia
GAINESVILLE, Virginia.: Bryson DeChambeau chipped in for an eagle and a birdie on his way to a 5-under par 66, and he shares the first-round lead with Germany's Martin Kaymer at LIV Golf Virginia on Friday in Gainesville, Virginia DeChambeau shot up the leaderboard after a brief weather delay, eagling the par-5 14th and birdieing each of the next two holes at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club. His chip at No. 14 was a soft placement next to a slope, and his ball rolled from right to left right into the cup. At the par-4 16th, he missed the green and chopped his third shot out of some thick rough, only to watch his ball head straight to the pin and disappear again. 'Man, what's nice is coming out into some soft conditions,' DeChambeau said. 'That little chip shot became a hell of a lot easier for me. So I just chipped it out to the right exactly what I saw. I don't know if you saw, but I was studying it before I left. I was like this looks perfect, came out, still looks perfect, hit it exactly where I wanted it to land, and it went right in the frickin' hole.' DeChambeau is tuning up to defend his title at the US Open next week at Oakmont Country Club. He is one of several LIV members who either were invited by the USGA or qualified for the third major of the year the old-fashioned way. Marc Leishman of Australia tied for third at the qualifying site in nearby Rockville, Md., on Monday, grabbing one of four spots available there. Leishman turned around and shot a 67 on Friday. Leishman is tied for third with Phil Mickelson, who may play in his final US Open next week; Jon Rahm of Spain, who will search for his third career major win; Joaquin Niemann of Chile, who received the USGA's first special invite based on LIV performance; Anirban Lahiri of India; and Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland. RangeGoats GC teammates Bubba Watson and Peter Uihlein are tied at 3 under with Patrick Reed and Belgium's Thomas Pieters, both of 4Aces. RangeGoats lead the team competition at 9 under par, two shots better than 4Aces and DeChambeau's team, Crushers GC.
Arab News
27-05-2025
- Arab News
Nicklaus surprised by McIlroy skipping his PGA Memorial event
WASHINGTON: Jack Nicklaus said Tuesday that he was surprised Masters winner Rory McIlroy did not tell him in advance that he was not playing in this week's Nicklaus-hosted PGA Memorial tournament. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport Nicklaus, an 18-time major winner, predicted McIlroy's triumph last month at Augusta National after hitting his own ceremonial opening tee shot. Nicklaus said he has not heard from McIlroy since the Northern Ireland star captured his fifth major title and first Masters to complete a career Grand Slam. McIlroy will miss the Memorial for the first time since 2017, instead playing next week's Canadian Open as his tuneup for the following week's US Open at Oakmont. 'I didn't have a conversation with him, no,' Nicklaus said, calling that 'a little bit' of a surprise. 'It surprised me. But guys have got schedules and got things they do. And I haven't talked to him for him to tell me why or why not. It's just his call,' Nicklaus said. 'I made a lot of calls that I had to make when I played to play or not play... sometimes you have to make those calls. 'I don't hold anything against Rory for that. I know he likes to play so many in a row. He likes to play the week before a US Open. And so that's what he's doing. 'I mean, I'm a big Rory fan, I always have been. I'm sure that I will remain that way. I just, I was a little surprised, yes.' Nicklaus said he had no problem about McIlroy not giving him advance warning about his absence. 'I'm not going to throw Rory under the bus. I like Rory too much,' said Nicklaus. 'He's got to make his own calls on things. Could he have done 'em differently? Probably. But that's all right. I probably could have done some of mine differently too. So I'm not complaining about Rory.' Nicklaus said he sent McIlroy a congratulatory letter shortly after the Masters victory last month. 'I told him I don't think anybody has won by having four double bogeys,' Nicklaus said. 'And I said, 'But that just showed me how much talent you have to overcome that to win and how you played some unbelievably spectacular shots. 'I was very happy for him. It was a great win.'
Arab News
14-05-2025
- Arab News
Bryson DeChambeau: A little luck, a lot of skill needed to pull out major wins
CHARLOTTE, North Carolina: Phil Mickelson and Brooks Koepka are the LIV Golf members who've had the most major success in their careers, with six and five titles, respectively. But these days, the best bet from that league to win a major is Bryson DeChambeau. For the latest updates, follow us @ArabNewsSport DeChambeau returned to the winner's circle and captured his second US Open last year when he outlasted Rory McIlroy down the stretch. Besides that, he's been in contention more consistently than ever, with a tie for fifth at the Masters last month and a runner-up finish to Xander Schauffele at the 2024 PGA Championship. Only McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler have shorter odds than DeChambeau at most major sportsbooks to win the PGA Championship this week at Quail Hollow. 'This is exciting times,' DeChambeau told reporters Tuesday. 'I'm playing some good golf. Hopefully that continues this week. Figured a couple things out with my golf swing. Putting really well. Love the golf course this week.' The 31-year-old has finished in the top six at four of the past five majors, the lone exception coming at the Open Championship last July. 'I feel like I've always had the capacity to play well in major championships and contend consistently,' DeChambeau said. 'A lot of things have to go right in majors for you to play well. Your whole game has to be on.' At Valhalla Golf Club in 2024, DeChambeau went toe to toe with Schauffele and posted a 64 on Sunday to get to 20 under. However, Schauffele did him one better with a birdie at the par-5 18th to win the major. 'A little bit of luck and one or two shots going your way, you making a putt from 7, 8 feet,' DeChambeau said. 'There's going to be numerous players that are playing well this week that are going to have a chance. ... A little bit of fortune but also paired with a lot of skill over 72 holes of golf. 'You have to combine all that together to have a chance to win. That's what Xander did so well last year. I didn't get the job done because of one or two shots. Just is what it is.' DeChambeau, who has slimmed down since chasing longer drives by adding muscle mass in 2020 and 2021, also has a better handle on the mental side of the game these days. Amid his victories and his close calls, he said he has worked on how he reacts to pressure to 'set that back to straight and square' for next time. 'All those emotions that I have and all the misses that I have and all the things that I'm thinking about, I layer it on over the course of time,' he explained. ''Is this gone or is it still there? How do I fix it if it's not fixed?' Then if it's fixed, let's move on to the next thing I need to tackle.' DeChambeau was in the final group with McIlroy on Sunday at the Masters and grabbed the lead away from him after two holes. But DeChambeau faded in a final-round 75, and the Northern Irishman rallied to win his fifth major and complete the career Grand Slam. Earlier this month, DeChambeau picked up his third individual LIV Golf win in South Korea by going 65-66-66, including a back-nine 30 on Sunday to emerge from the pack. 'It was very important for me to get the job done, and finishing off shooting 30 on the back nine gave me some confidence to know I can get it done under pressure,' DeChambeau said. 'Struggling on the front nine was not the right way for me to feel going into that last round, but that back nine kind of shored things up for me and kept me pretty comfortable. Very positive.'
